Book Club

November 24th Meeting Agenda (7:00 - 8:00 pm)

• Group member introductions / check ins

• Discuss Part 2, Chapters 2-4 - The Backstory. Read as much as you can, but please attend the club if you're able. 😊

• Food for thought and discussion:

• • • What do these charts reflect about today's state of childhood/young adulthood vs. past generations?  (see slides on the right) 

    • Before the rise of “safetyism”, the author talks about communal parenting described by Furedi, “Across cultures and throughout history, mothers and fathers have acted on the assumption that if their children got into trouble, other adults – often strangers – would help out.”(p 86) In 1990, the author says there was a “breakdown of adult solidarity.” How is communal parenting perceived today? 

    • The author talks about the loss of rites of passage that were once assumed experiences in adolescents. He says, “As overprotection and safetyism intensified in the 1990s, young people began engaging less in some of the major activities traditionally associated with teen development, activities that often required a car and permission to be out of the house, unsupervised.” What rites of passages still seem to be assumed experiences in our society? Which ones are less prevalent? What do you think about the author’s proposed rites of passage found on p 107-109.