Reddit mentions of The Culture of Narcissism: American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations

Please remember I am time restricted on these videos, if I spelled everything out it would be hours and hours. I used these anecdotes because I see them as representative of much larger trends of the people I lived around.

Also, I grew up an hour east of D.C.. There are regional cultural differences to the United States. My experiences may not generalize to the Midwest, the South or other areas of the U.S..

But I'm not the only one who's noticed these patters. Social scientists have also noticed these things. Many people experience an extended adolescence. As I mentioned in the video the description I gave for the middle class has not been an uncommon one for several centuries. Narcissistic traits is more common among young people. This trend isn't new either. Christopher Lasch wrote The Culture of Narcissism originally back in 1979. Before him, back in the 1950's there was The Lonely Crowd.

Nothing I presented in this video is new, and there's plenty of more social science out there all saying the same thing.

>you're a tad judgemental

Every time someone has said this to me it's turned out that I'm judging people accurately and they don't like it.

>That girl in your creative writing class could have just been voicing her edgy views on love out of frustration from a recent relationship

I wouldn't have brought it up if I hadn't seen that pattern continue to play itself out in many other people. Also, as I mentioned in the video, for a long time I didn't want to believe a lot of people thought the way she did. But over my lifetime people kept showing me who they are and I have chosen to believe them. Is everyone like this? No. Are too many people like this? Yes. Too many people grow old but never grow up.

>Those people rushing into marriage might have just been voicing a quiet anxiety, and were conscious that they should only marry someone they were truly committed too.

Those came right out and said what they were doing. All of the marriages either ended in divorce or the people were unhappy years later. When people show you who they are, you should believe them.

>The woman at your work whom you spoke to about having a wife might have been joking, like you were, when she listed all the supposed utilities of marriage.

She was being serious.

>I don't think you should chew gum when you make videos. The sound is kind of gross.

Ok, good to know.

>You mention that "there's more to life than a romance novel". Is there?

Yes there is and artists, religions and philosophers have warned people for centuries about this.

>can you say that people who live their life in pursuit of pleasure/love/affection are living a worse life than you?

There lives are not fully human, so yes I can. We can know them by their fruits: college students are experiencing a mental health crisis. There is an obesity epidemic. One in four women take mental health meds. This just scratches the surface of the malaise.

>You seem to have a really rigid idea of adulthood and maturity

Yeah I expect adults to act like adults. That's not too much to ask.

> like it's your privilege to define what makes someone an adult

When people stop acting like over-sized children and I'll stop calling people out on acting like over-sized children.

>Like some great mental crevice is hopped when your intellectual balls drop and you can then show basic tact and decency.

I do show basic tact and decency my problem is that too many other people don't.

>I'd also like to reiterate that I liked this video overall. You're well spoken, and the content was interesting.

Thank you.