Synopses & Reviews
In this wide-ranging and perceptive work of cultural criticism, Joseph Heath and Andrew Potter shatter the most important myth that dominates much of radical political, economic, and cultural thinking. The idea of a counterculture a world outside of the consumer-dominated world that encompasses us pervades everything from the antiglobalization movement to feminism and environmentalism. And the idea that mocking or simply hoping the "system" will collapse, the authors argue, is not only counterproductive but has helped to create the very consumer society radicals oppose.
In a lively blend of pop culture, history, and philosophical analysis, Heath and Potter offer a startlingly clear picture of what a concern for social justice might look like without the confusion of the counterculture obsession with being different.
Review
"[A]n intriguing examination of personal freedom within the inevitabilities of a market economy." Kirkus Reviews
Review
"[T]his book enlightens us enough to accomplish its goal while being quite an infectious read as well as inspiration to forge ahead to analyze how average lifestyle decisions affect the big picture of capitalism." Booklist
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"This book is not only thought-provoking, but a lively, spirited and entertaining read." Winnipeg Free Press
Review
"Nation of Rebels provides an incisive and witty indictment of consumer trends..." BusinessWeek
Review
"[A] provocative broadside....In a pluralistic society, the authors insist, individualized radicalism is unhelpful; the free market...best counters social, economic, and environmental ills. Unabashedly polemical, this book is recommended..." Library Journal
Synopsis
A hipster critique of popular culture that demolishes the persistent fantasy that one can create an "alternative lifestyle" -- cultural acts of rebellion, rather than undoing the system, have become the system.
"Charting the counterculture from its hippie beatification in the '60s, the authors demonstrate how both it and succeeding variations, however punkish or nerdish, have been routinely subsumed into the consumer-fueled machinery of American capitalism....the hippie ethos was always destined to live on primarily in mainstream merchandising. ...it's the constant need to make one's nonconformity identifiable to others through the purchase of brand goods and services-an entire lifestyle-that charges the engine of consumption. The technical genius of capitalism adapts to accommodate the need-for example, by now building several different kinds of cars on the same assembly line-while at the same time taking the steam out of typical counterculture rants against 'mass marketing.'....an intriguing examination of personal freedom within the inevitabilities of a market economy."
-Kirkus Reviews
"Nation of Rebels provides an incisive and witty indictment of consumer trends...."
-BusinessWeek
--BusinessWeek
About the Author
JOSEPH HEATH is director of the Centre for Ethics at the University of Toronto, as well as professor in the department of philosophy and the School of Public Policy and Governance. He is the author of five books, including
The Rebel Sell: Why the Culture Cant Be Jammed (with Andrew Potter) and
Filthy Lucre: Economics for People Who Hate Capitalism. He lives in Toronto.
Andrew Potter is the coauthor of the international bestseller Nation of Rebels. A journalist, writer, and teacher, he lives in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter (@jandrewpotter).