The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life

by Sophia Rosenfeld

The Age of Choice is a book by Sophia Rosenfeld, a professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. It’s an intellectual history of choice, but with a focus on our ordinary activities (chapter one is about shopping) and how our attitudes to choice affect society. We more or less take for granted that more choice is always a good thing, but where did that view of the world originate, and what price do we pay for it?