Summary of David Graeber's The Utopia of Rules

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 I had to take care of my mother, who was having a series of strokes. She had saved up six thousand dollars, which was enough to qualify her for Medicaid, but she needed power of attorney over her bank account in order to pay her monthly rent bills.

#2 The next week, the notary duly appeared to officially complete the paperwork. I was surprised the bank insisted on having its own separate power of attorney form, but I figured the notary knew what she was doing. The bank would not accept the forms in their current state, so my mother died soon after.

#3 One can fairly say that bureaucracies are utopian forms of organization. They set demands they believe are reasonable, and then blame the individuals when they fail to live up to them.

#4 I was forced to confront the fact that I was doing a lot of foolish things because I was trying to understand and influence the government officials who had the power to change the rules. I realized that I needed to stop worrying about how not to seem like I was rubbing notaries in their faces, and just focus on the task at hand.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Feb 17, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669349280

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

Book preview

Insights on David Graeber's The Utopia of Rules

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

I had to take care of my mother, who was having a series of strokes. She had saved up six thousand dollars, which was enough to qualify her for Medicaid, but she needed power of attorney over her bank account in order to pay her monthly rent bills.

#2

The next week, the notary duly appeared to officially complete the paperwork. I was surprised the bank insisted on having its own separate power of attorney form, but I figured the notary knew what she was doing. The bank would not accept the forms in their current state, so my mother died soon after.

#3

One can fairly say that bureaucracies are utopian forms of organization. They set demands they believe are reasonable, and then blame the individuals when they fail to live up to them.

#4

I was forced to confront the fact that I was doing a lot of foolish things because I was trying to understand and influence the government officials who had the power to change the rules. I realized that I needed to stop worrying about how not to seem like I was rubbing notaries