Attention, Please!
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Description
Attention, Please! by renowned philosopher, cultural theorist, and old friend of the press, Kwame Anthony Appiah. In this volume, Dr. Appiah encourages us, “to pay attention, for a moment, to attention itself… [and] to tune into what we’ve been tuning out.” He first presented this exploration into what it means to pay attention at Princeton University’s 2023 graduation ceremony, where he was the commencement speaker. And as we all head towards graduation season, we think it a good time to present these inspired and inspiring musings in a beautiful and lasting format. The world is in the middle of an unusual time of transformation and, now, more than ever, it is really important for all of us to pay attention. We encourage you to pay attention to what Anthony has to say, to share it with the young people in your life who themselves might be graduating, and to share it with friends. Appiah reminds us, “that the information economy has given way to the attention economy: your apps are wildly signaling for your attention. ‘Attention merchants’ seek to monetize our eyeballs on social media; algorithms seek to entrance us, to tether us, to keep our attention captive…. By contrast, trained attention is about selectivity. About priority. Everything, everywhere, all at once: that’s distraction, the opposition of attention.”
Publication Date
4-1-2025
Publisher
Thornwillow Press
Recommended Citation
Kwame A. Appiah,
Attention, Please!,
(2025).
Available at:
https://gretchen.law.nyu.edu/fac-books-edited-works/1038
