Contemporary capitalism and the middle classes Book

It's so important to reflect on this romance stuff, and illouz does a good job picking apart a really complex issue. she largely sets gender aside to look at the "romantic utopia" in relation to capitalism. NEAT!! and the people she interviews aren't just duped by advertising-- sure they take in many messages about romance and love from the media, but they also actively engage with these ideas and even see the contradictions in them.

i love books that unravel the connection between larger social arrangements and the things we think are just personal. this book has made me start to reevaluate my own ideas about love, romance, and friendship. so many of our relationships are mediated by commodities to a huge degree or involve consumption as the main activity. that's messed up and i want to be critical of it and i want more than that in my relationships. (and that sounds like something i would have written in my livejournal 10 years ago).