Why Work? is a provocative collection of essays and illustrations by writers and artists from the 19th century through to today, dissecting "work," its form under capitalism, and the possibilities for an alternative society. It poses the question: why do some of us still work until we drop in an age of vast automated production, while others starve for lack of work? Where is the leisure society that was promised? This collection includes contributions from luminaries of the past such as William Morris and Bertrand Russell, contemporary theorists like David Graeber and Juliet Schor, and illustrated examinations of workplace potentials and pitfalls from Clifford Harper.