Dalton Conley: Are You an Intravidual?
Berkeley Arts and Letters - First Congregational Church of Berkeley
Welcome to Elsewhere, USA, where the American individual has become extinct.Acclaimed sociologist Dalton Conley looks closely at a population of intraviduals -- fractured people who struggle to juggle professional, familial, and personal pursuits.Gone are the days when professionals could count on clearly-defined work days with the same company for twenty years, and clearly defined roles within the family to come home to.Instead, today's citizens of Elsewhere must try to satisfy their various selves simultaneously.By examining three arenas – economic, familial, and technological – Conley is able to illustrate how we have all become inhabitants of Elsewhere, where division between home and office has been all but demolished; our wireless economy encourages us to work 24/7, marketing has invaded the most intimate aspects of our lives, and leisure has become a lost art.Conley, university professor of the social sciences and chair of sociology at New York University, offers an essential understanding of how these changes have reshaped our world and our lives. Dalton Conley's essays have appeared in numerous publications; his previous books include Being Black, Living in the Red, Honky, and The Pecking Order.Joining Conley in conversation this evening are Michael Shellenberger and Ted Nordhaus, co-founders of the Breakthrough Institute, authors of Break Through and The Death of Environmentalism; both were named Time magazine's "Heroes of the Environment 2008" - First Congregational Church of Berkeley