Book description
Has material civilization spun out of control, becoming too fast for
our own well-being and that of the planet? This book confronts these
anxieties and examines the changing rhythms and temporal organization of
everyday life. How do people handle hurriedness, burn-out and stress?
Are slower forms of consumption viable? This volume brings together
international experts from geography, sociology, history, anthropology
and philosophy. In case studies covering the United States, Asia, and
Europe, contributors follow routines and rhythms, their emotional and
political dynamics, and show how they are anchored in material culture
and everyday practice. Running themes of the book are questions of
coordination and disruption; cycles and seasons; and, the interplay
between power and freedom, and between material and natural forces. The
result is a volume that brings studies of practice, temporality and
material culture together to open up a new intellectual agenda. Has
material civilization spun out of control, becoming too fast for our own
well-being and that of the planet? This book confronts these anxieties
and examines the changing rhythms and temporal organization of everyday
life. How do people handle hurriedness, burn-out and stress? Are slower
forms of consumption viable? This volume brings together international
experts from geography, sociology, history, anthropology and philosophy.
In case studies covering the United States, Asia, and Europe,
contributors follow routines and rhythms, their emotional and political
dynamics, and show how they are anchored in material culture and
everyday practice. Running themes of the book are questions of
coordination and disruption; cycles and seasons; and, the interplay
between power and freedom, and between material and natural forces. The
result is a volume that brings studies of practice, temporality and
material culture together to open up a new intellectual agenda.
