burnout society

Müdigkeitsgesellschaft

The negative society has disappeared, replaced by a society full of positivity.
Starting from this paradigm shift, Han Bingzhe shows the pathological forms of today's society, including mental illnesses such as depression, attention deficit disorder, and burnout. These are not infectious diseases but obstructive diseases, caused not by a negative, immunological other, but by an excess of positivity.
Therefore, all immunological preventive and resistance measures have failed. Han's discussion ultimately concludes with a vision of a society he deliberately gives the ambiguous name of "burnout society." In this vision, life becomes survival, survival leads to a fanatical worship of health, and health brings disease and death.
Without the negativity of death, life itself becomes rigid and becomes death.
An important work that provides a diagnosis of our current era of globalization.
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1. What is this book about?
Our competitive, performance-driven society is affecting us all. Rather than improving our lives, multitasking and user-friendly technologies are creating chaos. From depression to attention deficit disorder to split personality, a pervasive sense of unease pervades society. Han Bingzhe draws on literature, philosophy, social sciences, and natural sciences to explore the possibility of carving out a niche for oneself in this exhausting information age.
2. What is the author’s point of view?
(1) Various mental illnesses such as depression, ADHD, borderline personality disorder or burnout syndrome dominated the disease landscape in the early 21st century. This all points to an over-affirmation, where the self burns out in excessive enthusiasm.
(2) Although people in the merit society have escaped from the disciplinary society in Foucault's sense, they have fallen into a new spiritual disciplinary society. Compared with the exploitation of others, self-exploitation leads to self-collapse more seriously.
(3) The attitude of “active living” leads to anxiety and hysteria. People not only fail to achieve freedom but also lose the happiness of contemplation.
(4) The author advocates returning from the weariness of facing the world to the weariness of facing oneself, and rebuilding a leisure space for oneself in loneliness and spiritual seeking, in which people care about each other and form a close friendly society.
(5) The author calls for the restoration of the sacred meaning of festivals and holidays, in which people can experience their transcendental existence and leisure, rather than just the level of material existence and consumption. Only by escaping the world of department stores and rebuilding places like festivals and celebrations can life gain the meaning it deserves.
3. What inspiration does this give us?
(1) In a world where everyone feels the hardship of survival and the pressure of life, is striving to do better the only goal and solution? Faced with increasing psychological stress and illness, can economic conditions and social status be equated with happiness? Han Bingzhe reminds us that short-sighted and utilitarian thinking must give way to a holistic and future-oriented wisdom.
(2) What will the mind say in the face of the current state of contemporary society? How should thinkers think and write? The themes and style of Han Bingzhe's works also provide us with reference samples for reference.
4. What kind of person is the author?
(1) Han Bingzhe is hailed as "a rising star in German philosophy" (El País, Spain). He returns to the humanistic and critical traditions of philosophy. Beyond academic philosophical research, he has pioneered a new realm of philosophical writing, examining social conditions and the human mind in the digital media era. He has been hailed as "a psychoanalyst in the internet age" (Yang Xiaogang) and "a guide to philosophical criticism in the era of big data" (Si Yu).
(2) He possesses both the Korean romantic temperament and the rational critical spirit of the German philosophical tradition. Han Bingzhe has a profound insight into contemporary society and sharp judgments, but his inner spiritual pursuit is a quiet, contemplative, and aesthetically meaningful life, with "the delicacy and charm of an Eastern philosopher" (Xia Kejun).
(3) The writing style is philosophical and essay-like, good at thinking and good at expressing ideas. Han Bingzhe's works are concise and clear, "full of spirituality and sharp" (Jia Kefang). The meticulousness and sharpness of the Chinese translators also add a lot of color to the Chinese version.
(4) French philosopher Alain Badiou wrote the preface to his The Death of Eros. Han Bingzhe has had a great influence in Europe and the United States, and his works have been translated into nearly 20 languages. Many scholars, including Badiou, have responded to and praised Han Bingzhe.
Reading Han Bingzhe's works is an enjoyment full of talent and wisdom.
- Alain Badiou, French philosopher Han Bingzhe belongs to this category of philosophers. Before them, no one sought to change the world, and no one even fully realized the necessity of such change.
—Inside Higher Ed
Han Bingzhe reveals that in the era of big data, critical theory will and must regroup.
—Will Davies
5. Chinese version of the work and its evaluation.
(1) There are 9 books in the series of Han Bingzhe's works, including the author's major and representative works, which are scheduled to be published in July 2019.
Han Bingzhe's Works Series (Produced by Jianshi Chengbang)
Spiritual Politics (published)
Psychopolitik
Death of Eros (out now)
Agonie des Eros
In the Group (released)
Im Schwarm
The Disappearance of the Other (coming in June)
Die Austreibung des Anderen
The Weary Society (coming in June)
Müdigkeitsgesellschaft
What is Entertainment? (coming in June)
Gute Unterhaltung
"Brute Force Topology" (coming in August)
Topologie der Gewalt
Transparent Society (coming in August)
Transparenzgesellschaft
The Redemption of Beauty (coming in August)
Die Errettung des Schönen
(2) He quickly found like-minded people in the domestic academic community. Many prominent figures from the fields of philosophy, art, literature, communication, and IT responded positively and highly praised Han Bingzhe and his works.
The complex phenomena formed in the era of big data require new philosophical thinking and framework. Han Bingzhe's several books can be regarded as the most sensitive and sharpest detectors of the times and are a guide to philosophical criticism in the era of big data.
——Si Yu, freelance writer German philosopher Han Bingzhe's several short books, which make light of important matters while making big ones big, touch upon multiple aspects of modern people's lives. They are the crystallization of the collision of Eastern and Western humanistic spirits and have entered the hearts of readers.
He Daokuan, a senior translator, and Han Bingzhe of Shenzhen University further reveal the dilemma facing people in the digital age: we are obsessed with digital media and thus reprogrammed, yet we are blind and numb to the consequences. In a group, everyone is an individual, but no one is himself.
—Zhang Zhiwei, historian of philosophy. Han Bingzhe, of the School of Philosophy at Renmin University of China, with his philosophical wisdom and analytical sharpness, compels us to reflect on the existential mood and ethical predicament in the digital, networked media age. … His reflections reveal the subtlety and charm of an Eastern philosopher.
——Xia Kejun, philosopher and curator, Han Bingzhe of the School of Literature at Renmin University of China, this thoughtful scholar trained in German philosophy and immersed in Korean culture has activated our long-numbed love ability.
——Lin Guanghua, School of Chinese Studies, Renmin University of China The application of big data makes everything more and more precise... In such an era, individual space and freedom need to be rethought and redefined.
——Zheng Yue, IT Manager World magazine’s analysis of neoliberalism and digital class society is not just a work of philosophical archaeology; it is fundamentally political. The answer lies in the transcendence of the subject by philosophers such as Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Derrida.
— Mao Zhu, World Philosophy magazine. Han Bingzhe's philosophical reflections are full of spirituality and sharp. ... His consistent sharpness gives me the courage to gaze into the abyss.
—Jia Kefang, Department of Philosophy, Northwest Normal University. Han Bingzhe is a psychoanalyst of the internet age. His precise and calm diagnosis reveals that technological advances such as smartphones, social media, big data, and the Internet of Things all demonstrate the neoliberal order's total domination of human life. ... Using concise and powerful prose, he engages with the ideas of Foucault, Adorno, Levinas, and Agamben, revealing the grave crisis of our era.
—Yang Xiaogang, Department of Philosophy, Sun Yat-sen University

2019-06-01

中信出版集团

Experiencing the city-state

120

9787521704693