{"product_id":"the-redemptive-self-stories-americans-live-by","title":"The Redemptive Self: Stories Americans Live By","description":"\u003cp\u003eWho are we as Americans? What is our deep identity? How do we make a good life? Renowned psychologist Dan P. McAdams suggests that the key to American identity lies in the stories we live by. And the most powerful life story in America today is the story of redemption. On a broad societal scale and in our own private lives  we want first and foremost to transform our suffering into a positive emotional state  to move from pain and peril to redemption. American identity is the redemptive self.  Based on 10 years of research on the life stories of especially caring and productive American adults  The Redemptive Self explores the psychological and cultural dynamics of the stories Americans tell to make sense of who they are. Among the most eloquent tellers of redemptive stories are those midlife adults who are especially committed to their careers  their families  and making a positive difference in the world. These highly \"generative\" men and women embrace the negative things that happen to them  for it is by transforming the bad into good that they are able to move forward in life and ultimately leave something positive behind. Unconsciously  they find inspiration and sustenance in the rich store of redemptive tales that American culture offers - from the autobiographies of Massachusetts Puritans  Benjamin Franklin  and escaped African-American slaves to the stories of upward mobility  recovery  fulfillment  and release that come to us today from Hollywood  12-step programs  self-help experts  religious stories  political speeches  business gurus  and Oprah.  But can all American lives find redemption? Some people seem unable to make their lives into redemptive tales. Instead  their stories show contaminated plots and vicious cycles. Moreover  might there be a dark side to the redemptive stories Americans love? While these stories can sustain a productive and caring approach to life  they can also suggest a peculiarly American kind of arrogance and self-righteousness. For all their strengths  redemptive stories sometimes fail  and sometimes suggest important failings in the way Americans see themselves and the world. The Redemptive Self encourages us to examine our lives and our stories in full  to apprehend both the good and the bad in the stories we live by. By doing so  we may fashion better stories and better lives for the future.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44956124807221,"sku":"ByrdShop_0195176936","price":58.86,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780195176933.jpg?v=1770316919","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-redemptive-self-stories-americans-live-by","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}