The Extinction of Experience

A Lit Hub most anticipated book of 2024 Drawing on decades of research, The Extinction of Experience is a philosophical defence of what makes us human - and a powerful, urgent call to reclaim ourselves in a digital world. Human experiences are disappearing. Social media, gaming and dating apps have usurped in-person interaction; handwriting is no longer prioritised in schools; and emotion is sooner expressed through likes and emojis than face-to-face conversations. With headphones in and eyes trained on our phones, even boredom has been obliterated. But, as Christine Rosen expertly shows, when we embrace this mediated life and conform to the demands of the machine, we risk becoming more disconnected and machine-like ourselves. There is another way. For too long, under the influence of corporate giants and tech enthusiasts, we''ve accepted the idea that change always means better. But rapidly developing technology isn''t neutral - it''s ambivalent, and capable of enormous harm. To improve our well-being, help future generations flourish and recover our shared humanity, we must become more critical, mindful users of technology, and more discerning of how it uses us. From TikTok challenges and algorithms to surveillance devices and conspiracy culture, The Extinction of Experience reveals the human crisis of our digital age - and urges us to return to the real world, while we still can.

Auteur

Christine Rosen is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a columnist for Commentary magazine, senior editor at the New Atlantis and fellow at the University of Virginia's Institute for Advance Studies in Culture. She is the author of six books, including My Fundamentalist Education, which was chosen as a Washington Post Nonfiction Book of the Year. Her writing has been published in the New York Times, Slate, Los Angeles Times, Politico and more. She lives in Washington, DC.

Texte du rabat

Drawing on decades of research, The Extinction of Experience is a philosophical defence of what makes us human - and a powerful, urgent call to reclaim ourselves in a digital world.

'Fascinating and timely' OLIVER BURKEMAN
'An extremely important book' JONATHAN HAIDT
'Essential reading in a dislocated world' KATHERINE MAY

Human experiences are disappearing.

Social media, gaming and dating apps have usurped in-person interaction; handwriting is no longer prioritised in schools; and emotion is sooner expressed through likes and emojis than face-to-face conversations. With headphones in and eyes trained on our phones, even boredom has been obliterated. But, as Christine Rosen expertly shows, when we embrace this mediated life and conform to the demands of the machine, we risk becoming more machine-like ourselves.

There is another way. For too long we've accepted the idea that change always means better. But rapidly developing technology isn't neutral - it's ambivalent, and capable of enormous harm. To improve our well-being, help future generations flourish and recover our shared humanity, we must become more mindful users of technology and more discerning of how it uses us.

From TikTok challenges and algorithms to surveillance devices and conspiracy culture, The Extinction of Experience reveals the human crisis of our digital age - and urges us to return to the real world, while we still can.

'Christine Rosen is one of America's best writers and thinkers' Washington Examiner

Résumé

A Lit Hub most anticipated book of 2024

Drawing on decades of research, The Extinction of Experience is a philosophical defence of what makes us human and a powerful, urgent call to reclaim ourselves in a digital world.

Human experiences are disappearing.

Social media, gaming and dating apps have usurped in-person interaction; handwriting is no longer prioritised in schools; and emotion is sooner expressed through likes and emojis than face-to-face conversations. With headphones in and eyes trained on our phones, even boredom has been obliterated. But, as Christine Rosen expertly shows, when we embrace this mediated life and conform to the demands of the machine, we risk becoming more disconnected and machine-like ourselves.

There is another way. For too long, under the influence of corporate giants and tech enthusiasts, we've accepted the idea that change always means better. But rapidly developing technology isn't neutral it's ambivalent, and capable of enormous harm. To improve our well-being, help future generations flourish and recover our shared humanity, we must become more critical, mindful users of technology, and more discerning of how it uses us.

From TikTok challenges and algorithms to surveillance devices and conspiracy culture, The Extinction of Experience reveals the human crisis of our digital age and urges us to return to the real world, while we still can.