At a Loss for Words
Conversation in an Age of Rage
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Narrated by:
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Carol Off
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Written by:
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Carol Off
About this listen
Award-winning author and broadcast journalist Carol Off digs deep into six words whose meanings have been distorted and weaponized in recent years—including democracy, freedom and truth—and asks whether we can reclaim their value.
As co-host of CBC Radio's As It Happens, Carol Off spent a decade and a half talking to people in the news five nights a week. On top of her stellar writing and reporting career, those 25,000 interviews have given her a unique vantage point on the crucial subject at the heart of her new book—how, in these polarizing years, words that used to define civil society and social justice are being put to work for a completely different political agenda. Or they are being bleached of their meaning as the values they represent are mocked and distorted. As Off writes, “If our language doesn’t have a means to express an idea, then the idea itself is gone—even the range of thought is diminished.” And, as she argues, that’s a dangerous loss.
In six, wide-ranging chapters, Off explores the mutating meanings and the changing political impact of her six chosen words—freedom, democracy, truth, woke, choice, and taxes—unpacking the forces, from right and left, that have altered them beyond recognition. She also shows what happens when we lose our shared political vocabulary: we stop being able to hear each other, let alone speak with each other in meaningful ways. This means we stop being able to reckon with the complexity of the crises we face, leaving us prey to conspiracy theories, autocrats, and the machinations of greed. At a Loss for Words is both an elegy and a call to arms.
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What the critics say
“With wit and wisdom, the voice of Canada—Carol Off—delivers a thoughtful yet searing examination of the power of words, the necessity of truth, and the existential need for humanity to communicate with care, especially in these divisive and troubling times.” —General Roméo Dallaire, author of The Peace
“Carol Off’s trenchant and no-nonsense skills are put to brilliant use in this compelling assessment of the crucial issues of our time. She brings both empathy and clarity to everything she does and they are in ample supply here.” —Bob Rae, Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations
“At a Loss for Words is a testament to the power of words in a world divided. Driven by Carol Off’s unwavering dedication to uncovering the truth, this book is a rallying cry for those who believe that truth matters. Off also paints a picture of what it is to work as a journalist in a political landscape in which the tools of our trade—facts and truth—now appear in quotation marks. This book is essential reading for journalists and writers, and all those brave enough to bear witness and tell it like it is.” —Tanya Talaga, author of The Knowing
What listeners say about At a Loss for Words
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- Bob
- 2024-10-12
Outstanding information.
So much of what I’ve been trying to understand about our current social and political situation has been made much clearer. The connections she creates between historical events, political climates and societal influencers is so enlightening. Thank you Carol for such a great read/listen.
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- ROBERT
- 2024-09-20
Timely, A must read for All Global citizens.
Carol masterfully highlights historical perspectives and policy, factually informing challenges Canadian's, American's and ultimately global sociieties struggle with today.
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- Amazon Customer
- 2024-11-05
Thought provoking
Carol has put to words, clarifying the changes happening in this world. Issues brought up in this discourse are enlightening and worth the read. She is an excellent reader.
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- Jim
- 2024-11-19
Relevant
Off pulls back the curtain to expose what affects all of us, and to bring some understanding as to how we got here.
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- Amazon Customer
- 2024-10-16
Brilliant thoughts & ideas wrapped in a cautionary tale
Cutting no corners and pulling no punches, this book is a revelation about how & why the autocratic ultra-rich aim to suppress - and eventually extinguish - civil society & democracy itself
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- Sherri Williams
- 2024-11-03
At A Loss For Words Too
Masterful writing! A book to spark 7+ billion conversations. A full display of intelligence tempered by extensive experience. Many thanks to Carol Off!
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- Anonymous User
- 2025-01-25
limited depth and strong misunderstanding
The chapter on "choice" outlining the history of the abortion debate was entirely new to me and well constructed. The remainder of the book is lacking. Rather than a study of the actual meaning of the words chosen by Off the author chooses to focus solely on right wing distortions of them. This leads to a shallow analysis of each of the words and a failure to arrive at an objective understanding of the concepts around them. Starting with "freedom" Off fails to understand the debated around the word's meaning by focusing on conceptions of freedom in a modern prism (Socrates, Plato and Aristotle did NOT see freedom as the absence of external constraints). Failure to address underlying assumptions about each of the words leads to a funhouse mirror view of the way they are distorted and limited consideration of how we can arrive at shared meaning. The book is of limited value.
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