Detailed Book Review: Hochschild's 'The Managed Heart' Insights

This report provides a comprehensive review of Arlie Hochschild's "The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feelings," focusing on the concept of emotional labor and its impact on individuals, particularly women, in the workplace. The review summarizes the book's main arguments, including the management of emotions to meet job requirements, the unequal emotional burden faced by women, and the commodification of feelings. It analyzes the strengths of the book, such as its exploration of societal inequalities and the disconnect between genuine emotions and workplace expectations, while also noting potential weaknesses, such as limited discussion of emotional labor outside specific professions. The review concludes that Hochschild effectively delivers her message about the pervasive influence of emotional labor in modern society, supported by examples from flight attendants, artists, and general workplace dynamics. Desklib provides a platform for students to access similar solved assignments and past papers.

BOOK REVIEW

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Hochschild, A.R., 2012. The managed heart. University of California press.................................3
Summary of the book ..................................................................................................................3
Analysing the strengths of the book.............................................................................................5
Weaknesses of the book ..............................................................................................................6
Achievement of the author in delivering the message.................................................................6
Evidences to support the author's achievements .........................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
The book, THE MANAGED HEART: Commercialization of human feelings was written by
Aelie Russel Hochschild. The book was first published in 1983. Afterwards, the new addition
was added by the author in 2003 and in 2012, the book was again reissued with the new preface.
The book is based on the concept of “Trying to bridging the gape among what we feel and what
we show” The author has mentioned the different emotional aspects of the human in the book.
The human heart goes with the number of emotion from the birth. The writer has described in the
book about the emotional aspects that has been experienced in the workplace by the people but
never shown by them at the workplace. This has been referred as the emotional labor. This refers
to managing the emotions of the human in order to full-fill the emotional requirements of the
work.
MAIN BODY
Hochschild, A.R., 2012. The managed heart. University of California press.
BOOK REVIEW
Summary of the book
The book mainly revolves around the three main terms and those are “What is hidden
with us & what we show”, “why women are more emotional labor than man” and “ the way in
which feelings can be a bit like the money”. The author has stated in the book about how
emotional labor plays the vital role in the personal and professional lives of the people. but,
people do not talk about it openly. The writer has provided the example of flight attendants in
order to express the thoughts. At the time of training the flight attendants has been taught to
always put a genuine smile while handling the customers. Whatever they are feeling from the
inside, but in the pursuit of job they have to hide their emotions. And always has to address their
customers with the charming smile. The another example of emotional labor gas been given by
the author in book is the acting or drama that is done on the stage by the artists. The artist shows
that emotional feelings while acting which are not real. Emotions are driven in the name of art by
them. This is how, the emotional labor has been explained in the book. Emotions are driven by
the heart but, humans are driving the emotions in heart. Flight attendants are driving the
emotions for earning the money. And the artist are driving the emotions for showing the art. The
emotions enable the humans in revealing the attitudes towards the others. When humans feel sad,

happy, bored or excited. These emotions do not describe the current mood of the people. The
human heart goes with the number of emotions at a single time and cannot understand that what
is exactly they are feeling. And therefore the humans creates the illusion of emotions in front of
the others. Many times, the people express the illusion of emotions in front of their closed ones.
This has been done by human heart in the pursuit of making happy to their closed ones. The
author has stated that the feelings are often exchange in terms of gifts and monetary values
between the humans. The people with high power at the workplace receives the more gifts and
emotional rewards than the people with low power.
Emotions of the people has been driven in the monetary value and this results in
decreasing the value of the people at the workplace. The emotions are driving in the monetary
values at the workplace. And the morals of the employees is reducing. The employees are paid
only when they show themselves according to the organization's culture. They have to hide their
original emotions. Maybe some employees has personal issues but at the workplace, the worker
has to hide its emotions. The writer says that the women experiences more emotional labor than
the man de to the unequal discrimination of the power. The society has given the more power
status to the man in comparison of women. Therefore, the women community is facing more
emotional labor than the man. The feelings of the women has been treated as the financial assets.
As per the views of author it has been said that, in-day-to-day life women are found doing more
interpersonal labor in comparison of men. The women are the ones who are accountable for
carrying the responsibilities of family, and they have to hide their personal emotions in order to
make everyone happy.
At the workplace, the women are seen more as the part of emotional labor. The women
are always forces to fake a smile while contacting with their superiors. The opinions and
suggestions of the women at the workplace are not given value. When the women lose her
temper it has been seen as over acting and drama. On the other hand, when the man loses his
temper it has been seen as the strong expression of belief. The females are not taken seriously. In
order to full-fill the requirement of the job, the female has to make happy to the customers. The
emotions that are in real experiencing by the women is ignored. The women community are
taught to be behaves according to the guidelines that are given to them. Females are found to be
part of emotional labor on large scale.

Analysing the strengths of the book
The book was completely based on the emotional aspects of the people. Under this, it was shown
that how people manage the emotions of the heart in order to full-fill their job requirements. The
writer has strongly presents the message in relation of the emotional labor faced by the flight
attendants and the artist. The strong point of the book was there where it covered that the people
need to show illusion of emotion in order to full-fill the requirements of the workplace and in
order to get the money. Book has shown the mandatory aspect of the society that is facing by the
women from a long period. And that is inequality. The women have always been part of facing
discrimination. And they are facing it in the workplace as well. The another point of the book
that highlights the powerful point is the feelings and emotions of the people are ignored in the
pursuit of the fake world. The world is growing over a fast race and in order to follow this race,
the emotions and feelings of the human are getting ignored. The human heart is just a toy that is
driven in order to follow the guidelines of the workplace. Author has mention various emotions
that are faced by the humans, but they never show them. This statement by the writer putting a
strong effect on the youth. As the current era can feel this. In the pursuit of growing high the
people are ignoring their internal emotions. They all are faking their emotions. And trying to
become that personality which they are not. The concept of emotional labor is just not limited to
the workplace. It can be seen everywhere. Here everyone is faking what they are.
The women are the most important part of the society. They are never valued as they
should be. The book has covered the major point that has been faced by the women in the
society. And they are still facing it. The author stated that, “when the women show their anger,
the anger in considered as the drama” on the other hand, when man shows the anger, it has been
considered as the strong expression of emotion. This point has touched the core of the heart of
millions people. The discrimination and inequality that has been facing by the women has been
covered in effective manner in the book. The next major point if the book is that, there is no
value of emotions. Emotions can be changed in the form of gifts and monetary values. The
emotions are the core of the human heart but this also has the monetary value. This shows that,
humans are forgetting their ethics in the pursuit of making money. The heart is not driven by the
emotions it has been driven by the monetary values and fake scenarios.

Weaknesses of the book
There is no major weaknesses has been found in the book. But there are some points that can be
explained in more effective manner. The concept of emotional labor has been explained for the
flights attendants, artist and women. The kids and the people who are not doing job and the male
community. Everyone is facing the emotional labor. If these points were added in the book then
it results on creating the effectiveness of the book. The another point of the book that states what
is hidden with us and what we show. In these elements there are large number of factors that
affects the personality of the person. If that factors were mentioned in the book then this leads to
make the message of the book more powerful.
Achievement of the author in delivering the message
The author has achieved the main objective of the book by delivering the strong message. The
main concept of the book were the emotional labor, emotions management, women are the part
of emotional labor, and the feelings rule in sociology. The book is setting the strong base of
understanding for the reader. While reading the book, one can completely get involve in the deep
messages that is given in the book. The language and thoughts that has been used in the book are
makes the reader to get attract towards the reading. The main objective of the author is to gain
the reader attention over the message that has been given by them. Writer has did this in effective
manner. This is because, the book contains that topics that can easily relate by each and every
person while reading it. The human being are full of emotions. There are large number of
emotions has been experience by the humans. But some of them are showed by them. Every
individual whether they are man, women, adults, kids can relate to the topic of the book. As
everyone is human, and they are experiencing the bundle of emotions. The examples that has
been used by the writer are effectively showing the clear concepts of the book.
Evidences to support the author's achievements
The statement that are made by the author are accurate and true. The writer has mentioned that
the flight attendants are forced to do emotional labor. And the artist also do the same. In flights,
it has always been found that the attendants puts a charming smile on their face. But, it is not
always possible that they are experiencing the same emotion that is happiness. They always
show the outcomes of happiness. This shows that they fake their emotions. On the other hand,
the artist performs on stage for the specific time. In that time the audience gets involve in the

emotions explored by the artist. This shows, it is so easy to drive the emotions of the people by
faking the emotions.
CONCLUSION
The above report concluded that, the emotional aspects of the people are driving them. The
world has come to that point where the emotions are faking by the humans in order to full-fill the
requirement of the job. The managed heart book by the Aelie Russel Hochschild has completely
shown the concept of emotional labor. Apart from this, the report also shows that, the writer has
achieved the main objectives of the book. The sections of the book completely enables the reader
to get involve in the book completely. The strong message has been delivered from the book that
provides a base regarding the “how emotions are faked by the people”. The another important
point that has been highlighted is the discrimination faced by the women community in the
society in terms of experiencing the emotional labor. And still after this, the women's emotions
are not valued by the society.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals