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A review by jrc2011
Solitude: A Return to the Self by Anthony Storr
5.0
First, this book is magnificently structured. The quality of writing and clarity of concepts laid out from the preface to the last page is well organized and clear without being overly pedantic or repetitive. The author refers to concepts and goals of previous sections of the book - even mentions upcoming areas that will be addressed later - and it all just flows really nicely. Very tightly written book - it's only 202 pages (the rest are notes).
Second - this book does a really great job of talking about the need for solitude as a balance to the need for human relationships and interactions using the experiences of highly accomplished historical figures including Beatrix Potter, Kant, Dostoevsky, Newton and many others.
This was originally published in 1988 - so many watershed events happened in the 80s, and most people in developed countries were on the precipice of previously unknown opportunity for connection, distraction and surveillance of each other's activities.
The premise is that people who want solitude or who are single are missing out and have something wrong with them. We even use the Greek word for a person who lives alone - troglodyte - as an insult to indicate some kind of stupid or defective person.
Storr goes into detail about the intrinsic need for humans to spend time alone -- sleep, for example, and dreams -- they provide our brain with time alone to integrate and heal and process experiences, ideas and thoughts about things. Humans always crave some kind of solitude -- and even in the face of social convention and obligation, we come up with ways to get time to ourselves -- Florence Nightingale feigned a health complaint so she could get time alone to study and write. Victorian women would have time to "rest" in the afternoons after spending so much time being empathically focused on the needs of others.
So - why is it that 30 years after this book was written, it seems like we are still not allowing people to take or make space to integrate their thoughts, experiences and ideas so that they can be healthier, happier and more productive?
I'm thinking specifically here of corporate professional work and the move to crowd people into "open workspace" areas and the retraction of control over where one works (many employers are repealing remote/work from home policies). It seems counter productive to require an "always on", in the office for 8 hours workday when that's not really how human brains function.
Being alone is necessary not just for personal life - but for professional life as well. While corporate culture values ideation, collaboration and consensus for decision-making -- where is the space for integration and problem-solving on an individual level?
Lots of great material to dig into here -- it feels like this is just another spot on the tip of the iceberg of a subject that fascinates me: the psychology of creativity. If you enjoy reading "Finding Flow" and other books by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi -- you'll enjoy this book.
Second - this book does a really great job of talking about the need for solitude as a balance to the need for human relationships and interactions using the experiences of highly accomplished historical figures including Beatrix Potter, Kant, Dostoevsky, Newton and many others.
This was originally published in 1988 - so many watershed events happened in the 80s, and most people in developed countries were on the precipice of previously unknown opportunity for connection, distraction and surveillance of each other's activities.
"At the time of writing, it is generally considered that the highly introverted person is more pathological than the very extraverted person. This is because of the current emphasis upon object relationships, and the disregard of processes which take place in solitude."
The premise is that people who want solitude or who are single are missing out and have something wrong with them. We even use the Greek word for a person who lives alone - troglodyte - as an insult to indicate some kind of stupid or defective person.
Storr goes into detail about the intrinsic need for humans to spend time alone -- sleep, for example, and dreams -- they provide our brain with time alone to integrate and heal and process experiences, ideas and thoughts about things. Humans always crave some kind of solitude -- and even in the face of social convention and obligation, we come up with ways to get time to ourselves -- Florence Nightingale feigned a health complaint so she could get time alone to study and write. Victorian women would have time to "rest" in the afternoons after spending so much time being empathically focused on the needs of others.
So - why is it that 30 years after this book was written, it seems like we are still not allowing people to take or make space to integrate their thoughts, experiences and ideas so that they can be healthier, happier and more productive?
I'm thinking specifically here of corporate professional work and the move to crowd people into "open workspace" areas and the retraction of control over where one works (many employers are repealing remote/work from home policies). It seems counter productive to require an "always on", in the office for 8 hours workday when that's not really how human brains function.
Being alone is necessary not just for personal life - but for professional life as well. While corporate culture values ideation, collaboration and consensus for decision-making -- where is the space for integration and problem-solving on an individual level?
Lots of great material to dig into here -- it feels like this is just another spot on the tip of the iceberg of a subject that fascinates me: the psychology of creativity. If you enjoy reading "Finding Flow" and other books by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi -- you'll enjoy this book.