Author and cultural critic Laura Kipnis presented the Genevieve Staudt Guestship Lecture at Elmhurst College on Wednesday, April 24. Her topic was Narcissism: A Defense.

Kipnis is an author, teacher, cultural critic and former video artist whose work focuses on sexual politics, emotion, acting out and generally bad behavior. Her wide-ranging, provocative books have been translated into 15 languages. The New York Times writes that in Against Love: A Polemic and How to Become a Scandal, Kipnis “has combined sharp analysis with blistering wit to challenge prevailing notions about love and sex, power and desire, hubris and retribution in American life.”

The Genevieve Staudt Guestship Lecture is delivered annually during Women’s History Month at Elmhurst College. It is named for the College’s former dean of students, who served the College for 30 years and left an indelible stamp of leadership.