Quiet — The Power Of Introverts in a world that can’t stop talking by Dr. Susan Cain penguin books; Price: Rs.309: Pages: 333 One way of categorising people according to personality types is to gauge where they fall on the introversion-extroversion spectrum. Introverts are more often drawn to the inner world of thought and sentiment, while extroverts are attracted to the external life of people and activities. Introverts prefer being with themselves. Extroverts love to socialise. One’s position on the introvert-extrovert spectrum determines the choice of friends and spouses, hobbies, jobs and the types of books people read, about how they manage the thousand unnatural shocks the flesh is heir to, and so on. Functional societies need people representing a wide range of personality types, from the gregarious and assertive to the quiet and contemplative. Yet, as Dr. Susan Cain, a Princeton University and Harvard Law School alumna and Wall Street lawyer-turned-writer asserts in this incisive and well-researched book, societies usually accept a remarkably narrow range of personality styles. We are told that to be great is to be assertive and ‘outgoing’, to be happy is to be sociable — or, in other words, being extroverted is an ideal, to which everybody should aspire. On the other hand, introverts are projected as maladjusted, deviant or even pathological. Constantly communicating with people (in the ‘real’ and ‘virtual’ worlds), and incessantly consuming noise (emitted by ourselves, other people and a burgeoning variety of talking contraptions) is projected as being ‘modern’ and ‘living life to the hilt’. Enjoying silence and solitude is widely interpreted as a marker of depression, or worse. A self-admitted introvert, the author laments the glorification of the extrovert, and coterminously the denigration of introverts in contemporary American culture, business, academia and even in powerful American religious organisations. It wasn’t always like this in America (and, therefore, elsewhere in the world), she contends. Extroversion emerged as an American cultural ideal as a result of the shift from a “culture of character” to a “culture of personality”, as the US transitioned from a rural to a highly urbanised economy. In pre-industrial America, manifestations of a “culture of personality” were duty, work, honour, morals, integrity, manners, and good deeds. The ideal personality was serious, disciplined, and honourable. What counted then was not the impression one made in public, but how one behaved in private. All that changed with the rise of the culture of personality, which came to define the landscape of 20th century America. Consumed with their own material advancement, personality projection became more important for Americans than character development. “They became captivated by people who were bold and entertaining,” writes Cain. While traditional cultures still value people who are meditative, contemplative, ethical and religiously observant — often people with introverted mindsets — the new American “culture of personality” is shaped by wealth, aggression and rugged individualism. Glib talk and smart social skills are seen as exceptional qualities and projected as the epitome of success. The cult of the extrovert where…
