rn times. Thus: "Given that crimes of violence against women are on the rise... why does it follow that the fictional portrayal of such crime should be furiously deplored?"
Part of the controversy of American Psycho surrounds the issue of whether it should be considered a work of art or not. If it is art, then the depictions of violence can be justified as making an important statement. Most critics have dismissed the work as amateurish and have considered it to not be a work of art in any sense of the word. For example, Peter Plagens in Newsweek has criticized the book as being boring in its lack of plot. John Leo, in U.S. News & World Report, has made even more scathing remarks about Ellis' book. In Leo's opinion, the book is "violent junk" which has "little literary merit." Leo feels that the only reason that the book was published at all is because the writer and his publishers were greedy for money. Leo drives his point home by stating: "In my judgment, it has no discernible plot, no believable characterization, no sensibility at work
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