Violence and the New Cultural Identity of the Late 20 th Century American . Character

Abstract

The American society witnessed major cultural shifts after the Second World War. Starting with the 1960s, a counterculture also referred to as the Hippie movement, was a lifestyle that contradicted the mainstream culture in many ways. The Hippie movement was followed by Yuppiedom in the 1980s which designated a wealthy lifestyle that promoted physical appearance. Both cultures were characterized by their members‘ tendency toward violent behaviors. So, this study aims at examining the relationship between those cultural changes and violence and their contribution in reshaping a new American identity. The study analyzes Bret Easton Ellis‘s American Psycho (1991) to exemplify the role of the Yuppie culture in reshaping the new American identity that was characterized with violence. The novel indeed depicts the 1980s Yuppiedom manifestations while at the same time offers constant portrayals of violent acts that characterized the 1980s America and American people. Along with a survey of the social and cultural changes that characterized the period, the study attempts to understand the character‘s motivations behind violence via psychology. Sigmund Freud‘s theory on Aggression will be used to better understand the main character‘s violent acts. Thus, it is argued here that despite the luxurious lifestyle that the ma in character leads, violence becomes an avoidable necessity for him.