The SSL ‘Book of the Month’ feature highlights a book in our collection that has been chosen by one of our Subject Consultants. This may be a recent addition to our stock or an existing item that we would like to share with you.
January’s book of the month was selected by John Southall, Bodleian Data Librarian and Subject Consultant for Economics and Sociology.
The Meritocracy Trap
Daniel Markovits
Allen Lane, 2019
Shelfmark: HT684.MAR 2019
Also available as an eBook via SOLO.
Why was it chosen?
It was chosen because of the way it discusses fundamental concerns of Sociology such as social mobility and inequality.
Book Overview
It is an axiom of modern life that meritocracy promises to provide opportunity to all. The idea that reward should follow ability and effort is so entrenched in our attitudes that, even when society divides itself in other ways, all sides can be heard repeating meritocratic notions. Meritocracy cuts to the heart of who we think we are.
However, Markovits argues, meritocracy has become exactly what it was conceived to resist: a mechanism for the concentration and dynastic transmission of wealth and privilege across generations. Upward mobility has become a fantasy, and the middle classes are now more likely to sink into the working poor than to rise into the professional elite. At the same time, meritocracy ensnares even those who manage to claw their way to the top, requiring them to work with crushing intensity, exploiting their expensive educations in order to extract a return.
Reviews
“Markovits shows the tenacity of meritocracy’s narrative pull and how easy it is to get entangled in its logic.” Phil Bell, LSE Review of Books
“This book flips your world upside down. Daniel Markovits argues that meritocracy isn’t a virtuous, efficient system that rewards the best and brightest. Instead it rewards middle-class families who can afford huge investments in their children’s education.” The Times
How can I access it?
This title is available in hard copy at the SSL at shelfmark HT684.MAR 2019 to consult in the library. It is also available on SOLO for Oxford University staff and students to access remotely using their SSO.
What would your SSL Book of the Month be? Do you have a favourite book in our collection? If so, we would love to know what it is. Add a comment below or email us.