Ego

Wikipedia

To be an artist you have to be somewhat egotistic. You can claim to be above praise and criticism but even that is slightly narcissistic. 'I have so much confidence in my work your words mean nothing.'

My approach to this prompt has changed course. My first response on Friday evening whilst looking at Kathy's sketchbook was to listen to this 'Strange Fruit,' a haunting account of lynchings in the Deep South.

Later that evening I had a long conversation with my friend about egotism at a folk gig in Bankside. We spoke about Facebook, celebrity, and privacy. The two ideas convened in my head, there is a narcissism to racism after all. 

The song is about the behaviour egotism breeds, or how egotism breeds egotism. Or possibly even how egotism can produce nice things. Or terrible things. It's a lot of feeling hidden behind a jaunty folk tune.

Caravaggio's Narcissus