Archives
4:30 pm
Harvard University
Boston, MA
Dr. Klinenberg will discuss the dramatic rise of solo living and the seismic impact it’s having on our culture, business, and politics. Conventional wisdom tells us that living by oneself leads to loneliness and isolation, but, as Klinenberg will show, most solo dwellers are deeply engaged in social and civic life. In fact, compared with their married counterparts, they are more likely to eat out and exercise, go to art and music classes, attend public events and lectures, and volunteer. It is now more common for an American adult to live alone than in a nuclear family, and Klinenberg analyzes the challenges and opportunities for singletons at different stages of life: young professionals who pay higher rent for the freedom and privacy of their own apartments; singles in their thirties and forties who refuse to compromise their career or lifestyle for an unsatisfying partner; divorced men and women who no longer believe that marriage is a reliable source of happiness or stability; and the elderly, most of whom prefer living by themselves to living with friends or their children.
More