Story

Abstract

The first full chapter, “Story,” presents the central thesis of the book: Donald Trump has never developed an inner story in his mind to explain who he is and how he came to be. Refusing to be introspective, retrospective, or prospective, Trump lives outside of time, as an episodic man. Each moment in life presents Trump with a battle that he must win. But the battles do not add up; his psychological existence is, and always has been, continual warfare with no end in sight and no long-term reason to fight, except to win. The chapter describes psychological research on people’s inner life stories—their narrative identity—and takes the reader through early years in Trump’s life, leading up to his decision to collaborate on the writing of his first book, The Art of the Deal.