Future Shock

By: Toffler, Alvin

Examines the effects of rapid industrial and technological changes upon the individual, the family, and society. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Library Binding
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0808501526
• ISBN13: 9780808501527
• Release Date: June 1984
• Publisher: Turtleback Books
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 0.78 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

“Adapt or die?” I cannot handle this.

This is a breakthrough classic of its time. The book not only brings up the subject of change, but also the rate of change. Some people embrace the changes, others resist. The bottom line is, how can one cope with the change? The book is separated into seven major subjects: - The Death of Permanence - Transience - Novelty - Diversity - The Limits of Adaptability - Strategies for Survival You will want to slow down and read the details of each subject. Then, when you are ready, there is a good bibliography to keep you going. I do not agree with his assessment or examples. When he talks about many of the social changes (as opposed to technical changes), I am reminded of the Vietnam prisoners who remember all those colorfully dressed hippies back home and can only speculate how much weirder they can be dressed. Then, when they came back home, “shock” everyone was wearing blue jeans. Again, the book is not about predicting the future, but coping with accelerated change in social aspects. Today, it is just a way of life; there are not that many ostriches or people dragging their feet. Not so many people will find the book as helpful as it is historically interesting.