His death, on january 12, 1999, inspired numerous reflections on his sociological bestseller of 1956. Recognized as a benchmark, whytes book reveals the dilemmas. The organization man 9780671543303 by william whyte and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Nathan glazer the organization man is one of the most influential books of the twentieth century. Recognized as a benchmark, whytes book reveals the dilemmas at the heart of the group ethos that emerged in the corporate and social world of the postwar era. In his 1956 book on corporate america, the organization man, william whyte, jr.
Writer and editor at fortune magazine 194659, he wrote the organization man 1956, a popular sociological tract that identified a new type of modern men who shape their lives to the requirements of organizational employers. Whyte, the author who defined corporate conformity and warned against its growth in the classic book the organization man, died yesterday at lenox hill hospital in manhattan. A flawed central concept but a prescient narrative william h whyte s concept of organization man is now used in bowdlerised form, shorn of its polemical core. Whyte s journalist background is evidentthe book reads well, with the exception of the first section. The problems, pressures, restrictions, and persuasions he is subject to, and the type of society which results from acquiescence to the organizational system are described the ideology of organization man the training. At milestone documents, we believe that engaging with historys original voices is exciting for students and liberating for instructors.
David riesman author the lonely crowd about other directed society trend. What links here related changes upload file special pages permanent link page. Understand the difference between organizational and. Regarded as one of the most important sociological and business commentaries of modern times, the organization man developed the first thorough description of the impact of mass organization on american society. It was an appeal against the situation of people in the big. Sometime in the aftermath of the publication of william h. Let us now broaden our view to organization man in general and ask what this climate of thought portends. Using this quiz and worksheet, you can test your knowledge of. The problems, pressures, restrictions, and persuasions he is subject to, and the type of society which results from acquiescence to the organizational system are described. William hollingsworth holly whyte october 1, 1917 january 12, 1999 was an american urbanist, organizational analyst, journalist and peoplewatcher. Whyte 19171999 was editor of fortune magazine and distinguished professor at hunter college of the city university of new york. This is the concluding chapter of a very famous book that appeared in. The organization man doubleday anchor books, a117 by whyte, william hollingsworth and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at.
A flawed central concept but a prescient narrative william h whytes concept of organization man is. The organization man conformity individualism scribd. Whyte describes the organization manhis aspirations, his training, his workplace and his residence of choicethe suburbs. The needs of the war effort had ended the great depression, revived the economy, and helped produce giant national corporations such as general motors, ibm, and boeing. Whyte seems fated to be known as the organization man man. It was written in 1956 by william whyte, and its about time that i learned what the book says. Dec 29, 2016 william whytes the organization man looked at the golden age of the two decades after the second world wara time that, in some ways, represents the great america that donald. Written in the 1950s, this book is a classic study of american middle class conformity.
The old economy business model oebm is best described as one based on the organization man. Whytes the organization man, the dupont corporation produced a print advertisement with the above. William h whytes concept of organization man is now used in bowdlerised form, shorn of. If ever there was a generation of technicians, theirs is it. Last time i introduced william whytes 1956 classic, the organization man within a modern context, and we got as far as chapter 1. William foote whyte 192001 began his career as a teacher and researcher in organizational behavior, which took him from the committee on human relations in. The clothing and hairstyles of the people featured in the film may seem dated, but the ideas put forth by william h. Moral sensibilities can also be numbed in large organizations. Aug 10, 2017 if the portable leader is the new organization man, does this new ideal lead to bias against talent that is less mobile, or that at least appears tied to one function, organization, or. While employed by fortune magazine, whyte did extensive interviews with the ceos of major american corporations such as general.
We saw that whyte set himself the project of describing, carefully if unsympathetically, the collectivist, antiindividualist social ethic that provided the foundations for modern corporations. As you read this section 2 excerpt from whyte s study, think about his concept of the organization man. Whyte offered a searing evaluation of the values and ethos of 1950s society. Like all historians, i am interested in people, but unlike many i am also equally preoccupied by things and places. The book can only be read within its context, and reconstructed for 2008. Whytes book matched the fiction best seller of the period, the man in the gray flannel suit 1955 by sloan wilson in inspiring criticism that those americans motivated to win world war ii returned to ostensibly lessmeaningful lives. In the organization man william h whyte jr assailed the. Any man who feels frustrated by these things, one young trainee with face unlined said to me, can never be an executive.
The organization man is a bestselling book by william h. After world war ii ended, veterans streamed back into the work force. The organization man seeks redemption of his place on eartha faith that will satisfy him that what he must endure has a deeper meaning than appears on the surface. After this classic book, whyte focused on the issues of urban sprawl and urban revitalization. Marxist theorist guy debord discusses whytes observations in the society of the spectacle 1967. A flawed central concept but a prescient narrative william h whytes concept of organization man is now used in bowdlerised form, shorn of its polemical core. Arlie russell hochschild oped article recalls how william h whyte s book the organization man hit a raw nerve when it was published in 1956, whereas, four. In 1965, whyte wrote the organization man, a bestselling book about corporate culture and the suburban middle class.
Primary source from the organization man through the looking glass of the typical suburban community of park forest, illinois, william h. William whyte s the organization man is a hugely influential book on management. Popularized in the united states in the 1950s, the stereotypical organization man obtained a college education, got a wellpaying job with an established company early in his career, and. Whyte, a pioneer in the study of human behavior in urban settings, are far from passe. Whyte, joseph nocera published by university of pennsylvania press whyte, william h. Simon and schuster, 1956 and the last landscape garden ny. Our flexible, affordable, entirely digital readers help you focus your classroom on primary sources. If, as i believe, the people i have been examining in this book are representative of the main stream of organization life, one thing seems clear. This term referred to the idea that american workers had become conformists who. Recognized as a benchmark in its own time, the organization man gave new meaning to a watchword of the. Publication date 1956 topics organizational commitment, loyalty. After his book about corporate culture the organization man 1956 sold over two million copies, whyte turned his attention to the study of human behaviour in urban settings. Whyte, the selftaught urban sociologist who dissected corporate life in the 1950s in the classic the organization man and later turned his keen eye to the patterns of life on the. The organization man by whyte, william hollingsworth.
Creating compunction t r b e r l c leadership studies. During the height of the eisenhower administration, corporations appeared to provide a blissful answer to postwar life with the marketing of new technologiestelevision, affordable cars, space travel, fast foodand lifestyles, such as carefully planned suburban communities. In the organization man william h whyte jr assailed the similarity many from history us history at merritt island christian school. Legates richard t stout frederic eds the city reader 2nd ed. Whyte free ebook the organization man by william h. As reflected in the film, whyte demonstrated how social life in public spaces plays such a. Whyte across multiple file formats including epub, doc, and pdf. This edition contains a new foreword by noted journalist and author joseph nocera. Whytes the organization man, the dupont corporation produced a print advertisement with the above headline. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom, in the pursuit of truth as in the endeavor after a worthy manner of life. When i was a girl, i held a secret deep and true, and that was that somehow even though i was female i would grow up to be an organization man. He is the author of numerous books of social and environmental analysis, including the last landscape, also available from the university of pennsylvania press. Whyte author of the organization man 1956 corporate business contributed to conformity, critizied the social cultural and psychological impact.
Im especially intrigued by what the serious investigation of the built and natural environment does to existing accounts of modern. Chapter 02, the decline of the protestant ethic chapter 08, business influence on education chapter 16, the fight against genius chapter 19, love that system chapter 20, society as hero whyte in 1984, new york city, researching pedestrians. The organization man yale law school legal scholarship. The term organization man was coined by william whyte in his book the organization man, published in 1956. But the recent collapse of so many startup businesses, gigantic mergers of international conglomerates, and the reality of economic globalization make the organization man all the more essential as background for understanding todays global market. It is considered one of the most influential books on management ever written. Whyte, who coined the term organization man a person who sacrifices personal ethical standards and individuality for the sake of a career. But this sort of thing, they say, is the heart of the organization mans job, not merely the disadvantages of it. By ron hine fbw march 19, 20 the social life of small. One person described this ethic as that of the good soldier. This the organization man having great arrangement in word and layout, so you will not really feel uninterested in reading. Whyte s other writings on urban society and planning include the organization man new york.
1022 549 1265 1390 360 67 1527 894 1519 518 1170 531 569 1214 286 494 1000 1462 85 1433 209 1325 797 941 844 1377 284 428 754 234 1119