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A review by ghh2023
Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business by Neil Postman
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
The irony of this book is that it is really well written but no one who needs to read it will read it. They will be too busy watching their television and social media accounts. So, in a way, this book is almost preaching to the choir.
Some thoughts from each chapter:
Chapter One
"Cosmetics have replaced ideology as the field of expertise over which a politician most have competent control" (Postman 4).
This says that looks really matter now and people have to sell an image of themselves as celebrities. Everyone feels like they have to fit themselves in certain boxes.
Great Abbreviators--"None of us have the wit to know the whole truth, the time to tell if we did, or an audience so gullible as to accept it" (Postman 6).
Chapter 2
"the written word is far more powerful than simply a reminder: it recreates the past in the present, and gives us not the familiar remembered thing, but the glittering intensity of the summed up hallucination"(Postman 11-12).
I have always said that we are interpreting ancient literary works but what if they are not what we are actually thinking that they mean? I think it would be interesting to talk to some of those authors and see what their intentions were when writing their novels.
"Intelligence does not have a quantity or magnitude, except as we believe it does" (Postman 15).
Why do we put so much confidence into it then? In some ways, humans are fundamentally flawed so maybe the constructions we create are too.
Chapter 3 Notes
"Thou shall not write down thy principles, still less print them, lest thou shall be entrapped by them for all time"(Postman 31).
Some people say that the ability to write can set you free. But, it is a permanent record of what you say. No one can do anything about what a he said she said. But, when you write something down, it becomes a part of you.
Common Sense printed over "300,000 copies" but "the only communication event that could produce such a collective attention in today's America is the Super Bowl"(Postman 34-35).
I think that author is trying to point out that our society isn't particularly thoughtful anymore. It is interesting that we have learning devices in our pockets but we don't think of them that way. People wanted to learn so much back then and now we have an opportunity that we don't really use.
Chapter 4 Notes
How did people listen to seven hours of people talking and debating? I could not imagine sitting in one place for that long. I honestly wonder how people had enough to say.
"It is likely that most of the first fifteen presidents of the US would not have been recognized had they passed the average citizen on the street" (Postman 60).
That is an absolutely wild thing to think about.
Chapter 5 Notes
The telegraph made "one neighborhood of the whole country" (Postman 65).
I think that it is an interesting concept because it is the truth. The United States is different in different areas but it has the ability to report on what happens all over the country.
"The news elicits from you a variety of opinions about which you can do nothing except to offer them as a more news, about which you can do nothing"(Postman 69).
Information overload means that the quality of information you get isn't as high. Plus, it gets you fired up about a lot events that you cannot control. The news is the reason that politics has become a bigger part of our lives.
Chapter Six Notes
"This is one use of television--as a source of illuminating the printed page" (Postman 83).
That is what movies and tv are. They bring books to wider audiences who don't read. But, doesn't that eliminate the incentive to read because tv is a lot easier to comprehend?
"American tv, is, indeed, a beautiful spectacle, a visual delight, pouring forth thousands of images on any given day" (Postman 86).
This goes back to what people think America is like vs the actual reality of living in America. Tv shows enhanced the idea of the American dream because seeing is believing.
Chapter Seven Notes
"And in a world of discontinuities, contradiction is useless as a test of truth or merit, because contradiction does not exist" (Postman 110).
What if people lost the ability to write cohesive paragraphs? Writing is short and condensed now because the world is used to small media snippets. People don't feel like they have the time or attention span to read longer texts.
Chapter Eight Notes
"the television screen itself has a strong bias toward a psychology of secularism"(Postman 119).
I agree that is the case now more than ever. Tv people want to make money like anyone else and I feel like tv made our society even more profit centered. It is interesting in a church setting because religion is supposed to have the opposite goal.
Chapter Nine Notes
"An American who has reached the age of forty will have seen well over one million tv commercials in his or her lifetime" (Postman 126).
That statistic seems really crazy. I feel like the statistic is probably much higher today.
Chapter 10 Notes
"Thou shalt have no prerequisites...though shall induce no perplexity...though shall avoid exposition like the ten plagues visited upon Egypt"(Postman 147-148).
Chapter 11 Notes
Huxley--"Spiritual devastation is more likely to come from an enemy with a smiling face than from one whose countenance excudes suspicion to hate"(Postman 155).
This thought is interesting because we are choosing this future. People talk about the government taking over our lives. But, it doesn't have to. We give out our personal information all the time with our cellphones. We trade our privacy for entertainment. And, we trade a personal life for a public life on social media because we want to be seen. But, is it better to be ignorant or conscious of what is happening? The cat is already out of the bag so there might not be much we can do about it.
Final Thoughts
I read this book in a general education class for English. Most of the class seemed really bored with the topic of this book and they had very little to discuss about it. I think that is partially because my generation has technology firmly engrained in it. There is no way to remove the phones from our hands or the tv screens from our living rooms because it is all we have ever known. I have never known a time without technology. We are dependent on it and we are choosing to use it. I don't think we ever think about any of the harmful effects that come from it. If we do, we decide that the good outweighs the bad and we keep using it anyway. There is no definitive answer to 'Where do we go from here?'. I guess only time will tell.
Some thoughts from each chapter:
Chapter One
"Cosmetics have replaced ideology as the field of expertise over which a politician most have competent control" (Postman 4).
This says that looks really matter now and people have to sell an image of themselves as celebrities. Everyone feels like they have to fit themselves in certain boxes.
Great Abbreviators--"None of us have the wit to know the whole truth, the time to tell if we did, or an audience so gullible as to accept it" (Postman 6).
Chapter 2
"the written word is far more powerful than simply a reminder: it recreates the past in the present, and gives us not the familiar remembered thing, but the glittering intensity of the summed up hallucination"(Postman 11-12).
I have always said that we are interpreting ancient literary works but what if they are not what we are actually thinking that they mean? I think it would be interesting to talk to some of those authors and see what their intentions were when writing their novels.
"Intelligence does not have a quantity or magnitude, except as we believe it does" (Postman 15).
Why do we put so much confidence into it then? In some ways, humans are fundamentally flawed so maybe the constructions we create are too.
Chapter 3 Notes
"Thou shall not write down thy principles, still less print them, lest thou shall be entrapped by them for all time"(Postman 31).
Some people say that the ability to write can set you free. But, it is a permanent record of what you say. No one can do anything about what a he said she said. But, when you write something down, it becomes a part of you.
Common Sense printed over "300,000 copies" but "the only communication event that could produce such a collective attention in today's America is the Super Bowl"(Postman 34-35).
I think that author is trying to point out that our society isn't particularly thoughtful anymore. It is interesting that we have learning devices in our pockets but we don't think of them that way. People wanted to learn so much back then and now we have an opportunity that we don't really use.
Chapter 4 Notes
How did people listen to seven hours of people talking and debating? I could not imagine sitting in one place for that long. I honestly wonder how people had enough to say.
"It is likely that most of the first fifteen presidents of the US would not have been recognized had they passed the average citizen on the street" (Postman 60).
That is an absolutely wild thing to think about.
Chapter 5 Notes
The telegraph made "one neighborhood of the whole country" (Postman 65).
I think that it is an interesting concept because it is the truth. The United States is different in different areas but it has the ability to report on what happens all over the country.
"The news elicits from you a variety of opinions about which you can do nothing except to offer them as a more news, about which you can do nothing"(Postman 69).
Information overload means that the quality of information you get isn't as high. Plus, it gets you fired up about a lot events that you cannot control. The news is the reason that politics has become a bigger part of our lives.
Chapter Six Notes
"This is one use of television--as a source of illuminating the printed page" (Postman 83).
That is what movies and tv are. They bring books to wider audiences who don't read. But, doesn't that eliminate the incentive to read because tv is a lot easier to comprehend?
"American tv, is, indeed, a beautiful spectacle, a visual delight, pouring forth thousands of images on any given day" (Postman 86).
This goes back to what people think America is like vs the actual reality of living in America. Tv shows enhanced the idea of the American dream because seeing is believing.
Chapter Seven Notes
"And in a world of discontinuities, contradiction is useless as a test of truth or merit, because contradiction does not exist" (Postman 110).
What if people lost the ability to write cohesive paragraphs? Writing is short and condensed now because the world is used to small media snippets. People don't feel like they have the time or attention span to read longer texts.
Chapter Eight Notes
"the television screen itself has a strong bias toward a psychology of secularism"(Postman 119).
I agree that is the case now more than ever. Tv people want to make money like anyone else and I feel like tv made our society even more profit centered. It is interesting in a church setting because religion is supposed to have the opposite goal.
Chapter Nine Notes
"An American who has reached the age of forty will have seen well over one million tv commercials in his or her lifetime" (Postman 126).
That statistic seems really crazy. I feel like the statistic is probably much higher today.
Chapter 10 Notes
"Thou shalt have no prerequisites...though shall induce no perplexity...though shall avoid exposition like the ten plagues visited upon Egypt"(Postman 147-148).
Chapter 11 Notes
Huxley--"Spiritual devastation is more likely to come from an enemy with a smiling face than from one whose countenance excudes suspicion to hate"(Postman 155).
This thought is interesting because we are choosing this future. People talk about the government taking over our lives. But, it doesn't have to. We give out our personal information all the time with our cellphones. We trade our privacy for entertainment. And, we trade a personal life for a public life on social media because we want to be seen. But, is it better to be ignorant or conscious of what is happening? The cat is already out of the bag so there might not be much we can do about it.
Final Thoughts
I read this book in a general education class for English. Most of the class seemed really bored with the topic of this book and they had very little to discuss about it. I think that is partially because my generation has technology firmly engrained in it. There is no way to remove the phones from our hands or the tv screens from our living rooms because it is all we have ever known. I have never known a time without technology. We are dependent on it and we are choosing to use it. I don't think we ever think about any of the harmful effects that come from it. If we do, we decide that the good outweighs the bad and we keep using it anyway. There is no definitive answer to 'Where do we go from here?'. I guess only time will tell.