{"product_id":"on-being-authentic-9780415261234","title":"On Being Authentic","description":"'To thine own self be true.' From Polonius's words in \u003cem\u003eHamlet\u003c\/em\u003e right up to Oprah, we are constantly urged to look within. Why is being authentic the ultimate aim in life for so many people, and why does it mean looking inside rather than out? Is it about finding the 'real' me, or something greater than me, even God? And should we welcome what we find? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThought-provoking and with an astonishing range of references, \u003cem\u003eOn Being Authentic\u003c\/em\u003e is a gripping journey into the self that begins with Socrates and Augustine. Charles Guignon asks why being authentic ceased to mean being part of some bigger, cosmic picture and with Rousseau, Wordsworth and the Romantic movement, took the strong inward turn alive in today's self-help culture. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHe also plumbs the darker depths of authenticity, with the help of Freud, Joseph Conrad and Alice Miller and reflects on the future of being authentic in a postmodern, global age. He argues ultimately that if we are to rescue the ideal of being authentic, we have to see ourselves as fundamentally social creatures, embedded in relationships and communities, and that being authentic is not about what is owed to me but how I depend on others.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Routledge\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/16\/2004\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780415261234\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 208\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.50lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.86h x 5.08w x 0.60d","brand":"Charles Guignon","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44174427390133,"sku":"9780415261234","price":33.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_bce4a539-868a-461d-90d1-e45c0901bb33.jpg?v=1716301361","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/on-being-authentic-9780415261234","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}