{"product_id":"american-vulgar-isbn-9781593761028","title":"American Vulgar","description":"Robert Grudin is a lyrical philosopher. From \u003ci\u003eTime and the Art of Living\u003c\/i\u003e to \u003ci\u003eThe Grace of Great Things\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eOn Dialogue,\u003c\/i\u003e he has tackled the traditional subjects of classic philosophy with a beautiful prose style in work fueled by American pragmatism and metaphysical exploration.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eAmerican Vulgar,\u003c\/i\u003e Grudin examines postwar developments in American social consciousness, as we have veered from the nineteenth–century ideal of the commonwealth to the contemporary fixation on the individual — what others have described as the \"culture of narcissism.\" Grudin identifies how easily misled individuals can be by a class of professional manipulators — politicians, marketers, advertisers, and the like. He demonstrates the calculated effort to diminish and demean broad national awareness, a project of vulgarization. Illustrating its effects in several areas of common daily life, he shows how this dumbing–down of the electorate has bred an epidemic and self–destructive ignorance.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGrudin believes that only a rebirth of individual awareness can repair this damage and in this book sets about to explore the avenues renewed consciousness may take to save individuals from the death of mass vulgarity. \u003ci\u003eAmerican Vulgar\u003c\/i\u003e paints a distressing portrait, but leaves us with hope, offering several possibilities for repair and salvation.\u003cb\u003eRobert Grudin\u003c\/b\u003e is a writer and philosopher, and the author of the metafictional novel \u003ci\u003eBook\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as \u003ci\u003eMighty Opposites: Shakespeare and Renaissance Contrariety\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Grace of Great Things: Creativity and Innovation\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eOn Dialogue: An Essay in Free Thought\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eTime and the Art of Living\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Most Amazing Thing\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eAmerican Vulgar: The Politics of Manipulation Versus the Culture of Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e. He holds a Ph.D. in comparative literature from the University of California, Berkeley and received a Guggenheim Fellowship.","brand":"Counterpoint","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46303176098021,"sku":"NP9781593761028","price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781593761028.jpg?v=1767721444","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/american-vulgar-isbn-9781593761028","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}