Future Of Immortality

by Robert Jay Lifton

Essays discuss the psychological aspects of Hiroshima, Vietnam, the Jewish Holocaust, and the threat of nuclear war

305 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Robert Jay Lifton was an American psychiatrist and author, chiefly known for his studies of the psychological causes and effects of wars and political violence, and for his theory of thought reform. He was an early proponent of the techniques of psychohistory.

Reviews

[Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horrifically depressing. Takes you into the depths of humankind’s darkest corridors - our inherent thirst for destruction all for the sake of continuity and creation. The endless drive to attain some snarling power to hold over adversaries - perceived and fabricated alike - ignoring the clear message repeated throughout history; that the Hell we deal to others is received 10-fold in time. Our dissent perpetuates dissent, and in this text, after bludgeoning us with misery after misery, Lifton attempts to alleviate our fears of man made destructions by offering us social (and subsequent political) solutions, which now seem like the ill reverberations of a final and desperate call for change. I would love to see Lifton rewrite his conclusive statements today, as I am curious to see where he finds us now as a species. In the throes of climate catastrophe, the sophistication and perpetuation of war, a seemingly endless pandemic, bottomless apathy, and the cold clutches of isolation, I often ask myself; what does Robert Jay Lifton think now?

[Nick Black]

Amazon 2008-06-28, random acquisition (I was searching for Essays in Nuclear Astrophysics, and it came up). Looks interesting!