Exploring the intersection of neuroscience and psychoanalysis, the author immerses herself in both fields to uncover their historical opposition and potential for collaboration. Through her experiences at the Anna Freud Centre and Yale, she identifies the shortcomings of each discipline—neuroscience's neglect of lived experiences and psychoanalysis's subjectivity. With a blend of passion and humor, she advocates for a hybrid scientific culture that integrates insights from both approaches, highlighting the importance of bridging the gap between brain and mind.
“[A] memoir-cum-meditation on the idea of attention. . . . Schwartz is brilliant, funny and clear.” —NPR As technology embeds itself ever more deeply into our lives and distraction takes hold as our universal affliction, Casey Schwartz grapples with the essential questions of attention: what is it? How can we conserve it? And what else is lost when we give it away? With humor, candor, and captivating stories, Schwartz reflects on the decade she spent taking Adderall to help her focus (or so she thought) and embarks on a quest to pin down the precious and elusive resource of attention. This investigation takes us on an eye-opening journey through the work of thinkers such as Williams James, David Foster Wallace, Aldous Huxley, Simone Weil, and out into the world beyond. From our craving for diversions to our craving for a cure, from Silicon Valley consultants and psychedelic researchers to trauma expert Dr. Gabor Maté, Attention explores the modern landscape of distraction and the possibility of finding focus despite it. Brilliantly combining memoir, biography, and original reporting, Schwartz documents the abundant demands on our attention with piercing insight and illuminates the path to reclaiming authentic life.
What do we talk about when we talk about attention? We might start with the studies: the average American unlocks their iPhone eighty times a day; the average millennial checks their phone almost twice as often. These kinds of statistics tell the story of the last decade, as technology has wound its way into our lives as never before. But Casey Schwartz grapples with the larger questions emerging from this change, offering a focus on attention itself. What is it? What does it mean when we give it away?Expanding on her popular New York Times Magazine article, "Generation Adderall," Schwartz details the decade she spent taking prescription pills to help her pay attention (or so she thought), then moves outward to consider the wider landscape of attention, past and present. From our craving for distraction to our craving for a cure, from Silicon Valley to psychedelics to the works and lives of writers like David Foster Wallace, Aldous Huxley, William James, and Simone Weil, who each wrote powerfully about attention's role in defining our lives, Schwartz acts as our sympathetic and qualified guide. Blending memoir, biography, and original reporting, Schwartz examines her attempts to preserve her authentic life and see what's most important in it. Attention: A Love Story will resonate with readers who want to determine their own minds, away from the siren call of their screens.
