Case Against Adolescence: Rediscovering the Adult in Every Teen by Robert Epstein, Robert D. Epstein

From the Publisher

This groundbreaking book argues that adolescence is an unnecessary period of life that people are better off without. Robert Epstein, former editor-in-chief of Psychology Today, shows that teen turmoil is caused by outmoded systems put into place a century ago which destroyed the continuum between childhood and adulthood. Where this continuum still exists in other countries, there is no adolescence. Isolated from adults, American teens learn everything they know from their media-dominated peers—“the last people on earth they should be learning from,” says Epstein. Epstein explains that our teens are highly capable—in some ways more capable than adults—and argues strongly against “infantilizing” young people. We must rediscover “the adult in every teen,” he says, by giving young people adult authority and responsibility as soon as they can demonstrate readiness. This landmark book will change the thinking about teens for decades to come.

lewrockwell.com

Epstein argues effectively that American culture collaborates in artificially extending childhood through public schooling and labor laws.

Epstein's 500-page book is much too detailed to overview in a short column, but in my mind, his most damning accusation is that, for purely financial reasons, we are willing to take our young and separate them almost completely from the adult world for well over 18 years, giving them only peers to influence their growth and development.

What People Are Saying

Deepak Chopra
"Epstein's book presents a serious and bold challenge to widely held views about teenagers: that they are inherently irresponsible, that they must be shielded from adult challenges, that they are not capable of making sound decisions about matters of health. Epstein demonstrates in a rigorous and persuasive way that teens are in fact highly capable some respects even more capable than adults. By shielding and protecting young people from adulthood, we have isolated them from their elders, from their spiritual roots, and from their heritage, leaving many of them angry and confused in the spiritually empty world of teen culture. We need to reexamine our basic assumptions about young people, and Epstein shows us how."--(Deepak Chopra; Author, Life After Death: The Burden of Proof)

Albert Ellis
"The Case Against Adolescence is one of the most revolutionary books I have ever read."--(Albert Ellis, Ph.D., The Albert Ellis Institute (from the Foreword))

Ellen Langer
"Dr. Epstein has written a very provocative essay about adolescence. His arguments deserve serious consideration and open debate."--(Ellen Langer, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology, Harvard University; author, Mindfulness)

John Taylor Gatto
"The Case Against Adolescence constructs a powerful argument against trivializing a significant fraction of the population in the interests of an illusion. Whether you're a parent, a teacher, a policy maker, or a recovering victim of enforced childishness, you need to read this book."--(John Taylor Gatto, former New York City and New York State Teacher of the Year; author, Dumbing Us Down and The Underground History of American Education)

Drew Pinsky
"Perhaps it is time for a paradigm shift in how we understand the tumultuous time we call adolescence. Dr. Epstein's landmark book may be just what we need to help enhance our understanding of and better serve those moving through this complex period of life."--(Drew Pinsky, M.D., CoHost, Loveline; Medical Director, Department of Chemical Dependency
Services, Las Encinas Hospital, Pasadena, California)

Product Details

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents