Title

Exploring Quality: What Robert Pirsig'S Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance Can Teach Us About Technical Communication

Abstract

Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, first published in 1974, continues to be enormously popular. Much of the book's appeal lies in its strange mixture of genres. Part ghost story, novel, essay, and autobiography, the text almost defies classification. Yet the major reason the book attracts so much interest lies in the way Pirsig challenges our values. Pirsig shows that we have lost our understanding of quality, and he explores how we can restore a sense of quality to our lives. He explores this theme of quality on many levels. First, he argues that our dualistic outlook alienates us from science and technology. Next, he shows that recognizing the inherent role of quality in technology can help us overcome our sense of alienation. Finally, by giving us the rationale for adopting the right attitudes toward both technology and ourselves, he suggests a practical means for achieving quality in our lives. © 1989 IEEE

Publication Date

1-1-1989

Publication Title

IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

Volume

32

Issue

3

Number of Pages

154-158

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1109/47.31622

Socpus ID

0024733211 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/0024733211

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