{"product_id":"0195332601","title":"The Elephant in the Room: Silence and Denial in Everyday Life","description":"\n\u003cp\u003eThe fable of the Emperor's New Clothes is a classic example of a conspiracy of silence, a situation where everyone refuses to acknowledge an obvious truth. But the denial of social realities--whether incest, alcoholism, corruption, or even genocide-is no fairy tale.\u003cbr\u003eIn The Elephant in the Room, Eviatar Zerubavel sheds new light on the social and political underpinnings of silence and denial-the keeping of \"open secrets.\" The author shows that conspiracies of silence exist at every level of society, ranging from small groups to large corporations, from personal friendships to politics. Zerubavel shows how such conspiracies evolve, illuminating the social pressures that cause people to deny what is right before their eyes. We see how each conspirator's denial is symbiotically complemented by the others', and we learn that silence is usually more intense when there are more people conspiring-and especially when there are significant power differences among them. He concludes by showing that the longer we ignore \"elephants,\" the larger they loom in our minds, as each avoidance triggers an even greater spiral of denial.\u003cbr\u003eDrawing on examples from newspapers and comedy shows to novels, children's stories, and film, the book travels back and forth across different levels of social life, and from everyday moments to large-scale historical events. At its core, The Elephant in the Room helps us understand why we ignore truths that are known to all of us.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eCategories:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePolitics \u0026amp; Social Sciences\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePhilosophy\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eEthics \u0026amp; Morality\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eSocial Sciences\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eSociology\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHealth, Fitness \u0026amp; Dieting\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePsychology \u0026amp; Counseling\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eSocial Psychology \u0026amp; Interactions\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMedical Books\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePsychology\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eSocial Psychology \u0026amp; Interactions\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eBook details\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/strong\u003e Zerubavel, Eviatar\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e paperback\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eEdition:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Oxford University Press\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/strong\u003e English\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 180\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/strong\u003e 9780195332605\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Oxford University Press","offers":[{"title":"Used - Good","offer_id":49275441643710,"sku":"0195332601-4","price":4.47,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0640\/9689\/5166\/files\/81IokqCcKQL.jpg?v=1791919783","url":"https:\/\/shop.sustainablebooks.com\/products\/0195332601","provider":"Sustainable Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}