History Main / PsychologicalProjection

* In act III of ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'', Monika begins talking about the ''{{yandere}}'' archetype. She mentions that it seems to describe one of the members of the club...that being [[spoiler:Yuri, who became violently obsessive over the protagonist in the previous act. However, Yuri only [[SelfHarm harms herself]], so her ''yandere'' status is debatable; whereas Monika has "[[MurderTheHypotenuse deleted]]" [[KillEmAll all other members]] by this point, and is both extremely {{narcissist}}ic and [[ClingyJealousGirl extremely jealous]] over the player]].

* ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'': Locus tends to assume that people he feels are similar to him have a similar 'JustFollowingOrders' thought process. Agent Washington regrets that period of his life, Sigma (and by extension, the Meta) wanted to BecomeARealBoy instead of becoming a weapon, and Agent Maine before Sigma drove him mad followed orders because he believed they served the greater good; he felt that following orders blindly would make him a slave instead of a soldier. Wash eventually catches on and bluntly spells out that Locus's projection is just an excuse to not confront the guilt for everything he's done.

* ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyTrialsAndTribulations'', the reason Godot is a [[JerkassToOne Jerkass to Phoenix only]] is because he blames Phoenix for [[spoiler: [[FailureToSaveMurder failing to protect his mentor Mia]]]] ([[MisplacedRetribution despite Phoenix bringing the true culprit to justice]]). Godot actually blames ''himself'' for the same, [[spoiler: as he was in a coma when Mia was killed]], but he doesn't actually admit that to himself until late in the game.

** He initially accuses the TVA of being a fraud, the weak who claim divinity and who've conjured a cruel elaborate trick to control others through fear. [[spoiler:After seeing the recording of the future events of his life and his eventual death, the disillusioned and broken Loki repeats this diatribe word for word, but now he is refering to ''himself''.]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'': Kakeru Kamisato absolutely hates suddenly gaining a superpower and being compelled to use it to save people. He [[IJustWantToBeNormal believes it to be a curse]] and tries to become normal again by attacking the beings he believes are responsible for empowering him. When he learns of [[TheHero Touma Kamijou]] and his similar ability, he automatically assumes Touma feels the same way and tries to get him to join forces in his goal, and is thrown for a loop when Touma explains that powers or no powers, he's all about saving and protecting people.
* This trope forms a central criticism surrounding the character Magsarion in ''LightNovel/AvestaOfBlackAndWhite''. The younger brother of the great hero Varhman, following his death, now has everyone saddling him with being their beacon of hope and constantly project their assumptions onto him. He is left to reject all that his brother was just to try and be his own person, and yet people around him keep ignoring his true self, constantly assuming they know all about him and what he is thinking when nothing could be further from the truth. This in turn only ends up fueling his hatred.
* ''Manga/DomesticGirlfriend'': Subverted in the first chapter. When Natsuo looks at Rui, he sees Hina, his teacher he has a crush on. He acknowledges that he's projecting and ignores it. The truth is that Rui is Hina's little sister, [[StrongFamilyResemblance and they genuinely look very similar]]. Natsuo finds this out after his father remarries to Rui and Hina's mother, making them his step-sisters. [[SurpriseIncest This is after he had sex with Rui and confessed his love to Hina]].
* ''Franchise/DragonBall'':
** During the Cell Saga, Goku ends up doing this to Gohan, automatically assuming that Gohan, in addition to his potential as a fighter, [[BloodKnight wants a good and]] [[NoChallengeEqualsNoSatisfaction challenging fight with Cell]] purely because it's what he would do in such a situation, going so far as to [[HonorBeforeReason give Cell a Senzu Bean before the fight]]. It takes getting a major WhatTheHellHero from Piccolo (who by this point understands Gohan more than his own father), and seeing the danger he's put Gohan in firsthand, for Goku to realize that this is ''not'' the case.
** When you think about it, this is at least partially what Frieza's obsession with fear is all about. Frieza enjoys taking the time to install fear and horror in others, but when we see his actions, such as blowing up Planet Vegeta to make sure no one opposes him, he shows that deep inside, Frieza is nothing but [[DirtyCoward a coward utterly terrified of the possibility someone would grow strong enough to face him on even terms]], and in his fight with Super Saiyan Goku, where he blows up Namek in desperation to kill Goku, combined with his frantic attempts to kill him and shamelessly begging for his life when he's bifurcated by his own attack, it's all the more obvious.
** ''Anime/DragonBallSuper'': Throughout the Future Trunks Saga, Zamasu constantly condemns mortals for being warlike, destructive, all about conflict, and sinful with disrespect to everything the gods stand for; when it comes down to it, the only one who's as twisted as Zamasu claims the mortals are is Zamasu himself, considering the fact that, among other things, he [[spoiler: cut down an inhabitant of Planet Babari when he could have simply walked away, murdered his own master and stole his Time Rings and Potaras for his plan, and went so far as to kill all of the other gods in TheMultiverse of Future Trunks' AlternateTimeline to prevent them from interfering]]. It's especially jarring since, as a Supreme Kai, Zamasu is supposed to be a BigGood who protects and watches over mortals.
** Goku Black partakes in this just as much as Zamasu, his [[spoiler: former and future selves]], prattling on about how mortals are violent, destructive creatures who cannot learn from their mistakes and are inflexible in their ways. All of this coming from the person who is fanatically and unbendingly obsessed with annihilating all mortal-kind, [[AxCrazy completely and utterly insane and a danger to everyone around him]] barring [[spoiler: literally himself]], and whose first actions [[spoiler: upon taking Goku's body to fulfill his mad quest for power being to gruesomely murder him, his wife and youngest son, just as a final insult to the man [[DisproportionateRetribution for bruising his ego.]]]]
* ''Manga/FruitsBasket'':
** Akito Sohma treats other women [[FemaleMisogynist like her worst enemy]] because she's projecting her demented AbusiveMom onto them. This is especially evident in her cruelty towards poor Rin because the latter's long black hair heavily reminds Akito of Ren, to the point Akito first gave her the nickname "Rin" because it sounds like Ren.
** Yuki's [[MyBelovedSmother mother]] says she must decide everything for Yuki because she thinks he's self-centered, selfish, and unreasonable. Considering she views Yuki as nothing but a TrophyChild she can use to get wealth and status, openly calls him a tool who doesn't ''get'' to have dreams or wishes of his own, and gets angry to the point she states outright she never should have given birth to him simply because he's not acting like her mindless puppet, those three words are a better description for her than they ever will be for Yuki.
* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', during the Water 7 arc, the crew learned that the ''Going Merry'', the Straw Hats' first ship, had been damaged beyond repair in their previous adventure and Luffy reluctantly decided to replace it. Usopp, who had been in the crew as long as the ''Merry'' and had recently gotten [[CurbStompBattle curbstomped]] by a group of bounty hunters whom the rest of the crew managed to beat with ease, started projecting himself onto the ship, desperately and angrily insisting that the ''Merry'' could be fixed and that Luffy getting a new ship was akin to abandoning a crew mate for being weak.
* ''LightNovel/TheRisingOfTheShieldHero'':
** One bad experience after another with the royal family members, King Aultcray and Princess Malty, leads the titular hero, Naofumi, initially projecting his feelings of animosity onto the second princess Melty, immediately thinking she was untrustworthy and was secretly planning to set him up, due to being related to Aultcray and Malty, the two who placed a FalseRapeAccusation on him and continued to dog his steps. This is despite Melty presenting herself as a genuinely kind hearted princess when they first met, and even personally intervening to prevent Malty and Motoyasu from forcing Naofumi to fight a duel with the latter in the middle of a public area just moments prior. Naofumi does eventually realize his mistake and now sees her as trusted ally and friend.
** Aultcray himself projects his IrrationalHatred of the Shield Hero in general and [[FantasticRacism his hatred of demi-humans]] onto Naofumi, which led to him to try and ruin the latter's life and reputation as much as possible. Not helping was the King's eldest daughter manipulating him into continuously making life hard for the new Shield Hero. This, as well as his incompetence in watching over Melromarc, catch up to him when his wife Queen Mirelia strips him and Malty of their royal status and allows Naofumi to legally change their names to "Trash" and "Bitch" respectively.
* This is part of the reason Kazuki becomes TheKindnapper in ''Manga/SnowWhiteWithTheRedHair''. Having previously been made a slave and bought as "decoration" by nobles, similar to what Prince Raj initially had attempted with Shirayuki in the beginning of the manga, Kazuki assumes [[spoiler: she'd appreciate being taken as far away from nobles as possible and goes about doing so by attacking Obi and drugging her to get her away without even trying to talk to her first]].
* In ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'', Kyouji Shinkawa admired his older brother for his ability to kill while he was trapped in SAO. He projects his adulation onto his crush Shino Asada, due to her own past as a killer, despite knowing the fact that she hates being labeled as a killer. When she was younger, she had to kill a bank robber in self-defense, and has regretted it ever since.
* In ''Manga/VampireKnight'', Yuuki thought she and Zero were struggling with the same pain and fears, but when Zero denies it, she says, "I guess I was only seeing myself".
* A variant happens in ''Anime/ZoidsChaoticCentury''. One episode has Reese trying to screw with Fiine, by showing her visions of Van getting shot and killed protecting her, and telling her that Van will die if she stays close to him. [[spoiler:Fiine quickly realizes that those visions are actually Reese's ''own'' memories, of when she was a child and a boy she befriended was killed trying to protect her, and she blames herself for that]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* ''FanFic/AllsFairInLoveAndWarAndTurnaboutsFairPlay'': [[ConsummateLiar Lila]] firmly believes that there's no such thing as friendship -- instead, all relationships boil down to people trying to manipulate each other for their own gain. She also believes that the only real difference between her and Marinette is that her rival is a bit too cautious, and simply lacks the wherewithal to make the kind of bold moves ''she'' does.
%%* Like her mythological counterpart, Hera in ''FanFic/ChildOfTheStorm'' takes out her anger at Zeus cheating on her on his children. And on all other demigods, too.
* ''Fanfic/ChildrenOfRemnant'': Emerald constantly talks about how much Jaune likes Cinder, and how they're obviously going to announce their engagement any day now. The truth is that Emerald is so [[ArmoredClosetGay deep in the closet]] that projecting her own feelings for Cinder onto Jaune is the only way she knows how to deal with them. Jaune does have ''some'' feelings for Cinder (he's a little offended with how quickly she denies being in a relationship with him), but certainly not to the extent that Emerald pretends.
* In ''[[Fanfic/TheLamentSeriesChaoticNeutral Chloe's Lament]]'', Chloe accuses Marinette of being SecretlySelfish, only protecting Paris as Ladybug for admiration and praise while looking down upon the rabble as ''beneath'' her. Adrien calls her out on it -- while ''she'' only cared about being a NominalHero in order to feed her ego, that doesn't mean Marinette shares her motivations. This directly leads to her downfall, as she Wishes to [[RoleSwapAU trade places with her]], expecting to become Ladybug in the new reality while Marinette abuses her position as the Mayor's daughter and is just as despised as ''she'' was... only to find that no, Marinette is just as kind as ever, and she's ''still'' built up a reputation for being a bully. Except now she's in a world where [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections her father's connections]] [[KarmaHoudiniWarranty aren't good enough to protect her from the consequences of her actions]].
* ''Fanfic/FateBlackDawn'':
** Shirou spends quite a lot of time worried about how much he might be projecting his feelings for Arturia onto Morgan. Even Morgan notices that he looks at them in a similar way.
** He also compares Morgan to Rin quite a bit, though that's a less positive association because Rin had become bitter and angry by the time he cast his final ritual.
* ''Fanfic/ForTheGloryOfIrk'': During the lead up to his and Lor's wedding, Dib deflects his nervousness by claiming that he's just worried for Lor, who is ''definitely'' extremely worried about how important the wedding is for Earth/[[TheFederation Syndicate]] relations. Needless to say, no one believes this, and Lor himself is very casual through the whole thing.
* ''Fanfic/{{Fragmentation}}'' points this out as being the dirty secret behind [[PathOfInspiration ComStar]].
-->Historically, men judge others by their own acts. If a man is willing to steal from others, he lives in fear that others will steal from him. Murderers fear being murdered themselves. [=ComStar=]'s greatest fear was that the technological advances that Kerensky had taken with him would one day return in the hands of others, making [=ComStar=] itself obsolete. So when rumors of [[OutsideContextProblem new weapons of types never before seen had surfaced]], weapons that even the Star League hadn't possessed, [=ComStar=] felt an understandable tremor of fear work its way down the backs of the persons responsible for maintaining that edge.
* A unique case in ''Fanfic/HeroChat''. In ''The Winter Gala'', it's confirmed that Lila is aromantic, though not knowing the term exist and unaware that sexual and romantic attraction is real. She sees romance only as a mean to find the right partner to start a family, and sees acts of romances as a flattery display no different that her own [[ConsummateLiar lying]].
* In ''[[Fanfic/NotTheIntendedUseZantetsukenReverse A Game of Cat and Cat]]'', [[VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiI Kazuya]] gets upset when [[VideoGame/{{Castlevania}} Soma]] tells him that he left his friend Mina behind in [[EldritchLocation Castlevania]], until Soma specifies that she stayed in a safe room while he explored dangerous territory. Soma thinks that Kazuya is suffering from SurvivorGuilt because he wasn't there when a loved one died, the same way his past life [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence was away on a Crusade when his wife died]]. However, it's implied that Kazuya is bitter because ''he'' was abandoned; in his game, the Chaos Hero left him and the Law Hero to fend for themselves after fusing with a demon.
* This is one of Alya's {{Fatal Flaw}}s in ''FanFic/LadyBugOut'': While she's quick to believe the worst of Ladybug and Marinette -- that they've ''betrayed'' her by [[StartMyOwn setting up the titular blog]] -- she fails to recognize how [[BetrayalFic her own actions]] set things into motion. This results in her unintentionally describing herself while trying to convince Marinette that ''she'' needs to make amends:
-->'''Alya:''' "I can't be friends with someone who won't apologize and can't even see what she did."\\
'''Marinette:''' "I can't be friends with someone like that either. [[WeUsedToBeFriends So I guess we're not friends anymore]]."
* ''Fanfic/LockedInDigital'': When Todoroki realises Izuku was holding back during the first event of the Sports Festival, he becomes outraged since other people were giving their all and taking the Sports Festival seriously. This is all while Todoroki is still handicapping himself by not using his fire.
* ''FanFic/RosarioVampireBrightestDarkness Act IV'': Hokuto constantly condemns other living things, human and monster alike, for being evil, destructive beings who only care about themselves and will destroy everything around them and attack anything different. Considering the fact that Hokuto's idea of "true peace" amounts to reviving [[EldritchAbomination Alucard]] to [[FinalSolution destroy the world]], as well as the fact that he set Kuyou loose on Yokai Academy, let [[PsychopathicManchild Jovian and Jacqueline]] rape Felucia to [[RapeLeadsToInsanity near-insanity]], and specifically ordered them to kill as many people and destroy as much as Tsukune's hometown as possible in an effort to prove to Moka that his [[StrawNihilist nihilism]] is justified and humans and monsters can never co-exist, when it comes down to it, the only one who's as destructive and evil as Hokuto claims all living things are is Hokuto himself.
* PlayedForDrama in ''[[https://m.fanfiction.net/s/10969652/15/ Sakura's Glasses]], where Sakura has been helping out the Uchia Elders, though she's aware that she is a ReplacementGoldfish for the late Obito who did the same, especially when they gave her his old goggles. When she finds his name on the Memorial Stone, she asks if he helped them because he felt weak and useless, just as she started help them since she felt the same way before hand. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, the still-alive Obito [[RightBehindMe was watching the stone to check on Kakashi]], and seeing her insult him leads him to use a genjutsu to shatter her mind]].
* After learning about Josuke's heritage from Jotaro in ''Fanfic/RemnantsBizarreAdventure'', Yang thinks that Joseph Joestar, Josuke's father, intentionally abandoned both Josuke and his mother Tomoko, just as her own mother Raven abandoned her and her father. [[spoiler:This stops when she learns that Joseph does care for Josuke and wants to get to know him while in Vale, but that only increases Yang's frustration at her birth mother]].
* Why the Hooligans of Berk has so many enemies in the WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon fanfiction ''FanFic/AThingOfVikings''. Many foregn kings can not accept that the Hooligans are peaceful since they themselves would use dragons to wipe out their enemies.
%%* It's very much implied in ''Fanfic/DekiruTheFusionHero'' that one of the reason Izuku's FusionDance Quirk is such a BerserkButton for Shoto Todoroki is that it reminds him of how his father [[DomesticAbuse forced his mother]] into a Quirk Marriage. Notably when he brings up Izuku's Fusions in chapter 14, he only mentions his past fusions with Ochako and Momo and leaves out his fusion with Katsuki.
[[/folder]]

* ''Series/TigerKing'': Jeff Lowe describes his first meeting with Joe Exotic as the latter sizing up "his next victim". While Joe did value his association with Jeff simply for what he assumed Jeff was worth financially, given Jeff's own status as a very skilled ConMan who later took over the zoo entirely, this was probably going through his own mind at the time as well. In the aftershow, he also mocks James Garretson for being a FatBastard (jokingly calling him a "sexy man") despite being an unattractive DirtyOldMan himself who's very insecure about his own baldness.

* ''Series/CSICrimeSceneInvestigation'': In the episode "Genetic Disorder", the VictimOfTheWeek is found in the bedroom of coroner Al Robbins while his wife is in the house. Drawing on his own experience of cheating and divorce, Brass assumes that the wife is having an affair and disregards any of the conflicting evidence until the very end. When the truth becomes apparent, Brass apologizes to Robbins personally for seeing ''his'' marriage in Robbins and letting that cloud his judgement.

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''Videogame/AsurasWrath'': Augus projects his own BloodKnight nature on Asura. Asura, who is fighting to save his daughter and not for fun, is not amused and keeps telling Augus to shut up whenever he tries to [[NotSoDifferentRemark claim they aren't so different]] during their boss battle. In the end, Asura's desire to protect his daughter gives him the strength to defeat Augus. As Augus lays dying, he finally acknowledges that he was wrong about Asura and encourages him to walk his own path.
* ''VideoGame/{{Deltarune}}'': [[EstablishingCharacterMoment When you meet Spamton in Chapter 2]], he seems to be under the impression that Kris is in the same situation he is, a down-on-their luck salesman abandoned by their friends.
-->LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE [[All Alone On A Late Night?]]\\
ALL YOUR FRIENDS, [[Abandoned you for the slime]] YOU ARE?\\
SALES, GONE DOWN THE [[Drain]] [[Drain]]??\\
LIVING IN A GODDAMN GARBAGE CAN???
** If you go for the [[EarnYourBadEnding Weird Route]], Spamton will fight you as the FinalBoss. When you try to call your friends for help, Spamton starts mocking you, but just ends up projecting himself onto Kris yet again, giving away his downfall through his increasingly furious rant.
--->WHAT!? YOU'RE CALLING FRIENDS!? YOU THINK YOU CAN BEAT ME WITH YOUR FRIENDS' [Magic]!? GO AHEAD, [Kid]... CALL ALL YOU WANT! NO ONE WILL EVER PICK UP\\
GO AHEAD AND [Scream] INTO THE [Receiver]. THE [Voice] RUNS OUT EVENTUALLY. YOUR [Voice] THEIR [Voice]. UNTIL YOU REALIZE YOU ARE ALL ALONE\\
THERE WILL BE NO MORE [Miracles] NO MORE [Magic]. YOU LOST IT WHEN YOU TRIED TO SEE TOO FAR.... ... YOU LOST IT...\\
YOU MAKE ME [Sick]! MUTTERING YOUR [Lost Friends] NAMES AT THE BOTTOM OF A [Dumpster]! NO ONE'S GONNA HELP YOU!!! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR [Beautiful Head], YOU LITTLE [Worm]!
* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': Boudica really hates the Romans because in life they invaded Britain, had her whipped, and her daughters raped. Her problem is that she tends to assume the other British Servants hate the Romans just as much as she does. In the "Dead Heat Summer Race", Altria Alter defends Nero from her. Boudica asks why; since Altria fought the Romans in life, she must hate them too. She is thrown for a loop when Altria says she doesn't hate the Romans.
* ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'': Kratos has a tendency to blame pretty much all of his problems on the gods or on others, when it's perfectly clear to everyone and especially ''himself'' that [[NeverMyFault his own actions are largely to blame for why his life has been as awful as it is]]. Naturally, he can't forgive himself for the things he's done, because that would actually mean facing his failures head-on, so he ends up causing way more trouble to others than he's worth.
* ''VideoGame/Infamous2'': Joseph Bertrand III views all [[DifferentlyPoweredIndividual Conduits]] as monsters and demons, deeming them not part of the "divine plan." In reality, [[BoomerangBigot he's a Conduit himself]], and was more than happy to be one until he discovered his powers were {{Lovecraftian Superpower}}s in the form of transforming into an EldritchAbomination and converting other people into the Corrupted. In Bertrand's mindset, since he became a monster by activating his powers, then that means ''all'' Conduits, active or otherwise, are monsters.
* In ''VideoGame/TheMagicCircle'', this is perhaps the crux of a character's TheReasonYouSuckSpeech [[NoFourthWall directed at the player]]. [[spoiler:Ishmael angrily declares that gamers are obsessed with control because they feel they have none in their real lives. He himself is an unquenchable ControlFreak driven by inadequacy and overwhelming fear of failure provoked by his personal issues.]]
* ''VideoGame/MugenSouls'' Z:
** The tired and relaxed Syrma assumes everyone will take the relocation of their planet calmly and Nao [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] her projection: "You seriously think everyone is as dopey as you? You are in for a big surprise!".
** Ryuto assumes everyone loves lady Chou Chou, but the others are quick to point out that is only him.
* ''VideoGame/Persona4'': The Investigation Team project all of their feelings of grief and guilt [[spoiler: over Nanako's death onto to Namatame]], who they assume to be the killer throwing victims into the TV World at that point. Depending on the player's choices, they could either kill him by throwing him back into the TV World, or they can calm down and realize their mistake, which leads to [[spoiler: Nanako miraculously coming back to life]], and leading them on the right track to finding the true killer.
* ''VideoGame/Persona5'': When she finds out that Makoto had suspected [[DirtyOldMan Kamoshida's]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil abuse of his female students]] for some time, but [[AccompliceByInaction never said or did anything about it]], Ann furiously lashes out at her and chews her out for it. When Makoto later apologizes and acknowledges it was most likely her fault that Kamoshida got away with his actions for as long as he did, Ann acknowledges that the same could be said of herself and confesses she'd been projecting her own feelings of guilt onto Makoto.
* In ''VideoGame/RedDeadRedemptionII'':
** Dutch calls the gang members who left traitors, ignoring that [[spoiler: he himself willingly abandoned John and Arthur multiple times in their time of need.]]
** In the finale, he accuses John of shooting at him, betraying him and only looking after himself. John did ''none'' of those things and was looking after his family while Dutch did ''everything'' he was accusing John of doing.
* ''VideoGame/ShadowrunReturns'': TheDragon of the main campaign projected her SanitySlippage onto her step-brother, who cut up his mother to sell her organs for booze money (and a new liver), by claiming he was a ruthless junkie who infested everything he touched, and that the organ donors he helped were diseased and had to be erased. When she starts ranting about her newfound addiction to the all-consuming hive, you can call her out for having the same self-destructive tendencies as her brother but to an extreme, claiming that she used her brother and the organ donors as scapegoats to blame for her own repulsive behavior, and then ordered their assassinations to vindicate herself. [[HeelRealization This gives her a single moment of clarity to realize what a monster she has become]], [[IveComeTooFar but she shrugs it off]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'': When you fight Papyrus on a route that you've tried to befriend him, he'll open up to you in his pre-battle speech, talking about the complex feelings you must be having -- the joy of finding another pasta-lover, admiration for a WorthyOpponent in solving puzzles, the desire to have a cool, smart person think you're cool... He then quickly says how much he pities you for that sort of loneliness.
-->''"[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY.]] AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT. [[IJustWantToHaveFriends I DON'T EVER WONDER WHAT HAVING LOTS OF FRIENDS IS LIKE.]]"''
* Illidan Stormrage and Maiev Shadowsong in ''VideoGame/WarcraftIII'' and ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft The Burning Crusade''. They hate each other precisely ''because'' they are so similar: they are both self-centered, self-aggrandizing, obsessive {{Knight Templar}}s. Although they spent 10,000 years literally locked up together, neither seems to realize how hypocritical they are. Their relationship is quite mutually destructive, as both of them end up hurting people they care about and absolutely bring out the worst in each other. Illidan manages to estrange his ''twin'' brother AND his crush, while Maiev almost kills her younger brother Jared when he had the temerity to point out that TheExtremistWasRight. Only because Jared [[LoveMartyr refuses to fight her]] does she realize that [[KinslayingIsASpecialKindOfEvil she almost crossed the line]]. Maiev does become less hypocritical, to the point where she grudgingly releases Illidan from prison during ''Legion''. She still despises him, but realizes that he is in fact well-intentioned. Illidan though, is just as hypocritical as ever when he's released: killing the Prime Naaru X'era for basically the same reasons he always hated Maiev.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'': [[EvilOldFolks Eustace Bagge]] repeatedly calls Courage stupid and mocks him for his cowardice and not doing anything right. When it comes down to it, Eustace is exactly everything he calls Courage out for being; he gets injured, maimed, transformed, and otherwise [[TheyKilledKennyAgain killed]] for being TooDumbToLive at least OnceAnEpisode, can't cook, can't grow anything in his farm, and can't fix anything, is completely [[TheLoad useless]] during whatever ordeal the Bagges come across, and, as noted by the Shadow in "The Shadow of Courage," is [[DirtyCoward an even]] ''[[DirtyCoward bigger]]'' [[DirtyCoward coward]] than Courage himself.
* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'': Negaduck ([[spoiler:AKA Jim Starling, the actor who portrayed Darkwing Duck in the in-universe TV series]]) seems to think that the actor hired to be Darkwing in the film reboot, [[spoiler:Drake Mallard]], is a selfish gloryhound who only cares for the limelight just like himself, ignoring that the new actor is clearly an AscendedFanboy who wants to live up to the original show, and that [[spoiler:Starling's attempt to upstage Mallard was what caused the accident that turned him into Negaduck]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'', this is one of Demona's [[NeverMyFault many]], [[IgnoredEpiphany many]], ''[[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder many]]'' problems. She tends to assume that all other Gargoyles want to KillAllHumans (untrue), and that, given the opportunity, anyone she allies with is itching to betray her- when in reality, she's usually the first and only person in any given situation to think of treachery. Demona's [[EvilCannotComprehendGood inability to understand motives more altruistic than her own]] is one of the biggest reasons [[BeingEvilSucks she spends the series desperately, wretchedly alone]], having caused the deaths of basically everyone she ever really cared about because she couldn't stop mistrusting others.
* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'':
** In "Dipper and Mabel vs. The Future", while offering Dipper a chance to be his apprentice, [[spoiler:Stanford]] ends up projecting his issues with [[spoiler: his twin brother, Stanley]] onto him. While he's not wrong that Dipper has a right to be his own person separate from Mabel, he also doesn't see how different their relationship is compared to his own broken relationship. [[spoiler: Ford gets better in the GrandFinale, deciding to work on reconnecting with Stan rather than run away from his issues.]]
** Stan also projects onto Dipper, believing he has to target Dipper specifically with the difficult and painful household chores, open mockery, and a denial of positive reinforcement to toughen him up and make him worth something, in contrast with Dipper's sister, whom he very obviously treats better. We later learn that Stan sees his own childhood self in Dipper and this is a projection of how he sees his past worth. His replicating aspects of the favoritism and abuse with Mabel and Dipper respectively is further implied to be part of his denial over his parents' own abusive behavior, because he's convinced himself it was necessary for him to grow up and therefore is necessary for Dipper.
* ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn2019'': In season 2, Harley and crew have to deal with Mr. Freeze. When Harley finds out that his wife, Nora, is sick, she projects her MadLove issues with ComicBook/TheJoker onto the two of them. She assumes that he is a misogynistic ControlFreak like Joker and that Nora's not really sick. She thinks that he doesn't really love her and that he just keeps her as a HumanPopsicle to control her. It's quite telling that most of everyone around her, including fellow villains, think she's nuts. Of course, the truth is that Mr. Freeze loves Nora more than anything else in the world and respects her as an equal. When Harley's involvement jeopardizes her health and he has to [[HeroicSacrifice give his life to cure Nora]], Harley realizes she was projecting her own failures onto them before a distaught Nora tells them to GetOut.
* In ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'', [[AlphaBitch Bonnie]] sometimes accuses Kim of acting like everything is [[ItsAllAboutMe all about her]] or lording her talents over everyone else, when in reality ''she's'' the arrogant and self-centered one. It's implied that this is because she's jealous of Kim's position as captain of the cheerleading squad and overall popularity.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode "Twilight's Kingdom" (parts 1 and 2). Discord ends up assuming Tirek appreciates their "friendship" as much as he does, but it turns out Tirek only wanted to use Discord for his own benefit.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'':
** In "Eclipse Lake", Hunter believes that Luz's strange emoji messages to Amity are a cryptic warning to come back with results or there will be consequences, because that's what [[BigBad Belos]] would tell him. Amity initially believes him not only because of her own self-worth issues, but also because [[PoorCommunicationKills Luz never told Amity how to read the messages.]] King helps Amity realize Luz's messages have no ill intent, and Hunter's views are based on his own twisted experiences with Belos. [[note]] While Hunter is wrong about the messages' meaning, the ''way'' he interprets them (based on the images themselves) is admittedly more logical than the way they're supposed to be interpreted (turning the message sideways so the emojis look like letters, spelling out a written message) [[/note]]
** In "Follies at the Coven Day Parade", Luz projects her worries about the promise she made to her mother onto Kikimora's FamilyVersusCareer issue, and becomes firmly convinced that if she can solve Kiki's problem then that'll be proof that her turmoil can be resolved. [[spoiler: It's only when Kikimora gladly abandons her family over the chance for a promotion that Luz realizes their situations are NotSoSimilar.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'': Some of the stuff Rick Sanchez accuses his opponents of doing (while valid) could equally be said of his own actions and behaviour:
** In "Something Ricked This Way Comes", he mocks Mr. Needful (The Devil) for his Faustian JackassGenie shtick but most of Rick's own devices and contraptions work in similar ironic fashion, such as giving a device that can make Snuffles understands humans while knowing that it would eventually lead the dogs to be TurnedAgainstTheirMasters. The Mr. Meeseeks box meanwhile does create a friendly fellow to help you out, though Rick warns it only does simple errands (it only became problematic because Jerry was not that good at golf though one could assert that he was ''too'' specific for his request while Summer and Beth's were more open-ended.) Most of the times his simple contraptions to help the family only complicates their lives. However, the big difference is that while Mr. Needful does it out of a sense of pleasure for ironic punishments, Rick's contraptions seem to be more his carelessness.
** In "Vindicators 3", he mocks the superhero group for keeping a sidekick as a TagalongKid just to make themselves look cooler in the eyes of the gullible, but that applies to his dynamic with Morty, where he drags Morty against his will into crazy adventures mostly to prove how awesome he is and prevent his grandson from idolizing anyone but himself. Toxic Rick proves this to Toxic Morty by openly invoking AGodAmI and insisting how dumb Morty is in comparison to him. To be fair, unlike the Vindicators, Rick actually needs Morty in his adventures, due to the fact that Morty's brain waves block Rick's thus making Rick impossible to be tracked down, and Morty TookALevelInBadass from partaking in Rick's adventures. Though the reasons why Rick drags Morty along are mostly selfish.
* ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower'': When Adora defects from the Horde and Catra decides to stay behind, this perceived betrayal hits Catra ''hard'', and she uses any opportunity she can to justify her assumptions about it. She thinks that Scorpia was shunned by the other princesses for looking different, is quick to believe Adora abandoned Entrapta, and calls Adora out for treating her as a sidekick. There are some elements of truth in all those, but it's clear she's jumping on whatever allows her to think the worst of Adora and princesses in general.
* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': [[TheSociopath Cartman]] has a habit of perpetuating his narcissism by pinning the blame onto others, most commonly Kyle, who he accuses of being sneaky, greedy, and selfish on the basis of being Jewish despite those traits fitting Cartman much better. This is most blatant in Season 21, where Cartman frequently mocks and emotionally abuses his girlfriend Heidi, but convinces himself that because she wants to talk about her feelings, that makes ''her'' the abuser. In "Put it Down," he claims that he only stayed in a relationship with her because she threatened suicide, but it soon comes out that ''Cartman'' was the one who threatened suicide because ''Heidi'' wanted to dump ''him.''
* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the [[ApatheticCitizens townspeople]] get defensive upon witnessing [=SpongeBob=] berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claim he "was born mean", [[{{Hypocrite}} despite ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business]].
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars'': [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS7E6DealNoDeal "Deal No Deal"]] makes it clear that Rafa Martez, who constantly gets herself and her sister Trace embroiled in shady business out of self-interest, engages in this. She accuses Ahsoka of befriending Trace out of some ulterior motive, incapable of believing someone could act selflessly for someone they only just met. Meanwhile, Rafa is pressuring Trace into a mission of dubious legality while keeping her in the dark about the details.
* ''WesternAnimation/StarWarsRebels'':
** It quickly becomes apparent that Darth Maul is projecting his relationship with his deceased brother/apprentice Savage [[VillainTakesAnInterest onto Ezra]], constantly assuming that Ezra will think and act like Savage, while repeatedly [[FreudianSlip slipping]] into calling Ezra "brother".
** [[Recap/StarWarsRebelsStepsIntoShadow "Steps Into Shadow"]]: When the Bendu tells Kanan that he brings conflict with him, Kanan immediately assumes he's talking about the Sith holocron, even though the Bendu made clear that it's Kanan causing imbalance in the Force. Later, Kanan pins the fear he's feeling on the [[GiantSpider krykna]], then Ezra, before realizing it's his own.
* In ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', Pearl has done this, particularly in "Sworn to the Sword", where she ended up (temporarily) indoctrinating Connie into the mindset that she was "nothing" compared to her liege, Steven, and that to protect him she needed to be willing to put herself into hopelessly dangerous situations and even die for him without hesitation. It is revealed that during the war, Pearl "took great pride" in giving her life for Rose Quartz, using herself as a shield and [[StupidSacrifice getting needlessly "killed"]] [[DeathIsCheap numerous times]] despite Rose being [[BodyguardingABadass much stronger]] than her and fervently objecting to Pearl senselessly putting herself in danger.
[[/folder]]

** Akito Sohma treats other women [[FemaleMisogynist like her worst enemy]] because she's projecting her demented AbusiveMom onto them. This is especially evident in her cruelty towards poor Rin because the latter's black RapunzelHair heavily reminds Akito of Ren, to the point Akito first gave her the nickname "Rin" because it sounds like Ren.

* After learning about Josuke's heritage from Jotaro in ''Fanfic/RemnantsBizarreAdventure'', Yang thinks that Joseph Joestar, Josuke's father, intentionally abandoned both Josuke and his mother Tomoko, just as her own mother Raven abandoned her and her father.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the [[ApatheticCitizens townspeople]] get defensive upon witnessing [=SpongeBob=] berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claiming he "was born mean", [[{{Hypocrite}} despite ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business]].

* A unique case in ''Fanfic/HeroChat''. In ''The Winter Gala'', it's confirmed that Lila is aromantic, though not knowing the term exist and unaware that sexual and romantic attraction is real. She sees romance only as a mean to find the right partner to start a family, and sees displays of romances as a flattery display no different that her own [[ConsummateLiar lying]].

** TheSociopath ControlFreak Mother Gothel has spent [[LongGame the last 18 years]] of her life in an elaborate charade to make Rapunzel ThePawn so Gothel can use her as her own FountainOfYouth. This was necessary because once Rapunzel realizes she has so much power over Mother Gothel, [[EvilCannotComprehendGood why would she want to selflessly help her own mother?]] In addition, in a bit of gaslighting, she tells Rapunzel that the world is selfish and cruel, and would only want to use her, while ''actively using Rapunzel herself''. This is highlighted by Rapunzel herself.

** At the beginning of the movie, AllLovingHero Rapunzel believes that she only needs to show Mother Gothel that she is capable of living outside the tower to get her permission to leave, why would a [[GoodCannotComprehendEvil reasonable person want to keep Rapunzel in a tower forever?]]

** At the beginning of the movie, AllLovingHero Rapunzel believes that she only needs to show Mother Gothel that she is capable of living outside the tower to get her permission to leave, why could a [[GoodCannotComprehendEvil reasonable person want to keep Rapunzel in a tower forever?]]

* ''Webcomic/{{Paranatural}}'': Forge goes on a long rant to Spender about how Spender's WellIntentionedExtremist tendencies will cause nothing but pain for everyone around him. While Spender ''is'' a WellIntentionedExtremist, it's blatantly obvious that Forge is projecting; he's yelling at Spender for Spender leaving his kids in danger--even though the only reason they're in danger is because Forge damaged their vehicle without considering the consequences.
-->'''Spender:''' Maybe some forethought ''then'' would have prevented the problem you're so keen to make my responsibility.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the [[ApatheticCitizens townspeople]] get defensive upon witnessing [=SpongeBob=] berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claiming he "was born mean", despite ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business.

Contrast HypocriteHasAPoint, where the character's accusations have merit, despite the accuser not living up to them themselves. Not to be confused with AstralProjection or EnemyWithout, which are rather more fantastic.

** When you think about it, this is at least partially what Frieza's obsession with fear is all about. Frieza enjoys taking the time to install fear and horror in others, but when we see his actions, such as blowing up Planet Vegeta to make sure no one opposes him, he shows that deep inside, Frieza is nothing but [[DirtyCoward a coward utterly terrified of the possibility someone would grow strong enough to face him on even terms]], and in his fight with Super Saiyan Goku, where he blows up Namek in desperation to kill Goku, combined with his frantic attempts to kill him and shamelessly begging for his life when he’s bifurcated by his own attack, it’s all the more obvious.

** Goku Black partakes in this just as much as Zamasu, his [[spoiler: former and future selves]], prattling on about how mortals are violent, destructive creatures who cannot learn from their mistakes and are inflexible in their ways. All of this coming from the person who is fanatically and unbendingly obsessed with annihilating all mortal-kind, [[AxCrazy completely and utterly insane and a danger to everyone around him]] barring [[spoiler: literally himself]], and whose first actions [[spoiler: upon taking Goku’s body to fulfill his mad quest for power being to gruesomely murder him, his wife and youngest son, just as a final insult to the man [[DisproportionateRetribution for bruising his ego.]]]]

* In ''[[Fanfic/NotTheIntendedUseZantetsukenReverse A Game of Cat and Cat]]'', [[VideoGame/ShinMegamiTenseiI Kazuya]] gets upset when [[VideoGame/{{Castlevania}} Soma]] tells him that he left his friend Mina behind in [[EldritchLocation Castlevania]], until Soma specifies that she stayed in a safe room while he explored dangerous territory. Soma thinks that Kazuya is suffering from SurvivorGuilt because he wasn’t there when a loved one died, the same way his past life [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence was away on a Crusade when his wife died]]. However, it's implied that Kazuya is bitter because ''he'' was abandoned; in his game, the Chaos Hero left him and the Law Hero to fend for themselves after fusing with a demon.

** In "Dipper and Mabel vs. The Future", while offering Dipper a chance to be his apprentice, [[spoiler:Stanford]] ends up projecting his issues with [[spoiler: his twin brother, Stanley]] onto him. While he’s not wrong that Dipper has a right to be his own person separate from Mabel, he also doesn’t see how different their relationship is compared to his own broken relationship. [[spoiler: Ford gets better in the GrandFinale, deciding to work on reconnecting with Stan rather than run away from his issues.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/HarleyQuinn2019'': In season 2, Harley and crew have to deal with Mr. Freeze. When Harley finds out that his wife, Nora, is sick, she projects her MadLove issues with ComicBook/TheJoker onto the two of them. She assumes that he is a misogynistic ControlFreak like Joker and that Nora’s not really sick. She thinks that he doesn’t really love her and that he just keeps her as a HumanPopsicle to control her. It's quite telling that most of everyone around her, including fellow villains, think she's nuts. Of course, the truth is that Mr. Freeze loves Nora more than anything else in the world and respects her as an equal. When Harley's involvement jeopardizes her health and he has to [[HeroicSacrifice give his life to cure Nora]], Harley realizes she was projecting her own failures onto them before a distaught Nora tells them to GetOut.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the [[ApatheticCitizens townspeople]] get defensive upon witnessing SpongeBob berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claiming he "was born mean", despite ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the [[ApatheticCitizens townspeople]] get defensive upon witnessing [=SpongeBob=] furiously berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claim he "was born mean". This is in spite of the fact they were openly ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business to begin with.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': In the episode "Stuck in the Wringer", the townspeople get defensive upon witnessing [=SpongeBob=] furiously berating Patrick for ruining his day by gluing him in the wringer and claim he "was born mean". This is in spite of the fact they were ridiculing him over something that wasn't even their business to begin with.

* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': Cartman has a habit of perpetuating his narcissism by pinning the blame onto others, most commonly Kyle, who he accuses of being sneaky, greedy, and selfish on the basis of being Jewish despite those traits fitting Cartman much better. This is most blatant in Season 21, where Cartman frequently mocks and emotionally abuses his girlfriend Heidi, but convinces himself that because she wants to talk about her feelings, that makes ''her'' the abuser. In "Put it Down," he claims that he only stayed in a relationship with her because she threatened suicide, but it soon comes out that ''Cartman'' was the one who threatened suicide because ''Heidi'' wanted to dump ''him.''

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': In "Eclipse Lake", Hunter believes that Luz's strange emoji messages to Amity are a cryptic warning to come back with results or there will be consequences, because that's what [[BigBad Belos]] would tell him. Amity initially believes him not only because of her own self-worth issues, but also because [[PoorCommunicationKills Luz never told Amity how to read the messages.]] King helps Amity realize Luz's messages have no ill intent, and Hunter's views are based on his own twisted experiences with Belos. [[note]] While Hunter is wrong about the messages' meaning, the ''way'' he interprets them (based on the images themselves) is admittedly more logical than the way they're supposed to be interpreted (turning the message sideways so the emojis look like letters, spelling out a written message) [[/note]]

* In the story ''ComicBook/TheBlackRing'', ComicBook/LexLuthor claims Superman doesn't empathize with humanity at all, but it's pretty clear he's projecting this trait onto his archnemesis.