Synopses & Reviews
Today we are encouraged to view our lives as being full of choice. Like products on a supermarket shelf, our identities seem to be there for the choosing. But paradoxically this freedom can create anxiety, and feelings of guilt and inadequacy. In The Tyranny of Choice, acclaimed philosopher and sociologist Renata Salecl explores how late capitalism's shrill exhortations to 'be yourself' are leading to ever-greater disquiet - and how its insistence on choice being a purely individual matter can prevent social change.
Drawing on diverse examples from popular culture - spanning dating sites and self-help books, to our obsession with celebrities' lifestyles - and fusing sociology, psychoanalysis and philosophy, Salecl shows that choice is rarely based on a simple rational decision with a predictable outcome.
Review
"You have no choice but to read this important book."Hanif Kureishi
"Elegant, thoughtful ... beautifully crafted and concise, it will make readers question the hidden logic of their everyday lives" Darian Leader
Synopsis
A brilliant study on the nature of choice and how limitless freedom can lead to despair.
Synopsis
"You have no choice but to read this important book."Hanif Kureishi
We are encouraged from all sides to view our lives as being full of choices. Like the products on a supermarket shelf, our careers, our relationships, our bodies, our very identities seem to be there for the choosing. But paradoxically, this seeming freedom to choose can create extreme anxiety and feelings of inadequacy. Choice explores how late capitalism's shrill exhortations to "be oneself" can be a tyranny which only leads to ever-greater disquiet.
Renata Salecl is a Slovenian philosopher and sociologist. Her previous books include On Anxiety.
About the Author
Renata Salecl is a philosopher and sociologist. She is visiting professor at BIOS centre at the London School of Economics. Her previous books include On Anxiety and have been translated into ten languages. In 2010, Renata Salecel was awarded the title of "Slovenian woman scientist of the year" and in December of the same year, she was named "Slovenian person of the year" by the daily newspaper Delo