Subjective truth is opposed to factual truth similar to the opposition between hysteria and obsessional neurosis: the first is a truth in the guise of a lie, and the second a lie in the guise of truth
Excellent article, thanks Zizek. Would it be right to say that the paradoxical belief in Trump's lie is that his lies somehow place him as more authentic—or at least, that is how most people interpret them—that he is somehow more human in his lying? That there is a visceral nature to his lies, that they contradict the squeaky veneer of the liberal capitalist system in which we all dwell, a system that seeks to crush any animality that might threaten its dominance? There is almost a primal urgency in the belief in these lies—or rather, in the belief in the belief of these lies. A pessimism that suggests the visceral fake is better than the fake true. It is not the truth or the lie that matters, but how it is framed or presented. PC culture, whether true or false, frames its messages in such a way that preserves the veneer of the very system most people presumably hate—or claim to hate—remaining a continuation of that supposedly "highly individualistic" liberal capitalism. That is the search for "authenticity" and the "authentic" that capitalism promulgates: in a way, it is capitalism finally eating itself, in that the final authenticity is an authenticity of the inauthentic, a commodity of its own critique.
(I hope this makes sense, cause reading it back, everything seems to slip and slide from my grasp.)
Thank you. This is what I have been writing about relative to the hippocampus and holding paradox. It is the essential skill of our times and if we do not realize it we will be overcome by its optics.
Finally #1 in philosophy on Substack leaderboard. 😂I'm sure you don't care - but still… What a crazy world. My husband read Zero Point. I look forward to reading it. Thank you.
Excellent article; thank you for putting it all so precisely and succinctly. I love how you activate Robert Pfaller's notion of interpassivity, or the notion of false activity, which captures well how U.S. liberal ideology functions. 'And the ultimate reason for this disintegration is not the rise of postmodern relativism but the failure of the ruling establishment, which is no longer able to maintain its ideological hegemony.' I hope it is the end, and the liberal democrats know it.
This article reminds me of one author’s comparison of philosophical writing styles. Given the fact that that “X had been hung” , how would various writers describe the event. Shaw would say, “X was hung”, McCauley would say, “X died” , Kant would say, “ His moral significance achieved its determination and Hegel would say, “ There occurred a finite determination of infinity further determined by its own negation”. Moral? Be more like Shaw.
Rumors are already more concerning than previously thought. Far from just having the truth effect as a lie, with the rise of platforms like Polymarket, rumors have become a betting office where people use cryptocurrencies to wager enormous amounts of money on political events - a phenomenon that can no longer be understood within the category of cynical obscenity.
Rumors about wars, disruptions in elections, Trump's insane future decisions, and much more are traded like futures contracts and are now part of a new reality with cryptocurrencies in the supposedly beautiful land of freedom.
While Elon Musk even celebrates this as an achievement because it supposedly provides information beyond mainstream media, on the other hand, a market is emerging that enables betting on events that appropriate human suffering as their stage. With the new fascism, such questionable phenomena can apparently also be justified as achievements.
"Everything I am saying is false." I would say, "I have said something." That is true, not false. By saying anything, one is saying something, and therefore that is not a credible assertion!
I really resonated with your point on the pseudo-activity of many progressives. So many people view social media posts as a form of activity where their participation begins and ends.
Fascinating read! I’m Harrison, an ex fine dining industry line cook. My stack "The Secret Ingredient" adapts hit restaurant recipes (mostly NYC and L.A.) for easy home cooking.
It's like good fiction vs bad nonfiction: one lies to elevate a greater truth, the other collects truths to construct a lie. Or, maybe, like most good fiction vs fiction with an unreliable narrator; the Murder of Roger Ackroyd or Lolita.
The Substack texts of Zizek are some of his bests in terms of universality that can be understood and can convert the most ignorant fascist.s I would mot mind to see a text about Pope Francis
This one was pretty dense. I have been thinking about all of this a lot as well, the social media wars and Trumps rise shows the power and subjectivity of language. The MAGA movement is fundamentally one advocating for the death of accountability. They revel in their hypocrisy. The loss of the shared common narrative technology caused has had profound effects on our brains and created the psychological uncertainty needed for large numbers of the population to fall prey to a malignant narcissicist strongman. We need to rethink how we structure so much of society if we want to improve our culture in the future. Assuming the culture can actually be improved, of course.
Excellent article, thanks Zizek. Would it be right to say that the paradoxical belief in Trump's lie is that his lies somehow place him as more authentic—or at least, that is how most people interpret them—that he is somehow more human in his lying? That there is a visceral nature to his lies, that they contradict the squeaky veneer of the liberal capitalist system in which we all dwell, a system that seeks to crush any animality that might threaten its dominance? There is almost a primal urgency in the belief in these lies—or rather, in the belief in the belief of these lies. A pessimism that suggests the visceral fake is better than the fake true. It is not the truth or the lie that matters, but how it is framed or presented. PC culture, whether true or false, frames its messages in such a way that preserves the veneer of the very system most people presumably hate—or claim to hate—remaining a continuation of that supposedly "highly individualistic" liberal capitalism. That is the search for "authenticity" and the "authentic" that capitalism promulgates: in a way, it is capitalism finally eating itself, in that the final authenticity is an authenticity of the inauthentic, a commodity of its own critique.
(I hope this makes sense, cause reading it back, everything seems to slip and slide from my grasp.)
Thank you. This is what I have been writing about relative to the hippocampus and holding paradox. It is the essential skill of our times and if we do not realize it we will be overcome by its optics.
What a weighty and elegant subtitle on this post!
Finally #1 in philosophy on Substack leaderboard. 😂I'm sure you don't care - but still… What a crazy world. My husband read Zero Point. I look forward to reading it. Thank you.
Excellent article; thank you for putting it all so precisely and succinctly. I love how you activate Robert Pfaller's notion of interpassivity, or the notion of false activity, which captures well how U.S. liberal ideology functions. 'And the ultimate reason for this disintegration is not the rise of postmodern relativism but the failure of the ruling establishment, which is no longer able to maintain its ideological hegemony.' I hope it is the end, and the liberal democrats know it.
If you think liberal ideology = Democratic Party I think you are missing something here.
What am I missing?
This article reminds me of one author’s comparison of philosophical writing styles. Given the fact that that “X had been hung” , how would various writers describe the event. Shaw would say, “X was hung”, McCauley would say, “X died” , Kant would say, “ His moral significance achieved its determination and Hegel would say, “ There occurred a finite determination of infinity further determined by its own negation”. Moral? Be more like Shaw.
the veil has lifted, finally
long live the veil.
Rumors are already more concerning than previously thought. Far from just having the truth effect as a lie, with the rise of platforms like Polymarket, rumors have become a betting office where people use cryptocurrencies to wager enormous amounts of money on political events - a phenomenon that can no longer be understood within the category of cynical obscenity.
Rumors about wars, disruptions in elections, Trump's insane future decisions, and much more are traded like futures contracts and are now part of a new reality with cryptocurrencies in the supposedly beautiful land of freedom.
While Elon Musk even celebrates this as an achievement because it supposedly provides information beyond mainstream media, on the other hand, a market is emerging that enables betting on events that appropriate human suffering as their stage. With the new fascism, such questionable phenomena can apparently also be justified as achievements.
"Everything I am saying is false." I would say, "I have said something." That is true, not false. By saying anything, one is saying something, and therefore that is not a credible assertion!
I really resonated with your point on the pseudo-activity of many progressives. So many people view social media posts as a form of activity where their participation begins and ends.
I misunderstand the notion of passivity in climate action. Is complaining considered the act of passivity? Stop complaining and do something?
Fascinating read! I’m Harrison, an ex fine dining industry line cook. My stack "The Secret Ingredient" adapts hit restaurant recipes (mostly NYC and L.A.) for easy home cooking.
check us out:
https://thesecretingredient.substack.com
It's like good fiction vs bad nonfiction: one lies to elevate a greater truth, the other collects truths to construct a lie. Or, maybe, like most good fiction vs fiction with an unreliable narrator; the Murder of Roger Ackroyd or Lolita.
The Substack texts of Zizek are some of his bests in terms of universality that can be understood and can convert the most ignorant fascist.s I would mot mind to see a text about Pope Francis
monetising everything has altered gravity
This one was pretty dense. I have been thinking about all of this a lot as well, the social media wars and Trumps rise shows the power and subjectivity of language. The MAGA movement is fundamentally one advocating for the death of accountability. They revel in their hypocrisy. The loss of the shared common narrative technology caused has had profound effects on our brains and created the psychological uncertainty needed for large numbers of the population to fall prey to a malignant narcissicist strongman. We need to rethink how we structure so much of society if we want to improve our culture in the future. Assuming the culture can actually be improved, of course.