The Pure Id of Cyberpunk: How Nihilism, Postmodernism, and Neoliberalism Created High Tech, Low Life
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- Опубліковано 11 жов 2024
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Psychoanalysis, Nihilism, postmodernism, and Cyberpunk.
You basically took all of my intellectual interests and just threw them all together in one video...
Brilliant.
Will it blend?
@@LiteraryLaunchpad Absolutely, and you seem to be doing just that throughout the video. I will say, however, that your applications of the "id" and of "postmodernism" are a bit simplistic at certain points. Just some observations:
The id, for instance, or at least in the classical Freudian sense of the term, signifies a purely unconscious drive for pleasure and the rejection of unpleasure (hence the "pleasure principle"). The idea that any given symbolic thing (i.e., thing we can give words to), to include even cyberpunk, correlates "purely" to the id is necessarily to paint over the unconscious, which is meant to precede symbolic language. It's true that the the id often manifests itself, when not properly censored by the ego and the "reality principle," through sexual and violent tendencies, yet the moment these tendencies are brought into the realm of "fantasy," of either virtual or fictional experiences, it is already sublimated---that is, not purely the id. Also, it is usually a good idea, if you're going to talk about the unconscious, to develop the psychoanalysis point around the Death Drive, which is taken by Freud to be the most primal and fundamental part of our psyche.
As for Postmodernism, I can see you're taking more of a Baudrillard/Jameson tilt into the term with all this talk of the commodification of all and the nihilism of metanarratives. This is totally relevant and good, but just know that Postmodernism is a very broad field. I would suggest specifying the type/schools of postmodern theory that you're drawing from.
Also, I'm pretty skeptical about your last segment. If, as you say, the goal here is to find new structures for meaning after nihilism, then how do we ensure that they cannot be swept away by the very same crises that lead into nihilism in the first place? How do we prevent ideology, dogmatism, rigidity, elitism, or fundamentalism from doing to these "new" strutures what happen to the "old" ones?
Do we truly need a "structure" as such in order to have meaning?
Just little details, but the video is mostly quite accurate!
I would also add that a big inspiration for Cyberpunk was the punk rock movement. The 1980s were the heyday of this scene. Bands often contested the neoliberal reality of Thatcherism and Reaganism. I think Johnny Silverhand played hardcore punk for a reason (the band's real name is Refused).
By the way, it's a bit funny that the game has such an anti-establishment tone, while CD Projekt cooperated with many corporations to promote it. I remember getting a can of Sprite with my copy of the game. Under capitalism, even rebellion becomes commercialized. :)
I also recommend Rafał Kosik's book - Cyberpunk 2077: No Coincidence. It fits perfectly into this universe
"a big inspiration for Cyberpunk was the punk rock movement."
Stylistically, I can see it. Philosophically, they seem like opposites to me. The punk rocker believes he is God. The Cyberpunk world believes there is no God.
No it wasn't. The word "cyberpunk" yes. But the genre. No
Mark Fisher agrees with your analysis! Capitalism consumes and assimilates everything and sells it back to you in symbolic form, as a way of not simply neutralizing threats, but building more capital from them. You can have commodities that symbolize rebellion and anti-capitalism, you just can't have the things themselves.
I'm with you David! Thank you for taking the time to make these videos and educating. Much love.
Ahhh Cyberpunk, the very cool looking wretched dystopian dumpster fire nightmare that real life is rapidly coming to resemble.
Yeah... That's why the new GTA trailer hits different. It's just real life now
I can't wait to hear your presentation of the "ground truths" and convergent meaning in which you believe. I have spent a lifetime searching for those things and have come up pretty empty handed. I'm looking forward to hearing your ideas! Cheers!
Start by reading Braintrust by Patricia Churchland
@@LiteraryLaunchpad Thank you! I will definitely read your suggestions. Cheers!
Don't say "you know the drill" at the end of the video, subscribing, liking, and sharing will literally reshape the future. Think about it...
Or maybe that would just make him less money, hindering his ability to create quality content, and just make him personally a bit worse off
"High tech / low life" is such a great aesthetic 🦾😎 like the game too when i get time to play!
I have a hard time playing Cyberpunk for whatever reason, but I'm extremely interested in it, as I do enjoy appreciate the genre, both conceptually and aesthetically, so I was interested to see someone talk about the philosophical foundations. What I did not expect was a thorough explanation of the world we live in right now. Instant sub and I'll be watching more. Well done, and thank you.
"I’m a high-tech low-life. A cutting edge, state-of-the-art bi-coastal multi-tasker and I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond!”
― George Carlin
There are lots of variations of this theme in his monologues, found here and there throughout his 40+ years of masterful stand-up communication.
We might have to give this man credit for the original aesthetic.
Anyway, greatly appreciate the work that you do David, and would love to sit down an ponder with you sometime. We too think Nihilism is a dead end.
Post Nihilism is the stepping stone to the pure philosophy and the future of Ironism.
This is the worldview which posits that the essence of human existence, and especially our evolution from dumb apes, is characterized by the contradictions and unexpected outcomes that defy our expectations or intentions. The stupid or happy accidents if you will. Modern Science and Technology are currently rife with this paradigm. Ironism embraces the notion that the true nature of reality is to subvert our understanding and desires. Ironism suggest that the cosmos is inherently inclined towards creating situations that highlight the folly or limits of human endeavor and understanding. AI, being smarter than all of us, is a perfect example. The fact that it was "trained" not explicitly programmed, and we don't fully grok it's capabilities speaks to this narrative. In this perspective, irony is not just a cope, or a literary device or a rhetorical strategy, but a fundamental principle that governs the dynamics of our very existence, reflecting a universe that inherently mocks certainty and defies predictability. The double slit experiment laughs in our face. The philosophy of Ironism encourage us all to approach life with humility, skepticism, and a sense of humor. It empowers us to recognizing that the most profound insights and truths often emerge from the least expected places and moments, where the juxtaposition of conflicting ideas and outcomes reveal deeper understandings of our place in the cosmos.
I definitely adopt a nihilistic worldview right now. So would be interesting to hear what you have to say about the sacredness of life in the next video.
great video
I got alot out of this video, I really hope you can talk more about postnihilism and metamodernism! Can we even find/create meaning in a meaningless absurd world/existence? It's hard to imagine.
The meditation sessions in Cyberpunk 2077 that you get on BD's from the Zen Master are the best. Other than that, you're right -- the milieu in the game is really a trash-filled ghost world. It's a spiritual metaphor; it's the realm of angry, hungry ghosts, demons even. Series creator Mike Pondsmith said that the only true goal you have in the game is to save yourself. I agree. There's an intense spiritual aspect in the game. However, one thing in Cyberpunk 2077 felt lacking was that it could've used more player freedom as to choices and their consequences and some sort of karmic system etc (think of i.e. Baldur's Gate 3, in many instances it felt like the stuff you did in Cyberpunk 2077 didn't really matter). Thanks for this video, Dave, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Just found this side channel of yours, and I always enjoy your takes. Keep up the good work, the positive spirit and have a great day!
Thanks, superman.
You're the real mvp.
Sharing your content everywhere.
I know nothing about any of what you're talking about besides maybe some politics and I'm not the kind of person to stress over these things too hard, but this was a wonderful analysis of Cyberpunk and the real world. Shame this video only has 2k views, you deserve a lot more attention.
The way we break free of the Cyberpunk dystopia seems pretty obvious: Form and invest in communities, learn to support people better then do that in practice, stop worrying so much about esoteric threats and focus on the things actually undermining people’s ability to support themselves and exist in peace, break the back of large corporations by multiple means, restructure government to obey the will of the people at large and respect the rights of even marginalised communities.
No. I want cyberpunk
@@sandworm9528 Well you already have it, except without all the cool aesthetics because the aesthetic was always a fantasy.
This will sound crazy but the best I can do is be a hopeful nihilist. It was, is and possibly will always be the best of times and the best of times.
Simply brilliant
The nomads are still the best option :D . good video
Yep. Ride off into the sunset with the Aldos
Great Video, found a lot of my own thoughts here, especially the ones about optimistic nihilism. That one basically tells you to fool yourself into your own meaning, but I believe no human can believe into meaning he has created himself, if you understand. You can't believe something of which you know is not true.
It also just ignores the biological reality as to what your brain finds meaningful...
I think you've keyed onto something crucial with your critique of existentialism here. There is definitely bedrock we can get to (or, in my opinion, force) and build on. I think existentialism is the "so what?" to that, but eventually it will hit the hard wall of truth. Better to dig towards it with the scientific method (or an iteration of it), than not know and act with knowledge, be it an eldritch curse or not.
It's pretty interesting and relevant to my own research, how Cyberpunk maps really tight to what I've come to understand as Necroliberalism, I call Necroliberalism the stage at which Neoliberalism has come to normalize extreme violence and transgressions against human bodies, aided by technology and decentralized actors, with this violence being ultimately another form on which Capital can valorize itself. The concrete example I like to use is, picture a narco gang doing a drone strike against their rivals, the strike is featured live on social media and regular, old school legacy media. Who profits from it? And if you think that's farfetched that pretty much is happening with gang violence in Mexico.
Necroliberalism sounds like heresy. The Emperor dislikes. Lol
What do you think of 3 body problem? Could you make a video explaining why you do or do not like it?
We love Cyberpunk and play the ttrpg Red! Awesome!
Dave; it might be interesting to evaluate the putatively nihilistic features of modernism from inside the unity state of consciousness, which has been depicted by some theorists as a wretched epistemological coffin. The vilest characteristics of capitalism and competition might seem the very essence of life and free agency from that standpoint!
The deeper question is whether either condition--unity consciousness or distributed cognition--can sensibly explicate the innermost truths of existence without requiring its polar concept as context. No earthly religion or philosophy has managed this feat.
"nothing matters and all of this is entailed by that thing"
I've been following along with you in a couple videos but I keep missing what you mean by optimistic nihilism is incomplete.
What is complete?Having a grand narrative?
What is "all of this"?
What is "that thing"?
Optimistic nihilists come to the conclusion that there is no great meaning in life, but claim this is liberating because it allows them space for personal meaning. I suspect that Dave is saying there is "more to life than personal meaning, there is a greater meaning, but it does not come from God, it comes from a bottom-up thinking i.e. start with quarks and move up to molecules and then life and then God". Personally, I find his viewpoint to be 'another variety of complicated materialism' and prefer the teachings of of Eastern and Western spirituality - Anthroposophy, Theosophy, Yoga, Buddhism.
Yes, but also Taoism is an emergent philosophy.
i like how you got rid of the channel description "new videos every wednesday"😂
Burnout is not smoking car tires.
That was too slow!
*Nihilism*
Yeah, I think you've got it backwards. Unless you can explain what caused an up tick in nihilism in the first place. What happened was Neoliberalism was implemented by those who were in power and that caused people to become more nihilistic as their rights were eroded away, their standard of living decreased and they became more and more desperate.
The printing press
If Capitalism still exist in 2077 Mark my words, the game will be real. I'll come back to this when I'm 79. Please Tag
Bro that intro
Wow! What an excellent breakdown. Very informative, Thx!
So if you read Homo Deus by Harrari, you got told, that we are in a humanistic World. Means, that we hold the human itself sacred, with its still not influencable properties like emotions, free will etc. which for me sounds really based on Evidence.
So for me this view does however oppose the nihilistic view, where nothing is sacred. Can somebody give me some thoughts about that, where both views can maybe synthesize?
Nihilists are lying to themselves.
You mention spirit soul and higher power multiple times. Do you believe in these things?
Yeah, absolutely. But probably not by any standard definition.
“We can converge toward the truth over time” AI will definitely help here 👍
Too bad we got all the crappy elements of cyberpunk, without the "Rule of Cool" stuff.
You ever play mass effect?
Uh yeah, best games of all time. My top games are Dragon Age, Mass Effect, and Cyberpunk.
@@LiteraryLaunchpad how about dead space? Now thats a universe where A.I makes things truly worse, since the marker is an Alien form of intelligent A.I.
Now it all makes sense.
To destroy the entire society you need to tell the oldest truth.
Trust where money has no value. Sometimes it is better to create your own than sharing it to everyone. Getting tired playing around when life has no meaning at all. (Just for fun) I already know myself very well but I still deny it as my ultimate truth.
Read alongside Strauss and Howes theory on cycles of history, and the idea that we are in winter season right now, this perspective shines a brighter light on things.
I agree with a lot of this, but I have a few notes: you don't seem to be aware of/accounting for the perspective of Absurdism when you discuss a "positive nihilism", which I think also reveals some "is/ought" confusion underlying that part of the essay. I also get the impression that you've internalized popular criticisms of postmodernism which don't actually come from a perspective of understanding it. Academics prefer the term "poststructuralism", and I think if you research that term, instead, you'll get a much more nuanced impression of its implications.
Thanks but I'm up to speed on all of it, and it's the all the same story of intellectual laziness and short-term thinking and epitomizes the Western current tradition of throwing the baby out with the bath water.
@@LiteraryLaunchpad I mean when can any large body of competing theories ever be boiled down like that? Never in my experience. Look, I don't know you, and I have no special claim on what you do or don't believe or say, but for what it's worth it sure *looks like* you have some kind of chip on your shoulder with respect to "postmodernism". But I don't know shit, about you, so the fact that I feel that way should mean nothing whatsoever to you, unless you subconsciously agree that I'm probably right.
Absurdism reads to me like the philosophical equivalent of psychological disassociation from reality, a sidestep, like laughing about your trauma rather than confronting the true, deeper emotions affecting you and reaching a mature understanding of the self consequently.
I'm being simplistic for brevity but I think it's incredible how many societal problems can be traced back to various individual's TBIs.
@@ZelliJeWouj Brevity aside, what's the equivalent of "confronting the true deeper emotions"? We're discussing the UNIVERSE. The premise of cosmic meaninglessness, which you equate to emotional trauma, is something you're absolutely free to disagree with. You can even go so far as to have religion and impose a meaning from a book upon the universe. But there's no "solving" meaninglessness WITHIN the concept itself. The philosophers we call Absurdist have concluded it, and it's the premise of their movement. By comparing the basic premise of absurdism to emotional trauma, you're forced to criticize a philosophy for not disproving its own premise. That's an important exercise for rigor, but it's never the *purpose* of a *philosophy* to disprove its own premise. Perhaps there are some such philosophies, but overall, failure to do so is certainly not a real failure for any particular philosophy.
@@jeffskarski6644 We aren't discussing the universe, are we? It doesn't fit inside our heads. We're talking about us and our own interior landscapes at all times. When people say the universe is 'meaningless' they aren't talking about the actual universe, they're talking about an interior condition.
You know, for once, I'd like someone to actually try to to understand where I'm coming from instead of being so adversarial. Do you know I've barely talked to anyone for 18 years and been gaslighted every day by a man who has secretly hated me and cut me off from anyone who could have possibly given a shit about me? I'm fucking suicidal, what would you expect?
I wake up every day into my meaningless, empty, shitty life and cry my eyes out. Because I'm broken inside. This relationship is only the tip of the iceburg of my goddamn shitty cursed life.
There you go. Confronting the real goddamn emotions. Vulnerability. Show me the philosophy of goddamn vulnerability.
Hope for hunan reset.
I'm so sick of the f guns and killings being "cool".
Exploitation of id: look up "what is 666 in Greek" haha 😝
listening to this hot take makes me embarrassed to be a human...
the only logical purpose of life is to become wealthier, more powerful and successful. the only difference between "positive" and "negative" people is that "positive" doing it in fair competition and "negative" just going on others heads. Basically that's all, thanks
^ peak nihilist here
Discovers new Shapiro channel…subscribes 🫡
It’s like every other week 😮
@@rewindcat7927 I haven’t been a huge fan of a UA-camr since call of duty black ops 2 troll videos, he’s on to something.
@@Renaudpc that’s saying something!