Narcissism in the mind's I

I've decided to start putting some of my blog posts from Philosophy Bear here as well, particularly those with special relevance to this community.Something many have observed is how intensely narcissistic the inner voice is, along with related phenomena like fantasies etc. This seems to be often true even in perfectly thoughtful, kind people.The inner voice is, I think, often more narcissistic not just than action, but feeling. If I learn something sad, I feel at least a little sad, but then over the top of it there’s a yattering voice going “what’s this mean for you though?”I think this might be what led La Rochefoucauld and similar writers astray into far too cynical a view of human nature, e.g.:“We all have strength enough to endure the misfortunes of others.”“In the adversity of our best friends we often find something that is not displeasing to us.”“The refusal of praise is only the wish to be praised twice.”“Gratitude is merely the secret hope of further favors.”“The love of justice is, in most men, only the fear of suffering injustice.”Cynical moralists have equated this plotting, scheming voice with the true self, rather than revealed preference. Adam Smith plots a wiser course here. Everyone knows this passage from him:Let us suppose that the great empire of China, with all its myriads of inhabitants, was suddenly swallowed up by an earthquake, and let us consider how a man of humanity in Europe, who had no sort of connection with that part of the world, would be affected upon receiving intelligence of this dreadful calamity. He would, I imagine, first of all, express very strongly his sorrow for the misfortune of that unhappy people, he would make many melancholy reflections upon the precariousness of human life, and the vanity of all the labours of man, which could thus be annihilated in a moment. He would too, perhaps, if he was a man of speculation, enter into many reasonings concerning the effects which this disaster might produce upon the commerce of