Thursday, December 22, 2011

Where has the emotion gone?

“With the growth of consumerism, corporate management, and the service-sector, the American middle class adopted an emotional style that places great stress on concealing emotional reactions, especially in the workplace, where they could interfere with generating profits. Marked by an intolerance of emotions, this emotional style deems individuals who display emotional intensity to be vulnerable, childish, and irrational. This emphasis on dispassion has translated into other spheres of life beyond the workplace. However, because emotions could not be completely excised from the human experience, American leisure was reshaped to allow for emotional expression through contrived means such as sporting events, movies, television, rock music, and amusement parks, all of which further contribute to generating profits in a consumer society.”— From Fratricide to Forgiveness: The Language and Ethics of Anger in Genesis , page 36

<idle musing>
This time of the year, especially! Come worship the almighty dollar and/or the sports team of your choice—preferably both! And show your worship by spending lots and lots of money...see previous post.
</idle musing>

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