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trekbicycles's review
3.0
Felt like I wanted more of an integration between everyday resistance and organizing. Useful primer on intersecting injustices in the first half of the book, but didn't feel like it was radically making moves in tandem with the questions I'm gravitating towards these days. But loved how rooted it was in British pandemic experiences and if nothing else am FASCINATED by the brief mention of the 1960s dissertation on boredom (imagination? daydreaming?) in the workplace.
niniane's review
informative
medium-paced
4.5
An examination of work, especially in Britain:
Many wealthy people have a paranoia that their household help has intimate knowledge of them and might revolt against their imposed inequality someday. Reading this reminded me of slaveholders who were always paranoid that their slaves would revolt.
Work is so pervasive that it has removed other avenues for self-expression, cultivating skills and communal enjoyment.
Most capitalistic workplaces contain emotional violence. Workers are expected to mold their personalities to make bosses and customers feel better. Doing this for many hours per day takes an emotional cost.
Unpaid work (childcare, housework) was previously done in communal creches that made the work lighter and more enjoyable. But those went away in the recent decades.
Many wealthy people have a paranoia that their household help has intimate knowledge of them and might revolt against their imposed inequality someday. Reading this reminded me of slaveholders who were always paranoid that their slaves would revolt.
Work is so pervasive that it has removed other avenues for self-expression, cultivating skills and communal enjoyment.
Most capitalistic workplaces contain emotional violence. Workers are expected to mold their personalities to make bosses and customers feel better. Doing this for many hours per day takes an emotional cost.
Unpaid work (childcare, housework) was previously done in communal creches that made the work lighter and more enjoyable. But those went away in the recent decades.
romcm's review
5.0
Pithy! Gets to the heart of the problems of work under capitalism. The chapters were short, direct and had a clear focus with great references. Read this if you want to understand why you’re crying on the train surrounded by commuters at rush hour.
rebeccazh's review
3.0
3.5 stars. This book is like a primer or introduction to the function of work in capitalism. Pretty good and articulates a lot of the feelings I have about work lol, but I found the writing style a bit dry and the book doesn't offer anything extremely insightful. But maybe I'm being nitpicky...