Richard Sennett's “The Corrosion of Character”

Richard Sennett's The Corrosion of Character

Introduction

Richard Sennett in his book, “The Corrosion of Character” demonstrates a bleak and disturbing image of today's economy. By means of providing anecdotes regarding individuals working in what he labels as the “New Economy”, he depicts results in relation to the personal effects of working in the new capitalism. He argues that people have to deal with innovative concepts and ideas of flexibility, teamwork, flextime, ever changing and de-layering working circumstances that are apparently presenting new chances of self fulfillment to workers, however in actual fact forming new ways of oppression eventually disorienting people and discouraging their psychological and emotional well-being (Sennett, 1998). Highlighting these concepts has an effect on character as articulated by commitment and loyalty and in the end leads to the turn down of personal traits and values that are advantageous for the society. Sennett does not suggest any obvious way out to the circumstances, however evokes the requirement of people to depend on communities to upsurge their identities. In contrast he is persuaded that the “New Economy” cannot stay and brings to a close that a rule which offers human beings no profound reasons to concern regarding other cannot extended preserve its legality. Richard Sennett builds his position by putting into equivalent anecdotal confirmation regarding people he convene with debates from philosophical, social and historical theories ranging from Max Weber over Denis Diderot over to Hans-Georg Gadamer (Sennett, 1998).

Discussion

Sennett describes the New Economy as the innovative structure of “flexible capitalism” that has taken place throughout the last decade that at present the term flexible capitalism defines a system which is above a transformation on an old subject. The stress is on flexibility. Inflexible bureaucracy forms are besieged, as are the troubles of blind practice. Workers are solicited to behave agilely, to be exposed change on short term notice, to face hazards continually, to turn out to be ever less dependent on formal procedures and regulations (Sennett, 2006).

The main basis for the rising of a New Economy reclines for Sennett in the opening of information technology that has basically changed the policies of economy, and has a profound impact on organization, on the place of work and on how people associate with their work. These innovative modes of organization in the New Economy have straight and open consequences on individuals and above all on their character described as the character predominantly centers upon the long-standing characteristic of our emotional knowledge. Character is articulated by mutual commitment and loyalty, or through the hunt of long-standing targets, or by the practice of deferred satisfaction for the benefit of a potential end.

Several questions arise from this condition that is: How do we settle on what is of long-term worth in ourselves in a culture which is intolerant, which emphasize on the instant moment? How can long-standing aims be followed in an economy dedicated to the immediate? How can communal commitments and loyalties be continued in institutions which are continuously breaking ...