Status Anxiety by Alain DeBotton
Dr. Laura Gilbert, English Teacher, Lockport Twp. High School, LockportM-206
| The 2005 nonfiction book Status Anxiety by Alain DeBotton has been a meaningful text in my AP Language and Composition class for many years. In the Preface, DeBotton defines status anxiety as a social phenomenon and a great concern. In Part One of the book, DeBotton's five chapters cover his five causes of status anxiety (Lovelessness, Expectation, Meritocracy, Snobbery, Dependence). In Part Two, he discusses the five solutions (Philosophy, Art, Politics, Religion, Bohemia). While reading, my students annotate DeBotton's use of evidence as well as his methods of development. After having read the text, I ask the students to consider how the world has changed in the past 20 years since the publishing of the text. Their final assessment is an essay which proposes a sixth chapter to part one. What is a modern, topical cause of status anxiety in American culture?
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High School