The Great Brain Suck

And Other American Epiphanies

By: Eugene Halton

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Paperback | 15 October 2008 | Edition Number 1

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336 Pages

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2.3 x 1.55 x 0.22

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More and more information is pumped into our media-saturated world every day, yet Americans seem to know less and less. In a society where who you are is defined by what you buy, and where we prefer to experience reality by watching it on TV, Eugene Halton argues something has clearly gone wrong.
Luckily Halton, with scalpel-sharp wit in one hand and the balm of wisdom in the other, is here to operate on the declining body politic. His initial diagnosis is bleak: fast food and too much time spent sitting, whether in our cars or on our couches, are ruining our bodies, while our minds are weakened by the proliferation of electronic devices--TVs, computers, cell phones, iPods, video games--and their alienating effects. If we are losing the battle between autonomy and automation, he asks, how can our culture regain self-sufficiency? Halton finds the answer in the inspiring visions--deeply rooted in American culture--of an organic and more spontaneous life at the heart of the work of master craftsman Wharton Esherick, legendary blues singer Muddy Waters, urban critic Lewis Mumford, and artist Maya Lin, among others.
A scathing and original jeremiad against modern materialism, "The Great Brain Suck" is also a series of epiphanies of a simpler but more profound life.

Industry Reviews

"Witty, acerbic, and brilliant. Halton takes on truly basic philosophical issues, but unlike the great majority of cultural critics today, he is philosophically prepared and highly competent to do so. Halton's extraordinary work is nearly unique among current writers in its relevance, incisiveness, and philosophical power." - Bruce Wilshire, Rutgers University"

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Preface	p. ix
The Great Brain Suck	p. 1
Out of the Fifties	p. 43
Interlude: Go Man Go	p. 67
The Hunter-Gatherers' World's Fair	p. 70
Life, Literature, and Sociology in Turn-of-the Century Chicago	p. 86
Communicating Democracy: Or Shine, Perishing Republic	p. 112
Lem's Master's Voice	p. 139
An American Epiphany in Nashville	p. 168
The House on Mount Misery	p. 177
The Art and Craft of Home	p. 206
Europiphanies	p. 229
The Last Days of Lewis Mumford	p. 241
Teleparodies	p. 268
His One Leg	p. 283
Notes	p. 297
Acknowledgments	p. 309
Index	p. 311
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

The Great Brain Suck

And Other American Epiphanies

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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