On Being Unreasonable

Why Being Bad Can Be a Force for Good

Kirsty Sedgman

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English

Faber & Faber
07 January 2025

Social & cultural history; Social & political philosophy; Political activism; Demonstrations & protest movements

We're living in an age of division. From abortion rights to immigration, gun control to climate change, civil debate has gone out the window. Manners, order, and respect are being eroded. Why can't we all be reasonable?

The trouble is, what's 'reasonable' to one person is outrageous to another. Is it okay to let children play in the garden while others are working from home? To do your makeup on a train, or recline your seat on an aeroplane? What's the right way to breastfeed? To protect your neighbourhood? To protest against injustice and oppression? In a world where we all think we're being reasonable, how can we figure out what's right?

Looking back through history and around the world, Kirsty Sedgman set out to discover how unfairness and discrimination got baked into our social norms, dividing us along lines of gender, class, disability, sexuality, race... Instead of measuring human behaviour against outdated standards of rules and reason, On Being Unreasonable argues that sometimes we need to act unreasonably to bring about positive change.

By: Kirsty Sedgman
Imprint: Faber & Faber
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Main
Dimensions: Height: 200mm, Width: 130mm, Spine: 23mm
Weight: 290g
ISBN: 9780571366866
ISBN 10: 0571366864
Pages: 352
Publication Date: 07 January 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

An award-winning cultural studies scholar based at the University of Bristol, Dr Kirsty Sedgman publishes and speaks on art, media, participation, and cultural sociology. She is the author of numerous academic publications, including two monographs and an edited book on theatre fandom, and is Editor of the Routledge book series in Audience Research. Kirsty has also written for The Stage, Exeunt, and the BBC's Expert Series, and her work has been featured in the Times Literary Supplement, the Guardian, and the New York Times.www.kirstysedgman.com @kirstysedgman

Reviews for On Being Unreasonable: Why Being Bad Can Be a Force for Good

""On Being Unreasonable is a compulsively readable, often hilarious book with a serious thesis . . . Sedgman asks us to think deeply, and to have the courage to blaze new trails, not only for ourselves, but for all those who follow us."" - Tim Clare, author of Coward ""Entertaining and timely."" - Kirkus ""This book is for you. Accessible, thoroughly researched, inclusive, and engaging, Sedgman's call to open our mouths, to step up, and to engage, unreasonably if necessary, may be just what we need in this moment."" - Stella Duffy, author and activist