Selfie How We Became So Self-Obsessed and What it's Doing to Us Synopsis
People are suffering under the torture of this impossible fantasy. Unprecedented social pressure is leading to increases in depression and suicide. Where does this ideal come from? Why is it so powerful? Is there any way to break its spell? To answer these questions, Selfie takes us from the shores of Ancient Greece, through the Christian Middle Ages, to the self-esteem evangelists of 1980s California, the rise of narcissism and the selfie generation, and right up to the era of hyper-individualistic neoliberalism in which we live now. It tells the extraordinary story of the person we all know so intimately - our self.
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Will Storr Press Reviews
'Selfie is an entertaining, concise and highly personal examination of the history of the Self. When did we all become narcissists? And how has it turned us into a society of dissatisfied perfectionists? Combining history, journalistic research and acute personal memoir, Storr brilliantly and candidly explores what may be the most pressing question of our - or any - time. I loved it' Tim Lott
'I've come to consider Will Storr the best writer out there in terms of writing about human experience and the concepts and complexities of psychology. I've never seen such a well-thought-through and well-argued piece of work as Selfie, really taking ideas around self-esteem back to their philosophical and historical origins - and pulling them all to pieces. I loved it.' -- Professor Sophie Scott, Deputy Director, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London
'Will Storr is a versatile, imaginative, committed long-form journalist with a populist touch ... a talented, ambitious writer. Independent Storr can open chapters like a stage conjurer, and his prose has an easy, laconic style embracing Jon Ronson's taste for the fabulously weird and Louis Theroux's ability to put his subjects at ease. He is a funny and companionable guide' Guardian
'In this riveting account of how our culture has defined who we feel we should be, from Aristotle to Ayn Rand, Storr charts the rise of our age of perfectionism, and our resulting addictions to selfies and social media. It's profoundly eye-opening, and not a little chastening. Arresting mirrored jacket too ...' Bookseller
'A very well written book. I enjoyed it greatly!' -- Professor Danny Dorling, author of A Better Politics: How Government Can Make Us Happier
'Moving, wise, compelling and timely, this brilliant and absorbing book investigates the faultline between our oldest human needs and the terrible pressures of technology' -- Marcel Theroux
About Will Storr
Will Storr is a longform journalist and novelist. His features have appeared in various publications, including the Guardian, Sunday Times, Observer, Esquire, New Yorker and the Sydney Morning Herald. He is a contributing editor at Esquire magazine. He has been named New Journalist of the Year and Feature Writer of the Year, and has won a National Press Club award for excellence. In 2010, his investigation into the kangaroo meat industry won the Australian Food Media award for Best Investigative Journalism and in 2012 he was presented with the One World Press award and the Amnesty International award for his work for the Observer on sexual violence against men. In 2013, his BBC radio series 'An Unspeakable Act' won the AIB award for best investigative documentary.
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