Significant Emotions

Rhetoric and Social Problems in a Vulnerable Age

Ashley Frawley

$43.99

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Bloomsbury Academic
08 February 2024

linguistics; Semiotics & semiology; Sociology & anthropology

Significant Emotions is a piercing examination of the rising use of emotional signifiers in public debate and the rhetoric of an increasingly expansive array of social problems. Building on ideas developed in Ashley Frawley's previous book, Semiotics of Happiness, it examines in detail the ‘emotional turn’ across the social sciences and the broader cultural rise of the ‘age of emotion’ and its influence on how we talk about and approach new social issues.

The book explores the rise of supposedly ‘positive’ emotional signifiers that have gained prominence as powerful causes of and solutions to nearly every social ill—from promoting self-esteem, happiness and mindfulness to concerns for well-being and mental health. Conceptualizing the rise and comparative decline of these emotional signifiers as cycles of discovery, adoption, expansion, and exhaustion, the book argues that rather than calling into question one or another of these signifiers, it is necessary to penetrate deeper to the underlying cultural currents that drive their adoption and contribute to their rhetorical power.

Through a systematic and in-depth exploration of the appearance of these trends in a variety of claims-making activities across academia, traditional and social media, and social policy, Frawley argues that the ‘age of emotion’ does not represent a step toward a more enlightened and emotionally aware society. Rather, it signifies a preoccupation with emotional deficits and a firm belief that emotional disorientation ultimately underlies nearly every social ill. Emerging from the analysis is the conclusion that emotions have become key signifiers of broader cultural tendencies to affirm conservatism over progress, vulnerability over resilience, and the determined self over the free willing subject.

By: Ashley Frawley
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781350026797
ISBN 10: 1350026794
Pages: 248
Publication Date: 08 February 2024
Audience: College/higher education , Primary
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Ashley Frawley is Visiting Researcher in the Centre for Parenting Culture Studies at the University of Kent, UK and Visiting Research Fellow at MCC Brussels, Belgium.

Reviews for Significant Emotions: Rhetoric and Social Problems in a Vulnerable Age

This book offers an insightful account of the historical development of the wellness industry and the creation of vulnerable subjectivities in contemporary societies. It will appeal to many readers curious to learn more about the complex structuring of emotions and the self in the modern era. -- Mark Cieslik, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Northumbria University, UK Significant Emotions shows why we must stop concealing social causes of neoliberal anxiety and its damage, in the psychologising and medicalising of our sane distress (from war, cost-of-living pressures, abuse, homelessness and insecure low-paid employment) as a “mental health issue.” * LSE Review of Books *