The Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism

Classic study by an outstanding scholar covering many interesting topics and issues in modern American society. As Bell has noted, America is a country where seemingly paradoxical cultural traits often find happy marriages, and to some extent, even happier divorces. He doesn't mention this, but Japan is an example of another country where this often occurs. Although the U.S. and Japan are very different, they share a common ability to incorporate useful and pragmatic cultural ideas and traits even if they are in conflict with the dominant ideology. We Americans are a practical people, after all. :-) Bell's knowledge of many important sociologists and other thinkers is deep, and he is able to use their insights in novel and creative ways. I also found his discussion of The Young Intellectuals at Harvard, such as Van Wyck Brooks, and their criticisms of middle American culture, such as the boring mediocrity of "Bourgeois sex," to be quite entertaining. My only fault with the book is Bell's style may be a little bit forbidding for some people, but a little patience here is more than rewarded. Qualitative sociology doesn't get any better than this.

The first thing you realize when reading the Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism is that Daniel Bell is smarter than you. That's a good thing, because he interprets the classic philosophers (Marx, Aristotle, Weber) in the context of the 20th century, and reveals problems in society that I never quite realized. He's not quite as cogent as Aristotle, and I think he's only witty in person, and he uses a lot of big words that only confused me. Also, the essays seem rather disjointed, as they were not originally written as a single book. Regardless, I hail Bell for his insight.