Mass Society And Mass Culture: Reinventing the Nobleman
Today's culture, according to author Allen Armac in his
brilliant and thought-provoking new book, is a mass culture. We
live, breathe, work and often think as a group. We have mass
education, mass entertainment, mass industrial production and
mass religions as well. But where did this kind of group culture
come from?
Armac carefully traces its creation back to the rise of the
middle class, which largely began as a demographic movement in
1870, when ordinary people took on the world of the "royals" and
rebuilt it to their taste, stripping the pomp and glory to try
to create a braver new world. But in doing so, Armac argues,
these same people impacted every aspect of our lives from that
day forward - and not always for the better.
>From education to communication to public opinion, we live in a
global society. Everything we see, say or do is impacted by the
masses. Given this, can any one individual improve present
social conditions and make a better world for everyone? Can we
go beyond our present mass culture to create brand new societal
trends and values that we want to succeed and do away with those
that we don't? And can we reclaim the beauty of old artisan
traditions instead of mass productions?
Armac answers these intriguing questions and more as he examines
mass cultures through history in incisive, thorough and
absolutely fascinating detail. The essence of the book reaches
its climax in the last chapter that shows us an ideal way out
from the dead-end of our age - ennoblement of the entire
population. Provocative and pointed and simmering with
intelligence, this is one book that should be essential reading
for every thinking person.