'The Managed Heart'

Paper Summary:

This paper is a reaction to a reading from "The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling", in which the author, Arlie Hochschild, argues that workers suffer from alienation as they allow their emotions to be commercialized in the service of their careers. A critique of the argument is presented, in which it is pointed out that through agency and choice, workers can select careers that suit their personality, rather than repressing personality to suit jobs.

From the Paper:

"In her book, "The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling", Arlie Hochschild (1983/2003) discusses the alienation of personal feeling and identity that she believes is evident in modern work - specifically in service industry work, where a person's attitude is often viewed by employers to be more important than the actual physical labor a person does. Hochschild studies the work environment and training of airline flight attendants and finds that they are required to put aside their own emotions and reactions while at work, and to assume a pleasant, ingratiating demeanor oriented toward making customers feel comfortable, happy, and secure. She calls this form of alienation "emotional labor," and critiques the modern workplace in which an employer can expropriate even a person's most intimate feelings and natural human responses. Hochschild makes an interesting argument."

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