Guilty lives: The authenticity trap at work

by André Spicer

(404 as of 2019-01-27) http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contri...
Try: http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/15610/

abstract:
This paper argues that guilt is central to the contemporary fixation with personal authenticity. Building on Basterra’s (2004) analysis of guilt and the tragic form, I argue the search for authenticity represents an act of agency, a struggle against external social determination. This struggle is embodied in a whole series of minor ‘authenticity rituals’ that we become passionately attached to. These rituals provoke compulsive self-monitoring within the subject. Instead of freeing ourselves from control, the search for authenticity actually deepens it in unexpected ways.

Unknown Binding

Published August 1, 2016

About the author

André Spicer is Professor at Cass Business School, City University London and the co-author or co-editor of five books. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, Financial Times, Times, Independent and CNN.