Richard Sennett Books
Richard Sennett has dedicated his work to understanding how individuals and groups make social and cultural sense of their urban environments and labor. His research focuses on empowering people to become adept interpreters of their own experiences, even amidst societal obstacles. As a social analyst, Sennett builds upon the pragmatist tradition of William James and John Dewey. He delves into the formation of identity within cities, explores how modern capitalism reshapes the lives of workers, and examines the consequences for responsibility, cooperation, and craftsmanship.







The Marine Steam Engine
- 566 pages
- 20 hours of reading
Families Against the City
Middle Class Homes of Industrial Chicago, 1872-1890
- 272 pages
- 10 hours of reading
The book explores the dynamics between families and urban environments, highlighting the challenges and conflicts they face in city life. It delves into themes of community, resilience, and the impact of urbanization on family structures. Through various narratives, it examines how families navigate their identities and relationships within the complexities of city living.
Democracy and Urban Form
- 264 pages
- 10 hours of reading
Exploring the relationship between architecture and democracy, the book revisits Richard Sennett's 1981 lectures, emphasizing how urban design can influence public discourse. It argues that cities have the potential to either foster or hinder democratic engagement. With contemporary political polarization in mind, the text examines how thoughtful architectural choices can enhance civic dialogue and participation, highlighting the enduring significance of these ideas in today's context.
Focusing on the bodily and physical aspects of performance, this book delves into the connections between art, particularly music, and everyday life. Richard Sennett examines how the rituals of daily living can be seen as performances, highlighting the interplay between politics and artistic expression. Through this lens, the work invites readers to reconsider the significance of performance in various contexts beyond mere words.
Exploring the interplay between human experiences and architectural spaces, this book delves into the daily lives of individuals from ancient Athens to modern New York. It vividly captures the nuances of public and private interactions, sensory experiences, and cultural practices, including dining, fashion, bathing, and intimacy. Through its rich descriptions, it highlights how the environment shapes and reflects the complexities of life across different eras and locations.
Conversations with Richard Sennett
- 180 pages
- 7 hours of reading
Authority
- 224 pages
- 8 hours of reading
A master of the interplay between politics and psychology, Richard Sennett here analyzes the nature, the role, and the faces of authority—authority in personal life, in the public realm, authority as an idea. Why have we become so afraid of authority? What real needs for authority do we have—for guidance, stability, images of strength? What happens when our fear of and our need for authority come into conflict? In exploring these questions, Sennett examines traditional forms of authority (The father’s in the family, the lord’s in society) and the dominant contemporary styles of authority, and he shows how our needs for, no less than our resistance to, authority have been shaped by history and culture, as well as by psychological disposition.
How to find dignity and a meaningful life in the modern city