Sophia Rosenfeld is Walter H. Annenberg Professor of History and Chair of the History Department at the University of Pennsylvania.  She was Ed Kaufmann Founders’ Circle Member of the School of Social Sciences in 2014–15. Her latest book is The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life (Princeton University Press, 2025).

Choice touches virtually every aspect of our lives, from what to buy and where to live, to whom to love, what profession to practice, and even what to believe.  Indeed, it could be called one of the key aspirations of modern life, the meeting point of capitalism and democracy. But the option to choose based on personal preferences is not something we always possessed or even aspired to. Moreover, we have been warned as of late by everybody from marketing gurus to philosophers to psychologists about all the negative consequences stemming from our ever-expanding obsession with choice. It turns out that not only are we pretty bad at determining our personal desires, we are also overwhelmed with too many possibilities and permanently anxious about what best to select for what ends. There are social costs too. How did this happen? In this talk about her new book, The Age of Choice, historian Sophia Rosenfeld will tell the long, fascinating story of the invention of choice as the defining feature of modern freedom and also explore the consequences for how we live now.  This is a conversation that seems especially important as the future of liberal democracy has come into question in much of the world, including the United States. 

The author will be available for a book signing in Rubenstein Commons Gallery following the talk. Labyrinth Books will be on-site with copies of The Age of Choice for purchase.

Register below to attend.