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Somebody Should Do Something (PREMIUM ED)

NON-FICTION, Sociology

By: Alex Madva

ISBN

Publisher

Imprint

Year Published

Print Length

Format

SKU

9780262049788
The MIT Press
N/A
2025
352 pages
Paperback
25397

Original price was: ₨9,295.00.Current price is: ₨1,600.00.

A novel and scientific approach to creating transformative social change—and the surprising ways that each of us can help make a real difference.

Description

Changing the world is difficult. One reason is that the most important problems, like climate change, racism, and poverty, are structural. They emerge from our collective practices: laws, economies, history, culture, norms, and built environments. The dilemma is that there is no way to make structural change without individual people making different—more structure-facing—decisions. In Somebody Should Do Something, Michael Brownstein, Alex Madva, and Daniel Kelly show us how we can connect our personal choices to structural change and why individual choices matter, though not in the way people usually think.

The authors paint a new picture of how social change happens, arguing that our most powerful personal choices are those that springboard us into working together with others—warehouse worker Chris Smalls’s unionization at Amazon is one powerful example. Taking inspiration from the writer Bill McKibben, they stress how one “important thing an individual can do is be somewhat less of an individual.”

Organized into three main parts, the book first diagnoses the problem of “either/or” thinking about social change, which stems from the false choice of making better personal choices or changing the system. Then it offers a different way to think about social change, anchored in a new picture of human nature emerging across the social sciences. Finally, the authors explore ways of putting this picture into practice. Neither a how-to manual nor an activist’s guide, Somebody Should Do Something pairs stories with science (plus some jokes) to help readers recognize their own power, turning resignation about climate change and racial injustice into actions that transform the world.

Praise and Reviews

“Perfectly poised to meet the moment, Somebody Should Do Something is a gem containing hope. Replete with stories from our own history and the best scientific evidence today, this book will change you into the both/and thinker that our time is calling us to be.” —Mahzarin R. Banaji, Richard Clarke Cabot Professor of Social Ethics, Harvard University------------ “What can individuals do to promote systemic social change? In this informative and lucid book, Brownstein, Madva, and Kelly document many compelling stories and case studies to advance the thesis that, contrary to a pervading sense of powerlessness, the roles we already inhabit often contain a potential for precipitating structural change, if only we can harness it. The case they make is an enlivening antidote to giving up.” —Miranda Fricker, Julius Silver Professor, Department of Philosophy, New York University------------ “In Somebody Should Do Something, Michael Brownstein, Alex Madva, and Daniel Kelly neatly dispense with the false divide between individual action and systemic change. It’s an interesting read, full of lessons from groups ranging from Mothers Against Drunk Driving to the NRA and success stories like marriage equality and milk pasteurization. Most importantly, the book provides concrete suggestions for organizing, coalition-building, and finding your own place in creating change.” —Kate Marvel, author of Human Nature----------------- “With clear prose and compelling stories, this book dissolves the do-gooder’s dilemma: whether to focus on the large-scale changes that no one person can accomplish, or on the individual changes that seem so paltry on their own. The authors compellingly argue for a third way forward, connecting personal choices to systemic transformation. The result is both persuasive and empowering—a template for social change.” —Tania Lombrozo, Professor, Department of Psychology, Princeton University

About the Author

Michael Brownstein is Professor and Chair of Philosophy at John Jay College and Professor of Philosophy at The Graduate Center, CUNY. He is the author of The Implicit Mind. Alex Madva is Professor of Philosophy, Director of the California Center for Ethics and Policy, and Co-Director of the Digital Humanities Consortium at Cal Poly Pomona. He is a coeditor of An Introduction to Implicit Bias and The Movement for Black Lives. Daniel Kelly is Professor of Philosophy at Purdue University. He is the author of Yuck! The Nature and Moral Significance of Disgust (MIT Press).

Somebody Should Do Something (PREMIUM ED)

By : Alex Madva, Daniel Kelly, Michael Brownstein
NON-FICTION, Sociology

A novel and scientific approach to creating transformative social change—and the surprising ways that each of us can help make a real difference.

Description

Changing the world is difficult. One reason is that the most important problems, like climate change, racism, and poverty, are structural. They emerge from our collective practices: laws, economies, history, culture, norms, and built environments. The dilemma is that there is no way to make structural change without individual people making different—more structure-facing—decisions. In Somebody Should Do Something, Michael Brownstein, Alex Madva, and Daniel Kelly show us how we can connect our personal choices to structural change and why individual choices matter, though not in the way people usually think. The authors paint a new picture of how social change happens, arguing that our most powerful personal choices are those that springboard us into working together with others—warehouse worker Chris Smalls’s unionization at Amazon is one powerful example. Taking inspiration from the writer Bill McKibben, they stress how one “important thing an individual can do is be somewhat less of an individual.” Organized into three main parts, the book first diagnoses the problem of “either/or” thinking about social change, which stems from the false choice of making better personal choices or changing the system. Then it offers a different way to think about social change, anchored in a new picture of human nature emerging across the social sciences. Finally, the authors explore ways of putting this picture into practice. Neither a how-to manual nor an activist’s guide, Somebody Should Do Something pairs stories with science (plus some jokes) to help readers recognize their own power, turning resignation about climate change and racial injustice into actions that transform the world.

Praise and Reviews

“Perfectly poised to meet the moment, Somebody Should Do Something is a gem containing hope. Replete with stories from our own history and the best scientific evidence today, this book will change you into the both/and thinker that our time is calling us to be.” —Mahzarin R. Banaji, Richard Clarke Cabot Professor of Social Ethics, Harvard University------------ “What can individuals do to promote systemic social change? In this informative and lucid book, Brownstein, Madva, and Kelly document many compelling stories and case studies to advance the thesis that, contrary to a pervading sense of powerlessness, the roles we already inhabit often contain a potential for precipitating structural change, if only we can harness it. The case they make is an enlivening antidote to giving up.” —Miranda Fricker, Julius Silver Professor, Department of Philosophy, New York University------------ “In Somebody Should Do Something, Michael Brownstein, Alex Madva, and Daniel Kelly neatly dispense with the false divide between individual action and systemic change. It’s an interesting read, full of lessons from groups ranging from Mothers Against Drunk Driving to the NRA and success stories like marriage equality and milk pasteurization. Most importantly, the book provides concrete suggestions for organizing, coalition-building, and finding your own place in creating change.” —Kate Marvel, author of Human Nature----------------- “With clear prose and compelling stories, this book dissolves the do-gooder’s dilemma: whether to focus on the large-scale changes that no one person can accomplish, or on the individual changes that seem so paltry on their own. The authors compellingly argue for a third way forward, connecting personal choices to systemic transformation. The result is both persuasive and empowering—a template for social change.” —Tania Lombrozo, Professor, Department of Psychology, Princeton University

About the Author

Michael Brownstein is Professor and Chair of Philosophy at John Jay College and Professor of Philosophy at The Graduate Center, CUNY. He is the author of The Implicit Mind. Alex Madva is Professor of Philosophy, Director of the California Center for Ethics and Policy, and Co-Director of the Digital Humanities Consortium at Cal Poly Pomona. He is a coeditor of An Introduction to Implicit Bias and The Movement for Black Lives. Daniel Kelly is Professor of Philosophy at Purdue University. He is the author of Yuck! The Nature and Moral Significance of Disgust (MIT Press).
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