Die Paradoxien der Mehrlust

Few thinkers illustrate the contradictions of today's capitalism better than Slavoj Žižek.

Modern life is characterized by abundance. There always has to be more; it is never enough. However, Lacan showed that we always need a surplus of what we desire: otherwise, we cannot enjoy what we have. With this conceptual framework, which Žižek combines with Marx's surplus value and Freud's pleasure principle, the master thinker from Slovenia analyzes the paradoxes of the current political situation. Among other things, through Hollywood films like Joker, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the pressures of cancel culture, Žižek demonstrates that we might find a way out of our predicament if we simply recognize that the gain promised by excess pleasure is both substance-less and useless. Žižek is the philosopher who gets under the skin of the right people.