"American Psycho" by Bret Easton Ellis isn’t just a late‑1980s shock novel—it’s a chilling mirror of the world we still live in. This episode dives into the glittering, hollow life of Patrick Bateman, a Wall Street yuppie obsessed with status, brands, and an image so perfect it hides a terrifying emptiness. We explore how his world of surface, consumerism, and performative masculinity feels more familiar than ever in today’s age of curated feeds, flex culture, and viral “sigma” aesthetics. Join us as we unpack the novel’s satire, its enduring relevance, and why a character created before the internet now feels like a dark ancestor of modern influencer culture.

Additional sources for this episode:

• https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/4/22/american-psycho-25-year-retrospective/
• https://www.classicpages.in/blog/american-psycho-novel-why-its-still-controversial-today
• https://www.classicpages.in/blog/american-psycho-novel-why-its-still-controversial-today
• https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueFilm/comments/dziv4b/is_american_psycho_2000_a_more_relevant_social/
• https://literariness.org/2025/07/13/analysis-of-bret-easton-elliss-american-psycho/
• https://rlterryreelview.com/2024/06/21/americanpsycho/
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/780120046829787/posts/1040205417487914/

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