Usapang Burnout Society with Byung-Chul Han and Ann Mare

Sa episode na ito, sina Lennon at Russel ay sumisid sa ideya ng Burnout Society mula kay Byung-Chul Han. Bakit nga ba kahit mas “free” at mas maraming opportunities ngayon, mas marami rin ang pagod, anxious, at depressed? Paano nakatali dito ang myth of rags-to-riches na laging sinasabi: “Kung magsipag ka lang, aangat ka rin”? Pinag-usapan din natin ang Filipino context—paano ito lumalabas sa hustle culture, toxic positivity, at pangarap na maging susunod na Henry Sy.

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Key Takeaways

• Byung-Chul Han: “We live in a society of achievement… The achievement society generates depressives and losers.”
• Sa achievement society, hindi na tayo pinipilit ng amo—tayo na mismo ang nagpupumilit sa sarili.
• Ang burnout ay hindi lang dahil kulang tayo, kundi dahil sobra ang “Yes, I can!” mindset.
• Ang mito ng rags-to-riches ay nagiging ideolohiyang nagtutulak sa self-exploitation at nagtatago ng systemic inequality.
• Sa Pilipinas, makikita ito sa hustle culture, multiple sidelines, at toxic positivity.
• Kailangang bumalik sa contemplation at community solidarity—hindi lang productivity ang sukatan ng buhay.

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Recommended Readings

Primary Works by Byung-Chul Han:

• The Burnout Society (2010, English trans. 2015) – Core text for understanding self-exploitation, positivity, and burnout.
• Psychopolitics: Neoliberalism and New Power (2017) – Explores how freedom and self-control are turned into new forms of domination.
• The Transparency Society (2012) – On overexposure, digital surveillance, and the culture of constant visibility.

Complementary reading:

• David Graeber, Bullshit Jobs (2018) – On meaningless labor and its psychological toll.
• Jonathan Crary, 24/7: Late Capitalism and the Ends of Sleep (2013) – On capitalism’s colonization of time and rest.
• Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970) – For thinking about systemic oppression vs. individual blame.

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For our listeners:

Kung naramdaman mo na napapagod ka kahit wala namang “malinaw na kalaban,” hindi ka nag-iisa. Han reminds us: hindi lahat ng laban ay personal, minsan sistema mismo ang nagpapagod sa atin.

Kung gusto mong mag-dive deeper, check the reading list above. At huwag kalimutan: pahinga is also resistance.

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