Violence of the Times and Hypermodern Pathologies
Aubert, Nicole
Violence of the Times and Hypermodern Pathologies - 2008.
31
The purpose of this paper is to show the relationships between the features of hypermodern society and associated pathologies. Globalization and the generalized economic flexibility that it entails, as well as a new relationship with time based on urgency and immediacy, have led to a society demanding an extreme reactivity and a constant adaptability. In this context, “durable” relations between people have been replaced by “liquid” and ephemeral ones; the relationship with oneself is focused on going beyond oneself and on hyperperformance. Individuals are forced to be “too much” to avoid being “nothing” or “empty,” and go faster and faster to avoid being in an economic nonexistence, leading to the nonexistence of the self. Hypermodern pathologies therefore concern the hyperfunctioning of the self, which can lead to fractures when individuals, who no longer have any space to distance themselves from the situation, can only resort to a brutal disconnection to break this vicious cycle. The recent trend of suicides in the workplace is a sign of the violence of these hypermodern times.
Violence of the Times and Hypermodern Pathologies - 2008.
31
The purpose of this paper is to show the relationships between the features of hypermodern society and associated pathologies. Globalization and the generalized economic flexibility that it entails, as well as a new relationship with time based on urgency and immediacy, have led to a society demanding an extreme reactivity and a constant adaptability. In this context, “durable” relations between people have been replaced by “liquid” and ephemeral ones; the relationship with oneself is focused on going beyond oneself and on hyperperformance. Individuals are forced to be “too much” to avoid being “nothing” or “empty,” and go faster and faster to avoid being in an economic nonexistence, leading to the nonexistence of the self. Hypermodern pathologies therefore concern the hyperfunctioning of the self, which can lead to fractures when individuals, who no longer have any space to distance themselves from the situation, can only resort to a brutal disconnection to break this vicious cycle. The recent trend of suicides in the workplace is a sign of the violence of these hypermodern times.
Réseaux sociaux