Self-Help, Science, and the Pursuit of Happiness

If you work hard enough, you can be anything you want to be.” This course examines self-help culture and techniques of self-making, such as dieting and positive thinking. From the writings of Benjamin Franklin to television makeover shows, self-help discourse has proven central to U.S. culture and politics. Where does self-help culture come from, who does it serve, and what types of social relations does it authorize? How did scientists become the moral authorities on happiness and the good life? Taking a historical perspective and aided by scholarship in fat studies, disability studies, science studies, and Black feminism, we will answer these questions by analyzing a variety of cultural texts. We will explore together how self-help culture produces difference along the lines of class, gender, race, and disability. We will ponder when self-help is compatible with social justice.