Depression & Digital Burnout - The Barbarian Within

Описание: Depression, however it is defined, ( feeling blue, having low spirits etc.) is an age-old problem but in a digital world it is now associated with what has become known as “digital burnout” .

This video uses the work of the philosopher Byung-Chul Han, especially his book “The Burnout Society”, to explore the phenomenon of digital burnout and its links to depression. I look at Byung-Chul Han’s argument that a major part of the problem is an excess of positivity in society and the pressure this creates upon an individual’s psychological health due to a perceived need to constantly achieve and perform.

A range of artistic illustrations are also used to describe the manner in which social bonds have disintegrated and fragmented in an increasingly technological society. These various art forms are used to show how human subjectivity has become increasingly inward and divorced from social reality, examples include:

C. P. Cavafy’s poem “Waiting for the Barbarians”
Paul Coelho’s global best-selling book “The Alchemist”
Various Expressionist Paintings
The famous 1920 film “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”
The TV Series “Babylon Berlin”


#depression #digitalburnout #byungchulhan #burnout #expressionism #chriswilliamson #thealchemist