Irony In Barry Schwartz's The Paradox Of Choice

The power to choose is a liberating capability, one that provides us with a sense of self-worth and freedom. Our decisions can lead us to feelings of pride, or even disappointment, but nonetheless, they belong to he who made the decision and solely him. The old saying “less is more,” greatly falls into play in Barry Schwartz’s book, The Paradox of Choice. The decisions that the average person must face have become so abundant, that one may become overwhelmed, and in turn be held captive within the so called “freedoms” of his or her choice. Schwartz divides his book into four sections, each focused on a different aspect of human choice and the negative effect that excessive decision-making has on the decision-makers. Irony is constantly incorporated throughout the entire book to emphasize the counterintuition of freedom of choice. Studies and statistics further prove Schwartz’s thesis that an exceedingly large number of options will lessen the appeal of the final choice. Barry Schwartz develops a thorough argument to support his claim that “a large

Schwartz states that with an exceptional abundance of options at hand, “choice no longer liberates, but debilitates, [and] might even be said to tyrannize” (2). The irony in this statement falls within the disagreement of the common notion that choice is a freedom of personal expression. Schwartz goes against this belief, by stating that too much choice can do the exact opposite of liberating us, by debilitating and tyrannizing. To the reader, the conception that “a greater variety of choices actually makes [one] feel worse,” goes against all common understanding of choice, and sparks inquiry within the reader (123). By providing this opposition to the commonly-accepted notions of choice, Schwartz strengthens his argument by opening the readers’ eyes to a new side of the presented