here we go again

In my essay, I used quotes from Highmore to emphasize my argument that humans are alienated in both work and leisure; moreover, there is chaos in every part of everyday life in the search for satisfaction.

An interesting part of Highmore's essay that I want to touch on is his analysis of parent-child relationships and the routine that affects them. "Parents are continually told that routine also provides stability, predictability and most important of all, security. Establishing routines is thus the key to happiness: 'chaos makes us all feel as if we've got no control over the situation. Children are happiest when they have a structured routine" (Highmore 311). He goes on to say that setting childcare routines are not only effective for the children, but more so for the adults. When a parent is exhausted from his or her work day, they want to come home to immerse themselves in leisure time, not deal with a screaming kid. This proves the point that there is extreme difficulty in finding consciousness in our modern world.

"These days, solitude is a luxury too. People are rarely alone; they're either at the office or at home with the family" (Sagan). With the constant innate need to live a productive life, we completely lose our sense of consciousness. Routine, in my opinion, is a distraction from true conciousness and is put in place to prevent complete and total chaos in the never-ceasing everyday life.

Stress, fatigue, and dissatisfaction stem from, as "Lefebvre [suggests,] the contemporary experiences of routine life (mealtime, bedtime, the school run, the commute and so on,) [which] are the outcome of processes of modernization" (Highmore 322). Technology adds to the stress of work life and that stress nevertheless carries on to other aspects of life.