Editing Patrick Bateman (section)

==Personality==

As written by Ellis, Bateman is the ultimate stereotype of [[yuppie]] greed - wealthy, superficial, obsessed with status, and addicted to [[Sex addiction|sex]], [[Drug addiction|drugs]], and [[conspicuous consumption]]. All of his friends look alike to him, to the point that he often confuses one for another. They also often confuse him for other people.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Liam|last=Springer-Jones|url=https://www.filminquiry.com/madness-bateman-american-psycho/|title=The Madness Of Patrick Bateman: How ''American Psycho'' Redefined the Horror Villain|magazine=Film Inquiry|date=May 13, 2020|accessdate=January 25, 2022}}</ref> Bateman delights in obsessively detailing virtually every single feature of his wealthy lifestyle, including his designer clothes, workout routine, business cards, alcoholic drinks, elaborate high-end stereo and [[Home cinema|home theater]] sound system.

Bateman is engaged to an equally wealthy, shallow woman named Evelyn Williams and has a mistress on the side named Courtney Lawrence, the girlfriend of Luis Carruthers, a [[Closeted|closeted homosexual]] whom Bateman despises. He has regular liaisons with prostitutes and women he encounters at clubs, many of whom end up being his victims. The one woman and possibly the only person in his life for whom he has anything approaching feelings is his secretary, Jean. He feels that she is the only person in his life who is not completely shallow, so he cannot bring himself to seduce or kill her. He casually acknowledges her as "Jean, my secretary who is in love with me" and introduces her in the narration as someone whom he "will probably end up married to someday".

Despite his affluence and high social status, Bateman is constantly plagued by unsettling feelings of [[anxiety]] and [[low self-esteem]]. He kills many of his victims because they make him feel inadequate, usually by having better taste than he does. He is hated by others as much as he hates them; his friends mock him as the "boy next door", his own lawyer refers to him as a "bloody ass-kisser... a brown-nosing goody-goody", and he is often dismissed as "yuppie trash" by people outside his social circle. Bateman often expresses doubts regarding his own [[sanity]] and he has periodic attacks of [[psychosis]], during which he [[Hallucination|hallucinates]]. It is left open to reader interpretation whether Bateman actually commits the crimes he describes, or whether he is merely hallucinating them; he is, therefore, an [[unreliable narrator]]. The [[screenwriter]] [[Guinevere Turner]] confirmed that, at least in the film, Patrick Bateman isn't imagining every act of violence: “Anything that seems unreal in the film ''to you personally'' might be unreal. But somewhere under everything you see, no matter how implausible it seems, real murders in some form are taking place.”<ref name="Dissolve">{{cite magazine|first=Tasha|last=Robinson|url=https://thedissolve.com/features/movie-of-the-week/515-the-reality-of-american-psycho-isnt-as-compelling-/|title=The reality of ''American Psycho'' isn't as compelling as the conversation|magazine=[[The Dissolve]]|date=April 17, 2014|accessdate=January 25, 2022}}</ref>

In the ending [[Climax (narrative)|climax]] of the story, Bateman calls his lawyer and leaves a lengthy, detailed message confessing all of his crimes. He later runs into his lawyer, who mistakes him for someone else and dismisses the confession as a joke, while also claiming to have had dinner with one of Bateman's victims after he had supposedly killed him, leaving the supposed reality of Bateman's murders open to audience interpretation.<ref>{{cite web|first=Kyle|last=Buchanan |url=http://movieline.com/2010/05/18/bret-easton-ellis-on-american-psycho-christian-bale-and-his-problem-with-women-directors|title=Bret Easton Ellis on American Psycho, Christian Bale, and His Problem with Women Directors |work=Movieline |date=May 18, 2000 |access-date=January 2, 2016}}</ref>

Although Bateman often claims that he is devoid of emotion, he also describes experiencing moments of extreme rage, panic or grief—being on the "verge of tears"—often over trivial inconveniences such as remembering to return videotapes or trying to obtain dinner reservations. In the middle of dismembering a victim, he breaks down, sobbing that he "just wants to be loved". He takes [[psychotropic]]s, including [[Alprazolam|Xanax]], to control these emotions. He publicly espouses a philosophy of tolerance, equality, and "traditional moral values" because he thinks it will make him more likable, but he is actually virulently [[Racism|racist]], [[Homophobia|homophobic]], and [[Antisemitism|antisemitic]].

Bateman compensates for his anxiety through obsessive vanity and personal grooming, with unwavering attention to detail. He buys the most fashionable, expensive clothing and accessories possible, including [[Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A.|Salvatore Ferragamo]], [[Alan Flusser]] and [[Valentino SpA|Valentino suits]], [[Oliver Peoples]] glasses and [[Jean Paul Gaultier]], [[Louis Vuitton]], and [[Bottega Veneta]] leather goods, as a means of effecting some "control" over his otherwise chaotic life. Likewise, while often being confused about people's names and identities, he categorizes them by what they wear and how they look because they are more easily "understood" in terms of labels and stereotypes. Bateman's apartment also is firmly controlled in terms of look and taste, with the latest music, food, and art.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Petra|last=Fišerová|url=http://universitypublications.net/hssr/0802/pdf/P8RS193.pdf|title=From Toxic to Politically Correct: Masculinities In ''American Psycho'' And ''Darkly Dreaming Dexter''|journal=Humanities and Social Sciences Review|publisher=[[Emerald Group Publishing]]|location=Bingley, West Yorkshire, England|volume=8|issue=2|date=2018}}</ref>

Bateman kills more or less indiscriminately, with no preferred type of victim, targeting any woman, man and animal who gets in his way, and no consistent or preferred method of killing. He kills women mostly for [[Sexual sadism disorder|sadistic sexual pleasure]], often during or just after sex. He kills men because they upset or annoy him or make him feel inferior. In one scene of the novel (omitted in the film), Bateman kills a child just to see if he would enjoy it; he does not because he believes that the child's death would not affect as many people as an adult's would. Periodically, he matter-of-factly confesses his crimes to his friends, co-workers, and even complete strangers ("I like to dissect girls, did you know I'm utterly insane?") just to see if they are actually listening to him. They either are not, think that he is joking, or completely misunderstand what he says.<ref name="Dissolve"/>