Featured Article Summary #19

'Growing Up Absurd' is a book by Paul Goodman that explores the relationship between American juvenile delinquency and the lack of opportunities for young people to fulfill their natural needs. Goodman argues that the disaffection of young American men is justified because society does not provide them with meaningful work, honorable community, sexual freedom, and spiritual sustenance. The book drew from Goodman's prior works, psychotherapy practice, and personal experiences in New York City. It was initially rejected by publishers before eventually becoming a bestseller, widely read on college campuses in the 1960s. However, the book has since been criticized for its exclusion of women in its analysis. During the prosperous and conformist 1950s in the US, there was increasing criticism towards social norms and the impact on individual mental health. Literature such as Paul Goodman's Growing Up Absurd (1960) argued that American culture was dominated by white-collar jobs, mass advertising, and corporate life. Concerns about childrearing and education were also prominent among American writers of the time, with a focus on the decline of youth culture and the rise of juvenile delinquency. This decline was reflected in popular films and theater productions of the time. In the book "Growing Up Absurd", Goodman argues that the rise of juvenile delinquency in the late 1950s is a result of American culture and values. He believes that the youth are disaffected and justified in their response to an adult society lacking in meaningful vocation, honorable community, sexual freedom, spiritual sustenance, and other qualities necessary for their development. Goodman criticizes societal norms and calls for a society that values companionship, democracy, free speech, pacifism, progressive education, syndicalism, and technology to create a better future for the youth. Paul Goodman was a relatively unknown author before publishing Growing Up Absurd. He believed that societal alienation could be addressed by actively participating in society. After many rejections, the book was finally published by Random House in 1960 and later translated into multiple languages. "Growing Up Absurd" became a bestseller and was widely read among the New Left and college campuses in the 1960s. The book resonated with young people who were realizing the flaws in the American work system and the lack of meaningful work. However, some critics felt that Goodman's writing was unclear and that he focused too much on changing people's minds instead of meeting them where they were. Retrospective reviewers have noted that the book's themes of corporate greed and the emptiness of modern society are even more relevant today.