Relinquishing omnipotence isn't just liberating, it's
essential. People who don't go through that developmental stage end up
having breakdowns (or often break-throughs to a happier life).
Herbert Lui's reflections on Oliver Burkeman's article are well put.
The key word I took was "promises". The age of individualism has made
us many promises that we know in our hearts cannot be fulfilled.
Jean-Paul Sartre, in his later works, went through a reversal on
existential freedoms, a journey from "hell is other people" to
(paraphrased) "solidarity is the only progress"
That's not an argument to reject the ideal of personal power and
freedom towards a rich and well lived life, but without sensible
limits it's a curse. You can't "Have it all", as the message of the
1980s poisoned us with.
Closer to home, I'll make two observations. First is that some aspects
of digital technology, smart-everything, convergence,
cybernetic/algorithmic control etc are also omnipotent and ultimately
empty promises. At some point we will have to acknowledge "the limits
to technology". We can't "know it all". Total Information Awareness is
a fool's errand.
The second is equally concerning, but more subtle. Erich Fromm
explains much better than can I the phenomenon of reification.
This is where we objectify and abuse ourselves as exploitable
commodities. This goes to the root of the whole "productivity"
movement. Not setting limits on our expectations of ourselves is what
Lui's interpretation of Burkeman's piece pivots on, but in a
capitalist society this isn't solely our choice. We are pressured by
society (work) to make that distortion of self-perception.
Recognising and overcoming that is the first step, and I think that
may have something to do with the "great resignation".
Relinquishing omnipotence isn't just liberating, it's essential. People who don't go through that developmental stage end up having breakdowns (or often break-throughs to a happier life).
Herbert Lui's reflections on Oliver Burkeman's article are well put. The key word I took was "promises". The age of individualism has made us many promises that we know in our hearts cannot be fulfilled.
Jean-Paul Sartre, in his later works, went through a reversal on existential freedoms, a journey from "hell is other people" to (paraphrased) "solidarity is the only progress"
That's not an argument to reject the ideal of personal power and freedom towards a rich and well lived life, but without sensible limits it's a curse. You can't "Have it all", as the message of the 1980s poisoned us with.
Closer to home, I'll make two observations. First is that some aspects of digital technology, smart-everything, convergence, cybernetic/algorithmic control etc are also omnipotent and ultimately empty promises. At some point we will have to acknowledge "the limits to technology". We can't "know it all". Total Information Awareness is a fool's errand.
The second is equally concerning, but more subtle. Erich Fromm explains much better than can I the phenomenon of reification. This is where we objectify and abuse ourselves as exploitable commodities. This goes to the root of the whole "productivity" movement. Not setting limits on our expectations of ourselves is what Lui's interpretation of Burkeman's piece pivots on, but in a capitalist society this isn't solely our choice. We are pressured by society (work) to make that distortion of self-perception. Recognising and overcoming that is the first step, and I think that may have something to do with the "great resignation".