Will Storr

‘Fascinating’ Guardian ‘Brilliant’ Evening Standard ‘Electrifying’ Financial Times ‘So interesting I literally couldn’t put it down’ Sunday Times We are living in an age of heightened individualism. Success is a personal responsibility. Our culture tells us that to succeed is to be slim, rich, happy, extroverted, popular – flawless. The pressure to conform to this ideal has changed who we are. We have become self-obsessed. And our expectation of perfection comes at a cost. Millions are suffering under the torture of this impossible fantasy. It was not always like this. To explain how we got here, Will Storr takes us on a journey across continents and centuries. Full of thrilling and unexpected connections between history, psychology, economics, neuroscience and more, Selfie is an unforgettable book that makes sense of who we have become. As featured on Russell Brand’s Under The Skin podcast.

How the West Became Self-Obsessed

Selfie

Sarah Schumacher

Fantastic. Thorough, well written, covers a lot of history, and is about much more than why kids are always taking pictures of themselves. Good discussion of the rise of perfectionism and concept of the self.

We live in an age of perfectionism.Every day, we're bombarded with the beautiful, successful, slim, socially-conscious and extroverted individual that our culture has decided is the perfect self. We see this person constantly in shop windows, in newspapers, on the television, at the movies and all over our social media. We berate ourselves when we don't match up to them - when we're too fat, too old, too poor or too sad. This cycle can be extremely bad for us. In recent years, psychologists have even begun to think that many people take their own lives because of the impossible standards that are set for who they ought to be.Will Storr began to wonder about this perfect self that torments so many of us. Who, actually, is this person? Why does it hold such power over us? Could it be humanity's deadliest idea? And, if so, is there any way we can break its spell?To find out, Storr takes us on a journey from the shores of Ancient Greece, through the Christian Middle Ages, the encounter groups of 1960s California and self-esteem evangelists of the late twentieth century to modern-day America, where research suggests today's young people are in the grip of an epidemic of narcissism. He'll tell the strange story of the individualist Western self from its birth on the Aegean to the era of hyper-individualistic neoliberalism in which we find ourselves today. Selfie reveals, for the first time, the epic tale of the person we all know so intimately . . . because it's us.

How We Became So Self-obsessed and what It's Doing to Us

Cams Campbell

I enjoyed this. It’s very modern and idealistic but it hit some high spots for me. I’m 46 and either going through or getting deeper into self evaluation, personal development and spirituality. I’ve gone through life feeling like an imposter at times, and untouchable at other times. I’m coming to believe that I can be a good person and work things out to be happy. 

Some of the characters in the book at tragic. The vagina smell guy - such a shame. The selfie girl. Same. The gangster - an amazing tale of self discovery. 

The book talks of motivations and cultural shifts and neo liberalism. I found the latter most enlightening, going back in time to Reagan and Thatcher. The concept of different cultures too - West vs East with the fish analogy. Fascinating.

'Fascinating' Guardian'Brilliant' Evening Standard'Electrifying' Financial Times'So interesting I literally couldn't put it down' Sunday TimesWe live in the age of the individual. We are supposed to be slim, prosperous, happy, extroverted and popular. This is our culture's image of the perfect self. We see this person everywhere: in advertising, in the press, all over social media. We're told that to be this person you just have to follow your dreams, that our potential is limitless, that we are the source of our own success. But this model of the perfect self can be extremely dangerous. People are suffering under the torture of this impossible fantasy. Unprecedented social pressure is leading to increases in depression and suicide. Where does this ideal come from? Why is it so powerful? Is there any way to break its spell? To answer these questions, Selfie by Will Storr takes us from the shores of Ancient Greece, through the Christian Middle Ages, to the self-esteem evangelists of 1980s California, the rise of narcissism and the selfie generation, and right up to the era of hyper-individualistic neoliberalism in which we live now. It tells the extraordinary story of the person we all know so intimately - our self.As featured on Russell Brand's Under The Skin podcast.

How We Became So Self-Obsessed and What It's Doing to Us

Becky Yates

I'm not sure I completely enjoyed this book but it did cover some interesting topics. I enjoyed the discussions around high self esteem and narcissism.

"We are living in an age of heighted individualism. Success is a personal responsibility. Our culture tells us that to succeed is to be slim, rich, happy, extroverted, popular--flawless. We have become self-obsessed. And our expectation of perfection comes at a cost. Millions are suffering under the torture of this impossible fantasy. The pressure to conform to this ideal has changed who we are. It was not always like this. To explain how we got here, award-winning journalist Will Storr takes us on a journey across continents and centuries to explore the origins of this notion of the perfect self that torments so many of us: Where does this ideal come from? Why is it so powerful? Is there any way to break its spell? Full of thrilling and unexpected connections among history, psychology, economics, neuroscience, and more, Selfie is an unforgettable book that makes sense of who we have become. Ranging from Ancient Greece, through the Christian Middle Ages, to the self-esteem evangelists of 1980s California, the rise of narcissism and the "selfie" generation, and right up to the era of hyper-individualism in which we live now, Selfie tells the epic tale of the person we all know so intimately--because it's us."--Dust jacket.

Selfie How the West Became Self-Obsessed

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