The Americanization of Narcissism by Elizabeth Lunbeck (review)

Narcissism is an intriguing modern concept, finding a place in the history of psychiatry and in psychiatric diagnosis, as well as in popular understanding. This book contributes massively to the intellectual history of twentieth-century psychiatry while offering some provocative insights, short of systematic treatment, about the concept of narcissism in a broader sense.

Lunbeck begins her account with the explosion of interest in narcissism in the United States during the 1970s. She evokes the famous judgments of Lasch, and their popular and political repercussions (ultimately adding Riesman’s influential evaluations).¹ She discusses in great detail the work of Kohut, who dramatically altered the Freudian approach to narcissism, and the more pessimistic efforts of Kernberg.² That Kohut became something of a popular figure in his own right helps Lunbeck to combine the psychiatric with the sociological interpretations of narcissism.

The book then reverts to a fairly close examination of narcissism in psychoanalytical theory, from Sigmund Freud’s early writings through the 1930s. Key chapters in this second segment deal with narcissism in relation to independence, vanity, and gratification. Important sections also discuss the gender implications of narcissism, particularly around Riviere’s work.³ Lunbeck devotes considerable attention to debates between key psychoanalytical theorists regarding the implications of narcissism; the material on this subject is rich.

Lunbeck makes abundantly clear how protean the concept has been, sometimes even at the hands of a single theorist. Many of the theorists grappled with distinctions between good and bad narcissism in their approaches. Freud’s concern with the sexual and homosexual implications of narcissism contrasted with that of other thinkers who worked primarily on consumerist or fashion expressions (with their potential links to modern economic systems). Various commentators, including Freud, also entertained the idea that narcissism was, at least in part, a new phenomenon, to be contrasted with Victorian character—a distinction on which the 1970s social commentary also relied.

Lunbeck has much to say about the ostensible subject of the book—the American aspects of narcissism—in all of its complexity. On the one hand, critics like Lasch won massive attention by using narcissism as a means of describing American moral decline. On the other hand—and in this case the treatment of Kohut is particularly revealing—Americans may have distinctively appreciated aspects of narcissism, such as the emphasis on the self, emotional support for children, and even the attributes of successful leadership.

Notwithstanding its strengths, Lunbeck’s treatment of the concept has some problems. The organization of the book requires a great deal of backtracking and repetition, and its examination of the popular significance of narcissism is limited. Moreover, despite Lunbeck’s genuine interest in American ideas and behaviors, she relies heavily on European intellectuals in explaining narcissim, and she offers no comparisons with other popular cultures. Finally, even though she mentions current judgments about narcissism in her conclusion, she says nothing about what happened in the decades after the 1970s or why the whole furor died down so abruptly. The book raises important issues, and even resolves a few of them, but further explorations are necessary.