dual. Besides the desire for extreme and immediate gratification, narcissistic culture forms extremes of temperament from anger to joy within minutes, all the while removing a sense of belonging or even the capability for all but physical intimacy.11
9 Christopher Lasch, The Culture of Narcissism, (New York: Warner Books, 1979).
11 Ibid., 81 3. The idea of instant gratification and lack of emotional maturity may be seen as a predominant theme of the three fictional commentaries on society. Indeed, one of the problems that characters from all three books share is that all were propelled from childhood to adulthood without ever having the chance to gradually mature. Perhaps one could see this as societal pressures, in that if children are socialized to the point of adolescence by the time they are seven or eight (through media, peer pressure, pace of life, etc.) then where are they to go except into adulthood? This, of cou
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