No Charisma Here

Let's start with a first approximation. Well known movie stars have it. "Everyone knows" who is Clint Eastwood, Cary Grant and Humphrey Bogart. Charisma is not the same thing as sex appeal, as sex appeal usually involves being drawn to women who arouse sexual desire. Maybe that is the reason that men are more often assigned charisma than women; i.e., maybe sex appeal is the feminine form of charisma. Yet there are women who are charismatic, who have an electric presence; for example, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jacqueline Kennedy Onasses and Elizabeth Taylor. Julia Roberts may have it.

Charisma is a public phenomenon, not something that happens in bed. It involves a social perception of being the center of attention, of having an invisible glow that attracts. As the center of attention, the charismatic is immediately the leader of a group, whether or not otherwise deserving. I am quite sure the reason we have a Bandit President is the charisma he throws off among his nominators; i.e., Conservatives who know him believe he is charismatic, so they put him forward. Among some people, even Dick Cheney is charismatic. Very few Democratic leaders are charismatic, although Sen. Kennedy has some of it and Howard Dean has more of it. Bill Clinton definitely had a lot of it. Our Governator, Ahhnold, got elected on account of it. All that suggests charisma has something to do with power, machismo.

Charisma usually doesn't last, although it can be long lived among movie stars. The aura around movie stars depends on their acted roles in a drama. Who can forget The Hump and Hepburn in The African Queen? Or Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca? On the other hand, most public personas fade with time, tarnished by the sulfur of scandal or humbug performances. The bubble of charisma lasts only as long as it is not pierced or tested too severely. The myth of Camelot survives, I think, on account of Jackie, not Jack; especially now that we know about Jack's electoral manipulations and pecadillos. But, most of those who were once charismatic are now "who?" Once the aura fades away, it usually unrecoverable. Once we see the person, the face, we always see that face even when obscured by veils.
 

I think having charisma has something to do with being young and lithe. People are naturally attracted to babies and children, which may be centers of attention because that improves survival of the species. Adults that pay attention to their children are more likely to have children that survive. Children have a number of adorable features, such as lots of energy and baby fat. I think charismatic people often have those traits as well. Children seldom express their own thoughts, but demonstrate their feelings in a number of ways such as toughing and hugging as well as screaming and temper tantrums. Bad behavior is often dismissed as "cute" among charismatics and children, unless it is very, very bad. We excuse a lot of children's antics, because we feel they are incapable of doing anything else. Charismatics are probably perceived as emoting, not thinking, like children.

I am reminded of a doctrine in evolutionary biology, that speciation is accomplished by regression to an earlier state. Thus, modern human children look more like very young chimps than the adults of either species look like each other or their offspring. We started on the road to what we are by a failure to develop fully into apelike adults; we remained juveniles. From the juvenile ape condition, we eventually developed specializations exemplified in human adults. This idea suggests that those having charisma retain juvenile characteristics, which then draws our attention. I think most charismatics are fairly young adults. The attribute is usually lost as one ages, which coincides with the regression to juvenile form scenario.
 

I've known a few people who were once considered charismatic by others. I don't think any of them are so considered now. More than that, charismatics attract a following, but not everyone shares that feeling. When many people were oohng and aahing Jack Kennedy, I was turned off by his antics. I was aware of the seamy side of Kennedy life before the Presidential candidacy, so could not see his aura. So, charisma is not a universal characteristic.
 

Charisma up close does not compel. When I became acquainted with a few people considered charismatic, their glow disappeared at close range. Perhaps charisma requires viewing against a certain background that emphasizes contrast. Maybe the thin glow disappears when strongly illuminated, or when one is close enough to be within it. In our everyday doings, we do not see Earth's atmosphere, but astronauts see it clearly once they rise beyond a certain altitude. Very far away, Earth is a charming lure for us Earthlings, while here on the ground we only see worms and snails and rocks. So there is an inverse range to charisma, which attracts from afar, becoming invisible when near.
 

Does charisma inhere in the bearer? I don't know, but doubt it. The reason for my doubt is simply that not everyone appreciates it. The charismatic is perceived to have charming qualities. This strongly suggests something within the viewers is in play. Probably the charismatic has some cues that "turn on" those prepared to react to them, so it is a dyadic relationship. But the cues cannot be too specific, since large numbers of people are usually attracted to the same person. In my terminology, I would explain the phenomenon as "cultural," because culture is someting shared in groups. Turning the idea around, this suggests charismatics - who could be anyone - are useful criteria for dividing people into cultural groups. I would want to know what it is about the culture  that causes the group to perceive charisma?
 

Finally, should we choose and follow economic, political and social leaders based on charisma? Certainly not. If there is any lesson in our modern era - History since the Renaissance - it is not to place trust or grant power based on emotion. The American Founding Fathers understood that very well, and attempted to found their system on Reason. They also chained us to the mast with the so-called "checks and balances," which were designed to prevent us from hearing the songs of Scylla.
 

The very first thing people entranced by charisma should do immediately, is go home and take a long, cold shower.