Written by Shaz Memon
Christopher Lasch’s 1979 book, The Culture of Narcissism, took what was then a very narrowly-applied clinical term and used it to diagnose a cultural pathology he viewed rampant within American society. Taking Freud’s original definition of the term “narcissism,” Lasch’s text focusses upon the repressed rage and self-loathing which is transformed by the narcissist into grandiose notions of selfhood and self-important, to include a complete abandon of reason and connection with the material present.
