Arlie Hochschild

Eight Books That Made Me

Sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild presents the books that inspired and informed her professional interest in crossing "empathy walls," from the work of C. Wright Mills, who connected personal troubles with public issues, to W. J. Cash's Mind of the South, a predecessor to her own work exploring Southern identity. Reflecting on George Orwell's inspiring essays on writing, Hochschild also touches on the theory behind her on-the-ground sociological research and discusses her recent book, Strangers in Their Own Land: Fear and Mourning on the American Right.