American Individualism and Social Commitment
In Habits of the Heart, Bellah et. al. perform an interdisciplinary study of American cultural traditions and beliefs to conclude that modern American individuals constantly struggles with contradictory beliefs about individualism and social commitment. They contend that these contradictions are based on moral foundations that have been shaken by social norms that have evolved to become more inclusive of a diverse society while simultaneously trying to maintain some core belief that links that entire society together.
Bellah et. al. maintain that American cultural traditions define personality, achievement and the purpose of human life in ways that leave the individual isolated (1996, p. 6). The collective data for their analysis are numerous interviews conducted with Americans from various walks of life. They analyze the content of these interviews through an interdisciplinary reading of sources of information about American culture and tradition, including philosophers such as Tocqueville and Emerson, fictional characters from film, television and literature, sociological child development studies, and a variety of other sources. They use these sources to examine and explicate the interview responses and to arrive at a theory of what may be necessary for a truly successful American individualism.
Reading into businessman Brian PalmerÆs responses in his interview, the authors argue that Brian refers to his changing personal and social values and priorities as good or bad depending on what he finds rewarding at any given time. The authors note that these values and priorities are individual to Brian - ômatters of personal preferenceö û based on an ethical rule that individuals should be free to pursue whatever they find rewarding so long as they do not interfere with the value systems of other individuals pursuing what they find rewarding (Bellah et. al., 1996, p. 6). At...