This book presents postemotional theory as an alternative to both modernist and postmodern theories of society. Offering an examination of the ways in which various classical social theorists interpreted Schopenhauer’s thought, together with fresh explorations of Schopenhauer’s and Durkheim’s concerns with knowledge, ethics and the character of religion, The Roots of Postemotional Theory presents a postemotional examination of various trends in contemporary society, such as rising unhappiness, the cultural proclivity toward fake smiles and ‘customer satisfaction’; manufactured authenticity and fake sincerity, forced spontaneity, brand loyalty and the modern totemism of mascots and national loyalties, and the capacity of consumer society to market and promote greed and inequality.