Empire of Illusion (Paperback)

The 21st century has seen a slew of books condemning the swell of ignorance in America, as reflected in such trends as reality television, celebrity obsession, the refusal to accept the validity of evolution, the decline of the printed newspaper, and the perplexing popularity of professional wrestling. The most disturbing aspect of this cultural movement is its self-replicating nature, in that the embrace of escapist entertainment is often accompanied by an explicit need to justify itself against more intellectually challenging pursuits, resulting in an active disdain for scholarship. Chris Hedges advances the argument further by demonstrating how the increasing consumption of illusory entertainment is causing a fundamental default in American society, wherein a frightening proportion of the population has little or no engagement with reality. According to Hedges, these worlds of fantasy, primarily found in Hollywood, on television, or on the Internet, provide an oversimplified illusion of certainty, justice, and benevolence which inhibits critical function within the iniquitous complexity of the real world.

Author:

Hedges, Chris

ISBN:

9781568586137

Format:

Paperback

Pages:

232

Publish Date:

10/05/2010

Publisher:

Nation Books

Language:

English

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