The decadent society : how we became the victims of our own success

From the New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Bad Religion , a powerful portrait of how our wealthy, successful society has passed into an age of gridlock, stalemate, public failure and private despair. Today the Western world seems to be in crisis. But beneath our social media frenzy and reality television politics, the deeper reality is one of drift, repetition, and dead ends. The Decadent Society explains what happens when a rich and powerful society ceases advancing—how the combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline creates a strange kind of "sustainable decadence," a civilizational languor that could endure for longer than we think. Ranging from our grounded space shuttles to our Silicon Valley villains, from our blandly recycled film and television—a new Star Wars saga, another Star Trek series, the fifth Terminator sequel—to the escapism we're furiously chasing through drug use and virtual reality, Ross Douthat argues that many of today's discontents and derangements reflect a sense of futility and disappointment—a feeling that the future was not what was promised, that the frontiers have all been closed, and that the paths forward lead only to the grave. In this environment we fear catastrophe, but in a certain way we also pine for it—because the alternative is to accept that we are permanently decadent: aging, comfortable and stuck, cut off from the past and no longer confident in the future, spurning both memory and ambition while we wait for some saving innovation or revelations, growing old unhappily together in the glowing light of tiny screens. Correcting both optimists who insist that we're just growing richer and happier with every passing year and pessimists who expect collapse any moment, Douthat provides an enlightening diagnosis of the modern condition—how we got here, how long our age of frustration might last, and how, whether in renaissance or catastrophe, our decadence might ultimately end. From the New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Bad Religion , a powerful portrait of how our turbulent age is defined by dark forces seemingly beyond our control Today the Western world seems to be in crisis. But beneath our social media frenzy and reality television politics, the deeper reality is one of drift, repetition, and dead ends. The Decadent Society explains what happens when a rich and powerful society ceases advancing?how the combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline creates a strange kind of "sustainable decadence," a civilizational languor that could endure for longer than we think. Ranging from our grounded space shuttles to our Silicon Valley villains, from our blandly recycled film and television?a new Star Wars saga, another Star Trek series, the fifth Terminator sequel?to the escapism we're furiously chasing through drug use and virtual reality, Ross Douthat argues that many of today's discontents and derangements reflect a sense of futility and disappointment?a feeling that the future was not what was promised, that the frontiers have all been closed, and that the paths forward lead only to the grave. In this environment we fear catastrophe, but in a certain way we also pine for it?because the alternative is to accept that we are permanently decadent: aging, comfortable and stuck, cut off from the past and no longer confident in the future, spurning both memory and ambition while we wait for some saving innovation or revelations, growing old unhappily together in the glowing light of tiny screens. Correcting both optimists who insist that we're just growing richer and happier with every passing year and pessimists who expect collapse any moment, Douthat provides an enlightening diagnosis of the modern condition?how we got here, how long our age of frustration might last, and how, whether in renaissance or catastrophe, our decadence might ultimately end Today the Western world seems to be in crisis. But beneath our social media frenzy and reality-television politics, the deeper reality is one of drift, repetition, and dead ends. The Decadent Society explains what happens when a rich and powerful society ceases advancing - how the combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline creates a strange kind of "sustainable decadence," a civilizational languor that could endure for longer than we think. Ranging from our grounded space shuttles to our Silicon Valley villains, from our blandly recycled film and television - a new Star Wars sage, another Star Trek series, the fifth Terminator sequel - to the escapism we're furiously chasing through drug use and virtual reality, Ross Douthat argues that many of today's discontents and derangements reflect of sense of futility and disappointment - a feeling that the future was not what was promised, that the frontiers have all been closed, and that the paths forward lead only to the grave. In this environment we fear catastrophe, but in a certain way we also pine for it - because the alternative is to accept that we are permanently decadent: aging, comfortable and stuck, cut off from the past and no longer confident in the future, spurning both memory and ambition while we wait for some saving innovation or revelations, growing old unhappily together in the glowing light of tiny screens. Correcting both optimists who insist that we're just growing richer and happier with every passing year and pessimists who expect collapse any moment, Douthat provides an enlightening diagnosis of the modern condition - how we got here, how long our age of frustration might last, and how, whether in renaissance or catastrophe, our decadence might ultimately end. -- From dust jacket A powerful portrait of how our age in human history, so superficially turbulent, is actually defined by stagnation, repetition, deadlocks, and decay. A powerful portrait of how our turbulent age is defined by dark forces seemingly beyond our control from the New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Bad Religion.The Decadent Society explains what happens when a rich and powerful society ceases advancing-how the combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline creates a strange kind of "sustainable decadence," a civilizational malaise that could endure for longer than we think. Ranging from the chaos of Trump-era Washington to the gridlock of the European Union; from our empty cradles to our lonely pathways through middle and old age; from the lost promise of the Space Age and early internet to today's earthbound surveillance state; from the recycling of Baby Boomer pop culture to the Brave New World we're making with drugs and virtual reality escapes, Douthat provides an enlightening diagnosis of the modern condition - how we got here, how long our malaise might last, and how, whether in renaissance or catastrophe, our decadence might ultimately end When a rich and powerful society ceases advancing-- a combination of wealth and technological proficiency with economic stagnation, political stalemates, cultural exhaustion, and demographic decline-- it creates a strange kind of "sustainable decadence." It reflects a sense of futility and disappointment-- a feeling that the future was not what was promised, that the frontiers have all been closed, and that the paths forward lead only to the grave. Douthat shows how we got here, how long our age of frustration might last, and how, whether in renaissance or catastrophe, our decadence might ultimately end. -- adapted from jacket Title Page Dedication Epigraph Introduction Part 1: The Four Horsemen Chapter 1: Stagnation Chapter 2: Sterility Chapter 3: Sclerosis Chapter 4: Repetition Part 2: Sustainable Decadence Chapter 5: Comfortably Numb Chapter 6: A Kindly Despotism Chapter 7: Waiting for the Barbarians Chapter 8: Giving Decadence Its Due Part 3: The Deaths of Decadence Chapter 9: Catastrophe Chapter 10: Renaissance Chapter 11: Providence Acknowledgments About the Author Index Copyright Introduction: The closing of the frontier -- The Four Horsemen. Stagnation ; Sterility ; Sclerosis ; Repetition -- Sustainable decadence. Comfortably numb ; A kindly despotism ; Waiting for the barbarians ; Giving decadence its due -- The deaths of decadence. Catastrophe ; Renaissance ; Providence The best-selling author of Bad Religion presents a compelling portrait of how the superficial turbulence of today's world has become defined by economic stagnation, political stalemates, demographic decline and cultural exhaustion. --Publisher