The Present Relevance of Christopher Lasch’s The Culture of Narcissism for Studying the Sociology of Morality

Abstract

Christopher Lasch’s most influential book The Culture of Narcissism was first published in 1979 but many of the issues he raised still have relevance, including for sociologists who wish to use ideas on psychology to create a firm basis for understanding principles and practices in society that can underlie a Sociology of Morality, something that is now only developed in a very preliminary way. Though this book was well-received by the public at large this book had much less influence in academic circles, both in liberal arts curricula and in business schools. I discuss some of the reasons for this, and then go on to details of this book and in particular how Lasch was influenced by rather dour psychoanalysts such as Melanie Klein and Otto Kernberg who emphasized the seriousness of narcissism-inducing ego weakness dating back to the conditions of early childhood. Even if one discounts the prevalence of the pathologies Lasch feels are the norm, since it can be argued that less serious narcissism is prevalent also, the discussion of cultural changes in modern society that stimulate and condone narcissism make this book a useful reference on this subject. I also refer to the work of such sociologists as Eva Illouz, Richard Sennett, and Michael Mann, and the earlier work of Pitirim Sorokin. I end by recounting that in the 40 years since this book was published, the cultural environment that is conducive for encouraging narcissism has remained in place, and in terms of the use of technology as a substitute for direct communication between people, the cultural environment that encourages fantasies has become even more pervasive.