Jetsetting is now not the privilege of the elite so much as a veritiginous mundanity for a permanently dispossessed global workforce.
Mark FisherRead
The vast numbers of people who suffer some kind of mental illness under capitalism can either think, 'there is some failing with me, if only I could fit into this system better, if only I were working harder, if only I could enjoy these empty pleasures more, then things would be OK' or 'the problem is with the system that is making me ill.'
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the impact of capitalism on mental health and encourages a systemic view of personal struggles.
Mark Fisher's quote addresses the relationship between mental illness and capitalism, presenting two contrasting perspectives individuals may adopt in response to their struggles. One perspective sees personal failure as the root of their issues, urging individuals to change themselves to fit the capitalist system better, while the other perspective recognizes the systemic flaws that contribute to their suffering, advocating for a critical examination of societal structures rather than self-blame.
Themes
Mental IllnessCapitalismSystemic IssuesSelf-BlameSociety
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about mental health awareness during a community meeting.
More from Mark Fisher
All quotes βIf it is true, for instance, that depression is constituted by low serotonin levels, what still needs to be explained is why particular individuals have low levels of serotonin. This requires a social and political explanation.
Mark FisherRead
The most powerful love songs always turn on the discrepancy between the act of declaring love and the knowledge that the ostensible addressee is no longer there, was never there, and could never be there.
Mark FisherRead
Little Axe's records are wracked with collective grief. Spectral harmonicas resemble howling wolves; echoes linger like wounds that will never heal; the voices of the living harmonise with the voices of the dead in songs thick with reproach, recrimination and the hunger for redemption.
Mark FisherRead
If people dying as a consequence of the implementation of measures cannot count as evidence that the legislation has detrimental effects, what would?
Mark FisherRead
What many students most want from college, although they would never admit it, is an authority structure. There is a demand for an authority which they can then reject; they want to be told what to do, so they can disobey. It is a textbook case of bad faith, a flight from freedom.
Mark FisherRead
Similar quotes
There were many words that you could not stand to hear and finally only the names of places had dignity. Abstract words such as glory, honor, courage, or hallow were obscene.
Ernest HemingwayRead
Cure yourself of the inclination to bother about how you look to other people. Be concerned only . . . with the idea God has of you.
Miguel De UnamunoRead
There really is no such thing as a sick child; there are children who happen to be sick. Think about it, and you will understand the magic of the Camps
Paul NewmanRead
It is fashionable to wax apocalyptic about the threat to humanity posed by the AIDS virus, "mad cow" disease, and many others, but I think a case can be made that faith is one of the world's great evils, comparable to the smallpox virus but harder to eradicate.
Richard DawkinsRead
Caretake this moment. Immerse yourself in its particulars. Respond to this person, this challenge, this deed. Quit evasions. Stop giving yourself needless trouble. It is time to really live; to fully inhabit the situation you happen to be in now.
EpictetusRead
The practice of yogasana for the sake of health, to keep fit, or to maintain flexibility is the external practice of yoga. While this is a legitimate place to begin, it is not the end. Even in simple asanas, one is experiencing the three levels of quest: the external quest, which brings firmness of the body; the internal quest, which brings steadiness of intelligence; and the innermost quest, which brings benevolence of spirit.
B.K.S. IyengarRead