Combining historical analysis with contemporary observation, Susan Jacoby dissects a new American cultural phenomenon--one that is at odds with our heritage of Enlightenment reason and with modern, secular knowledge and science. With mordant wit, Jacoby surveys an antirationalist landscape extending from pop culture to a pseudo-intellectual universe of junk thought. Disdain for logic and evidence defines a pervasive malaise fostered by the mass media, triumphalist religious fundamentalism, mediocre public education, a ...
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Combining historical analysis with contemporary observation, Susan Jacoby dissects a new American cultural phenomenon--one that is at odds with our heritage of Enlightenment reason and with modern, secular knowledge and science. With mordant wit, Jacoby surveys an antirationalist landscape extending from pop culture to a pseudo-intellectual universe of junk thought. Disdain for logic and evidence defines a pervasive malaise fostered by the mass media, triumphalist religious fundamentalism, mediocre public education, a dearth of fair-minded public intellectuals on the right and the left, and, above all, a lazy and credulous public. Jacoby offers an unsparing indictment of the American addiction to infotainment--from television to the Web--and cites this toxic dependency as the major element distinguishing our current age of unreason from earlier outbreaks of American anti-intellectualism and antirationalism. With reading on the decline and scientific and historical illiteracy on the rise, an increasingly ignorant public square is dominated by debased media-driven language and received opinion. At this critical political juncture, nothing could be more important than recognizing the overarching crisis of memory and knowledge described in this impassioned, tough-minded book, which challenges Americans to face the painful truth about what the flights from reason has cost us as individuals and as a nation.
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This book arrived exactly as described and the service was precise and on time as predicted.
Steven M
Feb 2, 2012
Item just as described.
Fine seller.
Item received as described without any issues that were not disclosed, and the item was received quickly and in good condition.
Thanks.
Sted
Jun 16, 2011
Clears it all up
Ms Jacoby's book clearly illuminates the dysfunctional far right wing mindset and feral behavior.
Should be the basis of a high school social studies class or college social science course.
Ellyb
Aug 22, 2008
Educational but a little depressing
I certainly learned a lot from "The Age of American Unreason," but my fear is that no one is going to read this who isn't part of the left. The first half of the book deals with the history of our country and the way in which the educational system developed without national standards or control, leading to regional disparities that still exist today. She also delves into the association in the public's mind between intellectuals and Communism. Later, she addresses interesting topics such as the effect of screen viewing on infants and toddlers, and the decline of conversational skills in all ages due to isolating technology such as iPods and text messaging. Especially mind-boggling is the relationship between right-wing intellectuals, who hide in the shadows pretending NOT to be intellectuals, and power. There is a wealth of information here, but she certainly does not pull her punches (liberals get a small share of blame, but heaps of it go to the far-right). I found myself energized to go out and rally the intellectual troops, but I also sort of feel like part of the choir to whom she is preaching and I wonder if maybe the people who REALLY need to hear this will feel insulted and reject her conclusions out of wounded pride. Granted, this action would probably prove many of her ideas, but you can't change the world if people won't hear your message. On the other hand maybe she deserves credit for writing such an unflinchingly honest analysis. She certainly didn't tip-toe around partisan issues in an attempt to sell more books!
