Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work

摘要

Professor Matthew Crawford begins his well-written and thoughtful book by saying he "would like to speak up for an ideal that is timeless but finds little accommodation today: manual competence and the stance it entails toward the built, material world" (p. 2). This ideal he poses as a contrast to the tendency in engineering culture to "hide the works" of devices, thus resulting in "our increasing manual disengagement" (p. 1). In this book Crawford uses his experience with motorcycles to demonstrate the effects of skillful practice on the expert mechanic. These effects include feelings of autonomy, social identity, and engagement, as well as a new understanding of failure as an element of personal growth.