In other situations, people are willing to speak about their problem, on the condition of anonymity.... I believe that is the basis for AA, anonymous help-lines, and other groups. OK, so that is not the point of reviews at amazon.com, but imagine that someone would like to review a book that helped them deal with such a problem. It could be a self-help book, or even a fiction book that deals with the problem. The review could be helpful to others, but might not be written except under the cover of anonymity.
I've only been to one AA meeting, when a friend took me with her to Alateen, which was a subgroup for teen children of AA members. The anonymity was obviously not guaranteed in group; it was guaranteed outside of the group. You undertook not to mention the names of the people within the (very very large) general AA meeting to any outsiders. They certainly used their real names within the group I visited.
But yes. It's not the point of the reviews at amazon, although again, your point -- that reviewers for certain types of books might not speak out otherwise -- is well taken.
It's partly a problem with the general concept of social norms, though. If we accepted a wider variant of lifestyles, we wouldn't have people who felt the consistent need to hide.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2004-10-26 03:40 pm (UTC)I've only been to one AA meeting, when a friend took me with her to Alateen, which was a subgroup for teen children of AA members. The anonymity was obviously not guaranteed in group; it was guaranteed outside of the group. You undertook not to mention the names of the people within the (very very large) general AA meeting to any outsiders. They certainly used their real names within the group I visited.
But yes. It's not the point of the reviews at amazon, although again, your point -- that reviewers for certain types of books might not speak out otherwise -- is well taken.
It's partly a problem with the general concept of social norms, though. If we accepted a wider variant of lifestyles, we wouldn't have people who felt the consistent need to hide.