Doing Nothing

A History of Loafers, Loungers, Slackers, and Bums in America

By: Tom Lutz

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Paperback | 1 May 2007 | Edition Number 1

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380 Pages

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21.6 x 13.5 x 2.54

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Couch potatoes, goof-offs, freeloaders, good-for-nothings, loafers, and loungers: ever since the Industrial Revolution, when the work ethic as we know it was formed, there has been a chorus of slackers ridiculing and lampooning the pretensions of hardworking respectability. Whenever the world of labor changes in significant ways, the pulpits, politicians, and pedagogues ring with exhortations of the value of work, and the slackers answer with a strenuous call of their own: "To do nothing," as Oscar Wilde said, "is the most difficult thing in the world."

Moving with verve and wit through a series of case studies that illuminate the changing place of leisure in the American republic, Doing Nothing revises the way we understand slackers and work itself.

Industry Reviews

"Highly intelligent, stimulatingly eclectic, and impressively learned." --Gary Kamiya, Salon

"Enjoyable and interesting . . . As much about the nature of work as it is about trying to avoid it." --Matthew Price, Los Angeles Times

"Incredibly engaging and offbeat meditation . . . A deliciously wild ride." --Elaine Margolin, The Denver Post

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Acknowledgments	p. xi
Cody on the Couch	p. 3
The Idler and His Works	p. 56
Loungers, Romantics, and Rip Van Winkle	p. 76
Loafers, Communists, Drinkers, and Bohemians	p. 103
Nerve Cases, Saunterers, Tramps, and Flaneurs	p. 141
Sports, Flappers, Babbitts, and Bums	p. 176
Beats, Nonconformists, Playboys, and Delinquents	p. 215
Draft Dodgers, Surfers, TV Beatniks, and Hippie Communards	p. 247
Slackers	p. 281
Bibliography	p. 321
Index	p. 355
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Doing Nothing

A History of Loafers, Loungers, Slackers, and Bums in America

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

More in Cultural Studies

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The New Science of Eating Well

Into the Dark

Magnolia Parks: Book 5

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