Persuasion Episode 53: The Self We Find in ‘Eat, Pray, Love’

Ten years ago, we were introduced to “Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia,” the travelogue memoir by Elizabeth Gilbert that became the rally cry for women.

Endorsed by Oprah and selling 10 million copies, “Eat, Pray, Love” from Gilbert sent many women on the hunt for a better life. The crux of that message? Shake off whatever shackles bind you and go find yourself by savoring great food, grounding your soul in meditative practices, and securing the love you’ve always wanted. Many women felt empowered to take ownership of their lives and made “Eat, Pray, Love” their guidebook for life.

The readers themselves now have their say in a follow-up book releasing this week, titled “Eat, Pray, Love Made Me Do It.” In this Persuasion episode, Erin Straza and Hannah Anderson address the tension between assuming rightful agency of our lives and pursuing egocentric dreams of self-actualization. Ultimately, “Eat, Pray, Love” offers answers to the questions of purpose and identity rattling within every human heart. The answers the Gospel offers are greater, of course, and with the resurgence of “Eat, Pray, Love,” we will have opportunity in the days ahead to share the beauty of those answers with others.

‘Eat, Pray, Love Made Me Do It’: Really? We need to talk. by Roxanne Roberts in The Washington Post

“Eat, Pray, Love” by Elizabeth Gilbert