Whatever Happened to the Leisure Society? : Routledge : 9780367519933 : 0367519933 : 30 Jun 2020 : The idea of a ?leisure society' was in its heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, when it was predicted that the pattern of falling working hours which had been experienced in Western societies in the first half of the twentieth century would continue indefinitely. The leisure society has clearly not been realised. On the contrary: contemporary industrial societies seem to be characterised by a shortage of time, experienced as ?time squeeze' and stress. The leisure society idea can be seen as the modern version of the age-old dream of a ?life of ease and plenty'. This analytically and empirically rich book traces the idea in history, through biblical, classical Greek, medieval and nineteenth century utopian writings and into twentieth century concerns with dystopia and the impact of rapid technological change. The ?leisure society' concept turns out to have been an elusive and short-lived phen