Leisure Time Schor example essay topic

Americans spend leisure time consuming. Because more consumption requires more work time, citizens are in effect defeating the purpose of leisure time and creating a paradox. In a frenzied rush to aquire more material possessions, Americans are working more leaving little time for simple leisurely activities. Rybczynski claims that if given a choice, most people would choose the ability to consume over an increase in free time. For example in the sixties many women traded their quiet leisurely home life from more spending power. Today families in which both parents work full time jobs are more common than ever.

Schor contends that, escaping the trap of overwork will also entail stepping off the consumer treadmill. In order to make time for leisure, one must cut back on working hours and settle for the fundamentals of living. In one case an environmental planner who lived a moderately comfortable life decided to cut back on working hours and make time for leisure. To successfully achieve this goal, he had to accept a life without credit cards and high car payments.

He found that living more simply entailed acquiring a different perspective on the role money played in his life. Many Americans use the weekend away from their job to create more work for themselves. While some Americans use designated leisure time to work overtime, others exert themselves by completing household chores. Schor contends that, work itself has been eroding the ability to benefit from leisure time.

It seems Americans can no longer draw a solid line between leisure and work. Because the time away from work is spent on exerting activities, it is difficult to benefit from the rest and relaxation a leisurely weekends offers. If workers were given more leisure time Schor predicts that it would be spent on volunteer work or schooling. For example at California Company, workers who were given more time away from work spent a majority of their time on household chores and volunteering in the community. Another statistic revealed at Boston Corporations 20 percent of full time employees used their time off to fulfill educational interests. Rybczynski believes that Americans work on their time off out of a personal determination to do well or as a way to escape problems at home.

Most fulltime employees work fifty hours of more a week and evidence shows that there are more compulsive workers today than ever before. The fact that Americans work off the job may be to fill a void that cannot be filled at work. Americans strive to do well in recreational activities to compensate for a sense accomplishment that is not met in the work place. Recreational hobbies such as wood working and sailing are more meaningful types of work than a 9 to 5 job in a cubical.

Rybczynski contends that the rise of technology has killed the sense of personal fulfillment that was associated with craftsmanship. Jobs that once required manual skill and intelligence have been taken over by computers and assembly lines. Therefore, Americans resort to recreational activities during leisure time to achieve personal satisfaction. Rybczynski claims that sports which were once used for entertainment purposes in the 1950's are now used to, develop skill and proficiency.