《紐約時報》、亞馬遜書店暢銷作者全新力作
社交平台興盛和政治立場兩極化之下,「譴責文化」帶來什麼隱憂?
「譴責」是有力、有時甚至是有用的工具:當我們公開譴責腐敗的政客、惡言惡行的名人或嗜血的大企業時,我們強化了公平和正義的價值觀。但作者提出,「譴責」已出現新的危機。越來越多人視之為武器,藉此將企業的社會責任轉嫁給個人,例如人們會譴責無法負擔學校餐費的兒童、失業的成年人,只因想到「為什麼要繳高額稅金援助他們?」
作者探索這些「譴責」背後運作的機制,展示政府、企業和醫療保健系統利用它的途徑,好比康復診所、更生人重返社會計畫、藥物和飲食公司以及社交平台,皆透過壓榨較弱勢的群體牟利。作者並在本書現身說法,以自己面對身體意象的掙扎以及近期的減重手術,述說肥胖者尋求醫療服務時遭受到的羞辱。
本書精準剖析譴責與權力間的關係:這個體系服務的對象是誰?指責種族主義者、厭女者和疫苗懷疑論者是否會適得其反?若是如此,在什麼情況下該「取消」某些人?當前的獎酬制度如何長期鞏固了「譴責循環」?更重要的是,我們又該如何應對?(文/博客來編譯)
強力推薦
"本書中探討了譴責和權力間的關係、公開譴責的潛在危機。" ---英國媒體Evening Standard
"檢視當代美國的譴責文化。作者解釋適當的譴責可以確保公平和正義,但在網上公開批評往往適得其反。作者以曼哈頓女學生、日本繭居族、社交平台Reddit上的厭女者,以及照自身對體重厭惡的經歷為例。書中提出對現代生活獨特、罕見卻關鍵的見解,引人入勝。"---美國出版業新聞周刊Publishers Weekly星級盛讚
"作者以譴責為核心,討論在公共場合吸煙、戴口罩防疫或散佈政治謊言等議題。她並敦促讀者對抗社會和資本經濟,而不要打擊弱勢群體。書中內容融合社會和生物科學、歷史、經濟學,以及反向政治學的觀點。"---柯克斯評論
A clear-eyed warning about the increasingly destructive influence of America’s “shame industrial complex” in the age of social media and hyperpartisan politics—from the New York Times bestselling author of Weapons of Math Destruction
Shame is a powerful and sometimes useful tool: When we publicly shame corrupt politicians, abusive celebrities, or predatory corporations, we reinforce values of fairness and justice. But as Cathy O’Neil argues in this revelatory book, shaming has taken a new and dangerous turn. It is increasingly being weaponized—used as a way to shift responsibility for social problems from institutions to individuals. Shaming children for not being able to afford school lunches or adults for not being able to find work lets us off the hook as a society. After all, why pay higher taxes to fund programs for people who are fundamentally unworthy?
O’Neil explores the machinery behind all this shame, showing how governments, corporations, and the healthcare system capitalize on it. There are damning stories of rehab clinics, reentry programs, drug and diet companies, and social media platforms—all of which profit from “punching down” on the vulnerable. Woven throughout The Shame Machine is the story of O’Neil’s own struggle with body image and her recent decision to undergo weight-loss surgery, shaking off decades of shame.
With clarity and nuance, O’Neil dissects the relationship between shame and power. Whom does the system serve? Is it counter-productive to call out racists, misogynists, and vaccine skeptics? If so, when should someone be “canceled”? How do current incentive structures perpetuate the shaming cycle? And, most important, how can we all fight back?