American Psycho Book Summary - American Psycho Book explained in key points

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American Psycho summary

Name: American Psycho
Rating: 4.3 (54 reviews)
Author: Bret Easton Ellis

Bret Easton Ellis

A Violent Satire on Modern Capitalism and Corporate Greed

4.3 (54 ratings)

19 mins

Brief summary

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis is a controversial novel that delves into the dark and twisted mind of a Wall Street yuppie turned serial killer.

Topics

Anthropology Capitalism & The Free Market Socialism & Capitalist Critique Literature Americana

Table of Contents

American Psycho
Summary of 5 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 5

What’s in it for me? Uncover the deeper meaning behind a controversial classic.

Bret Easton Ellis’ American Psycho is one of those books you either love or hate. But no matter how you feel about it, it’s hard to deny its status as a cult classic.

Set during the Wall Street boom of the 1980s, American Psycho follows the life of Patrick Bateman – callous investment banker by day, deranged psycho killer by night.

The book describes Bateman’s exploits in such graphic detail that it barely made it to publication. Even before it finally found a publisher, critics griped about its gruesome descriptions of sex, drugs, and violence. But proponents hailed it as a transgressive critique of capitalist individualism and consumer culture.

In this Blink, we’ll break down the plot and symbolism of this controversial classic, and let you decide for yourself.

Before we begin, here’s a warning: This Blink contains references to violence, pornography, and drug use.

The Cruel Cosmos of Wall Street Yuppies

American Psycho begins with an allusion to another, much older work – Dante’s Inferno. In the Italian writer’s epic poem, the gates of Hell are inscribed with the phrase, “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.” In the opening scene of American Psycho, this phrase appears as graffiti scrawled along the side of a bank.

It’s a fair warning to us as we enter the world of young investment banker Patrick Bateman. Bateman is in his mid-twenties and works at a Wall Street company called Pierce & Pierce. He’s handsome, successful, and incredibly jaded. His life is an endless montage of working out, fancy dinners, and sexual flings.

In the opening scene, Bateman is in a cab on the way to dinner at his girlfriend's house. Next to him, his colleague Tim Price is rambling about his great qualities while casually disparaging women, homeless and gay people, and their immigrant cab driver.

Bateman’s girlfriend, Evelyn, who also works in finance, has prepared expensive sushi for the evening. Bateman suspects that she’s having an affair with Tim. But he’s more bothered by the young, unkempt artist pair Evelyn has invited. The evening culminates with Bateman giving a standard conservative speech on how to fix America: strengthening the middle class, preventing welfare abuse, and – ironically – curbing graphic depictions of sex and violence on TV.

In the next chapters, we learn more about Bateman’s day-to-day life. He lives in a chic apartment on the Upper West Side, where he likes to listen to music and watch movies. He has a disciplined workout schedule and a multiple-step skincare routine.

Almost every night, he hangs out with his finance friends. They go to a bar called Harry’s, expensive restaurants, and nightclubs. They drink, smoke cigars, and do coke. Their topics of conversation never change. They consult Bateman on questions of business fashion; make jokes about homeless, Jewish, gay, and Black people; and comment crudely on attractive women, whom they call “hardbodies.”

Bateman appears to be both fully invested in and deeply bored with his yuppie lifestyle. In one iconic dinner scene, he tries to impress his colleagues with his new bone-colored business card – only to find himself in deep distress at realizing his colleagues’ business cards are even classier.

ANALYSIS

The first chapters of the novel introduce us to the world of Patrick Bateman. It’s a world of Wall Street yuppies – ruled by money, consumption, and superficiality.

Bateman’s first-person narration gives us insight into his system of values. He’s as obsessed with material possessions as with his own appearance. His great American idol is Donald Trump. And he can conceive of others – women in particular – only as objects for his own entertainment.

But disturbingly, all these traits are all shared by the people around him. Bateman’s colleagues appear just as cruel as he is – routinely offering sexist, racist, and classist observations. One of them casually talks about “blowing someone’s head off.”

Author Bret Easton Ellis is setting the stage: The transition between verbal and physical violence will be seamless.

Bateman also reveals himself to be an unreliable narrator. He frequently confuses his finance buddies for one another (and is in turn frequently mistaken by them). And we get first hints at his murderous inclinations through occasional offhand remarks. For instance, he mentions a serrated knife in his pocket, and masturbating to a movie scene in which a woman is murdered.

The Stupor of Mass Consumption

In a foreboding scene, Bateman is at the dry cleaners, complaining about a bloody shirt that has been returned to him not completely cleaned. The Chinese woman at the counter barely understands him, which catapults him into a fit of rage.

Later, Bateman is back at Harry’s with his colleagues. They all discuss how there are no pretty women with good personalities. One of them explains that he likes to taunt homeless people by holding out a dollar, then snatching it away at the last second.

Everyone Talks but No One Listens

One of the great puzzles at the heart of American Psycho is that Bateman frequently shares his murder fantasies with people around him. Sometimes he even outright admits to his crimes in front of others.

Yet no one seems to listen or care.

Breaking from Reality

Between all the assaults and murders, Bateman begins having serious psychotic breaks. He stumbles aimlessly through the city, drugged out, sweat-drenched, and delirious. These episodes are marked by chapters that start and end mid-sentence.

Bateman spends most of the summer in this state of stupor. His mask of sanity is slipping, and his murderous instincts are out of control.

Bateman’s Eternal Punishment

By November, Bateman’s flat reeks of decay. He has more and more breaks from reality, and now sometimes talks about himself in the third person.

One night, he shoots a young saxophone player in the street, and the police start chasing him. He ends up in a full-blown shoot-out with them.

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What is American Psycho about?

American Psycho (1991) is a controversial cult novel that uses graphic violence to satirize modern capitalism and consumer culture. It follows the life of Patrick Bateman, a wealthy and handsome investment banker living in Manhattan in the 1980s. Beneath his polished exterior lies a psychopathic killer who preys on his victims without remorse. Bateman’s exploits quickly grow more and more extreme, and his mask of sanity starts to slip.

American Psycho Review

American Psycho (1991) is a chilling exploration of the dark side of human nature. Here's why this book is worth reading:

It offers a unique perspective on the excesses and moral decay of 1980s Wall Street culture.
The novel's unsettling narrative challenges readers to confront their own beliefs and values.
Its provocative themes spark meaningful conversations and debates about society and individual responsibility.

Dare to dive into the disturbing world of American Psycho and experience its lasting impact.

Who should read American Psycho?

Fans of the the 2000 movie starring Christian Bale
Readers who enjoy Don DeLillo, Thomas Pynchon, and William S. Burroughs
Anyone who enjoys dark humor

About the Author

Bret Easton Ellis is an American author and screenwriter known for provocative works of fiction like his nihilistic debut novel Less Than Zero (1985). He’s recognized for his dark, satirical writing style and potent critiques of contemporary culture and social mores. American Psycho is both his most famous and most controversial novel. In 2019, he published his first nonfiction book, White, taking on the failings of left liberalism.

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