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Metamodern Guides #1
The Listening Society: A Metamodern Guide to Politics, Book One
As we move from the industrial age and its nation state to an internet age with a globalized postindustrial market a question presents itself: What is the next major developmental stage of society after the liberal democracy with a balance between capitalism and welfare state?
In this book Hanzi Freinacht offers a compelling answer to this question. We are reaching the limits of modern society and we must work to achieve a metamodern society, that is, a society which goes beyond modern life and its institutions. The metamodern society of the future is a listening society; a society more sensitive to the inner dimensions of human beings.
Drawing upon an elaborate weaving of psychology, sociology, political science and philosophy this book lands in a positive vision for the future. It shows how a clear description of human psychological growth – how we grow as human beings – can also offer us key insights into how global society can and should evolve in the internet age. A politics that can help humans grow to the later stages of psychological development is also one that can be capable of meeting the staggering challenges of our time.
In the first part of the book Hanzi examines the politics and culture of the Nordic countries and shows how these progressive societies offer a fertile ground for metamodern politics. The basis of such metamodern politics is also described. In the second part of the book he turns to developmental psychology, describing how humans evolve through a series of stages – and how this matters immensely for the happiness and survival of us all.
As this story unfolds – in a uniquely provocative genre breaking manner – you will also glean insight into your own developmental stage and those of people around you.
Read with caution.
In this book Hanzi Freinacht offers a compelling answer to this question. We are reaching the limits of modern society and we must work to achieve a metamodern society, that is, a society which goes beyond modern life and its institutions. The metamodern society of the future is a listening society; a society more sensitive to the inner dimensions of human beings.
Drawing upon an elaborate weaving of psychology, sociology, political science and philosophy this book lands in a positive vision for the future. It shows how a clear description of human psychological growth – how we grow as human beings – can also offer us key insights into how global society can and should evolve in the internet age. A politics that can help humans grow to the later stages of psychological development is also one that can be capable of meeting the staggering challenges of our time.
In the first part of the book Hanzi examines the politics and culture of the Nordic countries and shows how these progressive societies offer a fertile ground for metamodern politics. The basis of such metamodern politics is also described. In the second part of the book he turns to developmental psychology, describing how humans evolve through a series of stages – and how this matters immensely for the happiness and survival of us all.
As this story unfolds – in a uniquely provocative genre breaking manner – you will also glean insight into your own developmental stage and those of people around you.
Read with caution.
475 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 1, 2017
175 people are currently reading
1,519 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
January 29, 2019
No one has articulated the emerging philosophy of metamodernism better than Hanzi.
The author describes this book as ‘dangerous’, which of course made me snort with derision. For over the years I’d become numb to such hype—instead cultivating a quiet intellectual arrogance that keeps me distant from, you know, actually having to *change* the way I think about things.
But good gosh—it *is* (dangerous). In perhaps the most glorious way imaginable.
It is a book that cannot be simplified, explained, summarised or gisted. And that is why I will not comment here on the *what* it is about, lest I do the richness of the metamodern code a disservice. Suffice to say: if you're interested in the development of (in)dividuals and society, and if you care about the future wellbeing of all sentient beings—you will find this book both rewarding and edifying.
And yet while this book provokes, enriches and furthers the emerging conversation our world needs—I’m also not sure how *ready* most folks are to this. There’s a cognitive sophistication required to truly grapple with the ideas within this book. This is not a 'top tips for success' book.
I’ve never read a book as elegant, timely, relevant and utterly *affecting* as The Listening Society. It’s most vexing. I want to express just how much I love this book, but I’m worried it may convey as some sort of *fervour*. That I might cultivate an all too fiercely intent aspect to my gaze as I smirkingly preach to the mostly unwilling. It’s quite unbecoming.
And so thus I find myself cautiously recommending it to those I believe might be ready for such a book. These are often folks who express post-modern maturity in their thinking, and are the type who harbour a hidden hope for something *beyond* the dead-end banality of merely critiquing what’s wrong with modern society (clever as these critiques may be). For the critical systemic thinker—jaded with the usual trite pithiness many authors peddle—this book is an empathetic slap to the face. For the first time in my adult career, I actually feel a sense of *purpose* to life and our role amidst it.
And I daresay, you may too.
I highly, wholly, heartily recommend it to any who seek to pioneer new meaning and change in this complex world of ours. Hanzi presents a complex yet strong and coherent thesis—a most thoughtful and emphatic provocation if ever there was one.
Yes, this book is dangerous. By downloading the metamodern code herein, you (we) may well be able to change the world. (Kinda).
The author describes this book as ‘dangerous’, which of course made me snort with derision. For over the years I’d become numb to such hype—instead cultivating a quiet intellectual arrogance that keeps me distant from, you know, actually having to *change* the way I think about things.
But good gosh—it *is* (dangerous). In perhaps the most glorious way imaginable.
It is a book that cannot be simplified, explained, summarised or gisted. And that is why I will not comment here on the *what* it is about, lest I do the richness of the metamodern code a disservice. Suffice to say: if you're interested in the development of (in)dividuals and society, and if you care about the future wellbeing of all sentient beings—you will find this book both rewarding and edifying.
And yet while this book provokes, enriches and furthers the emerging conversation our world needs—I’m also not sure how *ready* most folks are to this. There’s a cognitive sophistication required to truly grapple with the ideas within this book. This is not a 'top tips for success' book.
I’ve never read a book as elegant, timely, relevant and utterly *affecting* as The Listening Society. It’s most vexing. I want to express just how much I love this book, but I’m worried it may convey as some sort of *fervour*. That I might cultivate an all too fiercely intent aspect to my gaze as I smirkingly preach to the mostly unwilling. It’s quite unbecoming.
And so thus I find myself cautiously recommending it to those I believe might be ready for such a book. These are often folks who express post-modern maturity in their thinking, and are the type who harbour a hidden hope for something *beyond* the dead-end banality of merely critiquing what’s wrong with modern society (clever as these critiques may be). For the critical systemic thinker—jaded with the usual trite pithiness many authors peddle—this book is an empathetic slap to the face. For the first time in my adult career, I actually feel a sense of *purpose* to life and our role amidst it.
And I daresay, you may too.
I highly, wholly, heartily recommend it to any who seek to pioneer new meaning and change in this complex world of ours. Hanzi presents a complex yet strong and coherent thesis—a most thoughtful and emphatic provocation if ever there was one.
Yes, this book is dangerous. By downloading the metamodern code herein, you (we) may well be able to change the world. (Kinda).
August 25, 2024
This is my 900th review.
And every time I hit one of these mile markers.
I like to do a special book.
And…
DANG!
This one DEFINITELY QUALIFIES.
This thing is A LOT.
It’s a whole lot of GREAT.
And a whole lot of ODD?
With a dash of ICK.
And I am HERE FOR pretty much ALL OF IT.
But I’m NEW to all of it too.
And it has the stink of…
The NEXT BIG INSUFFERABLE REDIT/NETBRO TREND.
So I’m proceeding with cautious optimism.
The Listening Society by Hanzi Freinacht is the first book in the series dubbed ‘The Nordic Ideology’ (which takes MASSIVE BALLS to brand a non Neo-Nazzi political ideology as such, but Freinacht is nothing if not EXTRA BALLZY).
NOTE: Hanzi Freinacht is a pseudonym used by Daniel Görtz a political philosopher and sociologist. He’s like the BANKSEY, or the ORVEL PECK or the DAFT PUNK of philosophy.
Actually, Freinacht's (Görtz) work is interdisciplinary, blending psychology, sociology, political theory, and philosophy.
But he’s an ANONYMOUS one of those (whatchamacallits).
So Hanzi Freinacht is essentially a PERSONA.
At least it was.
Görtz seems to have dropped the ruse more recently.
Whole Görtz seems to be kind of normal and nice.
The Freinacht persona is an OBNOXIOUS PRICK a times.
It’s supposed to be PROVOCATIVE, or EVOCATIVE.
Or whatever.
And (honestly) it’s kind of fun.
But I could have lived w/o the SCHTICK.
I was ultimately able to tolerate all of that to get to the goods.
But no TEA/SHADE if ALL OF THAT nonsense is off putting.
I almost didn’t make it through the first 100 pages.
But I’m VERY glad I stuck it out.
Anyway…
Freinacht presents a vision for a future society that could potentially transcend the quagmire at the intersection of modern/postmodern politics that we currently languish in.
Freinacht refers to his ideology as political metamodernism, but it is also referred to as developmental metamodernism.
In short:
Freinacht synthesizes Scandinavian green socialist democracy and Danish process base politics with large chunks of Integral Theory including Spiral Dynamics (although Freinacht is critical of each) with a Metamodernist sensibility that integrates the sincerity and (naïve) belief in progress that typifies modernity, with the (oft smarmy) critical (over it all) irony and radical plurality of postmodernism.
If ANY/ALL of this is new or unfamiliar.
Let’s unpack some of that.
METAMODERNISM
Metamodernism (MM) is presented as an integral synthesis of modern (sincere rationality) and postmodern (ironic scepticisism) aesthetics, perspectives and sensibilities.
As such.
MM is considered (if only by its adherents) to be the next step (value meme - cultural paradigm) after postmodernism.
In other words.
MM is trying to be POST-postmodernism.
DEVELOPMENTAL GROWTH HIERARCHY
Freinacht emphasizes the importance of understanding human development through various stage based developmental theories.
And here is where most people (particularly postmodern oriented people) take umbrage.
NOTE: those of you who are familiar with Ken Wilber and Integral Theory will recognize a lot of this. And if you read the book. You (like me) may feel like Freinacht doesn’t give Wilber sufficient credit. There is a lot of discussion about this online. FYI: theres a WHOLE THING about it.
Anyway…
Because these developmental theories are (at least superficially) hierarchical. Critics of these types of models commonly object that hierarchal stage based conceptualizations are intrinsically oppressive instruments of dominance.
Few people object to Piajetiean stage based models of child development, e.g. children develop cognitively in stages from: (1) sensorimotor (age 0-2); (2) pre-operational stage (age 2-7); concrete operational (age 7-11
); formal operational (11 and up).
But to suggest that there are even more advanced stages of cognitive development, particularly when discussing adult development, makes a lot of people very uncomfortable.
And understandably so. Given the ways these types of evaluative/hierarchal systems have been used as justifications for eugenics and genocide in the not so distant past.
Given this understanding.
Freinacht posits that this type of a-prior denial of human development, whereby
Freinacht argues that there is copious evidence that one’s capacity to encounter increasing complexity, as well as one’s ability to adapt increasingly numerous and diverse perspectives can continue to develop over the lifespan.
Freinacht argues that there is an important difference between “domination hierarchies” and “developmental hierarchies”. Freinacht further argues that personal growth and maturity are crucial for creating a better society.
Freinacht asserts that if we can acknowledge that this type of emotional, cognitive, and moral development exists and is possible. And that development can be enhanced by education, therapy and training (meditation etc). We can reorganize and optimize our society to foster these and other forms of human development.
Freinacht asserts that if we can reorganize our society away from material/status accumulation, and towards sustainability, and basic social safety and security, than we can also optimize our society to foster emotional, cognitive, and moral development. And if we do all that, then we will all be MUCH better off than if we don’t.
THE LISTENING SOCIETY
Freinacht envisions a society that prioritizes listening and understanding over mere economic growth or power struggles. This society would value well-being, mental health, and personal development, ensuring that all citizens have the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Freinacht argues that in addition to healthcare, childcare and education, everyone should have a chance to get good therapy, learn how to meditate, learn how to be fit and eat healthy.
Freinacht argues that the Scandinavian countries are already heading in this direction. And he argues that the rest of the world would benefit by following suit.
HIPSTERS HACKERS AND HIPPIES (HHH)
Freinacht discusses the increasingly important role of a socially progressive creative class which he describes as HIPSTERS (lifestyle creatives); HACKERS (tech creatives) AND HIPPIES (spiritual and care giving creatives).
Freinacht posits that an internet driven economy is HIGHLY DEPENDENT on the HHH class for innovation and direction. And that the HHH class are driving, and will continue to drive society towards a green/socialist style Listening Society.
However.
The HHH simply can’t do their thing W/O lots and lots of social support (education, resources, affordable food, housing etc). And not all of them are going to have trust funds, or strike it rich with their INSTA, ONLY FANS, TECH START UP, or VEGAN GOAT MILK SOAP BOUTIQUE.
As such, Freinacht posits that the HHH and other educated, cultural creatives occupy a particularly PRECARIOUS NIECH (see below).
THE PROCARIATE
Freinacht introduces the term PROCARIATE (a play on words referring to the Marxian PROLETARIAT) to describe a this newly emerging social class. Who are (like the PROLETARIAT in the Industrial Revolution) important to the NEXT REVOLUTION (hopefully w/o all that SALINE STYLE STUFF).
Freinacht posits that the PROCARIATE consists of HHH types and other well-educated folks, with access to modern technologies, but who still find themselves in economically precarious situations regarding employment, housing, healthcare, childcare, and general life stability.
Umm 🤔 If by PROCARIATE he means EVERYONE except BOOMERS. Than yes
Anyway.
Unlike Marx’s PROLETARIAT , the PROCARIATE is often involved in creative, intellectual, or service-oriented work (See afore mentioned HHH), yet often lack the security and benefits associated with stable, long-term employment.
Despite having the skills and education to thrive, the PROCARIATE are trapped in, uncertain, temporary, or underpaid CRAPPY/JOBS/GIGS.
Freinacht suggests that the PROCARIATE’s growing ranks, coupled with our societies growing dependency on their CARE GIVING, SERVICE PROVIDING, CREATIVE/INNOVATIVE HHHness could have significant implications for the future of politics, economics, and societal organization. And like the Marxist PROLETARIAT, could have SIGNIFICANT POLITICAL POWER if they (BIG IF) could somehow UNITE.
INTEGRAL POLITICS
The political sentiments expounds are Freinacht expounds are CLEARLY technocratic Euro style LEFT/LIB in that they are advocating (a) animal rights and ecological, sustainability (GREEN); (b) universal basic income, and a HOST of other social programs (socialized healthcare/childcare/education and much mulch more), coupled with an extremely high rate of taxation (SOCIALIST); (c) a deprioritization of material accumulation coupled with a reorganization around psychosocial and spiritual development and wellbeing (HUMANISTIC); (d) emphasis on continued technological advancement (TECH).
Given all of that.
Freinacht attempts to bypass the TOXIC BINARY of contemporary LEFT/RIGHT political divisions.
Freinacht argues that there are GOOD/TRUE/BEAUTIFUL/EFFECTIVE aspects of each of the traditional EURO/US political orientations (when considered in their best forms), which he boils down to (1) LIBERAL (emphasis on SOLIDARITY), (2) CONSERVATIVE (emphasis on ORDER); (3) LIBERTARIAN (emphasis on FREEDOM).
Freinacht posits that a true listening society will include the very best ideas from each of the political traditions, and would strive to uphold SOLIDARITY, ORDER and FREEDOM.
NOTE: Freinacht concedes that all of this is a HUGE oversimplification. But he assures the reader that this is only BOOK 1, and intimates that BOOK 2 will go into greater detail.
GHAA!!!
There is SO much more to say about this book.
And there much more to say about Freinacht.
But I’m actually well into his next book.
So I’m going to stop writing this.
And go read that.
5/5 ⭐️
And every time I hit one of these mile markers.
I like to do a special book.
And…
DANG!
This one DEFINITELY QUALIFIES.
This thing is A LOT.
It’s a whole lot of GREAT.
And a whole lot of ODD?
With a dash of ICK.
And I am HERE FOR pretty much ALL OF IT.
But I’m NEW to all of it too.
And it has the stink of…
The NEXT BIG INSUFFERABLE REDIT/NETBRO TREND.
So I’m proceeding with cautious optimism.
The Listening Society by Hanzi Freinacht is the first book in the series dubbed ‘The Nordic Ideology’ (which takes MASSIVE BALLS to brand a non Neo-Nazzi political ideology as such, but Freinacht is nothing if not EXTRA BALLZY).
NOTE: Hanzi Freinacht is a pseudonym used by Daniel Görtz a political philosopher and sociologist. He’s like the BANKSEY, or the ORVEL PECK or the DAFT PUNK of philosophy.
Actually, Freinacht's (Görtz) work is interdisciplinary, blending psychology, sociology, political theory, and philosophy.
But he’s an ANONYMOUS one of those (whatchamacallits).
So Hanzi Freinacht is essentially a PERSONA.
At least it was.
Görtz seems to have dropped the ruse more recently.
Whole Görtz seems to be kind of normal and nice.
The Freinacht persona is an OBNOXIOUS PRICK a times.
It’s supposed to be PROVOCATIVE, or EVOCATIVE.
Or whatever.
And (honestly) it’s kind of fun.
But I could have lived w/o the SCHTICK.
I was ultimately able to tolerate all of that to get to the goods.
But no TEA/SHADE if ALL OF THAT nonsense is off putting.
I almost didn’t make it through the first 100 pages.
But I’m VERY glad I stuck it out.
Anyway…
Freinacht presents a vision for a future society that could potentially transcend the quagmire at the intersection of modern/postmodern politics that we currently languish in.
Freinacht refers to his ideology as political metamodernism, but it is also referred to as developmental metamodernism.
In short:
Freinacht synthesizes Scandinavian green socialist democracy and Danish process base politics with large chunks of Integral Theory including Spiral Dynamics (although Freinacht is critical of each) with a Metamodernist sensibility that integrates the sincerity and (naïve) belief in progress that typifies modernity, with the (oft smarmy) critical (over it all) irony and radical plurality of postmodernism.
If ANY/ALL of this is new or unfamiliar.
Let’s unpack some of that.
METAMODERNISM
Metamodernism (MM) is presented as an integral synthesis of modern (sincere rationality) and postmodern (ironic scepticisism) aesthetics, perspectives and sensibilities.
As such.
MM is considered (if only by its adherents) to be the next step (value meme - cultural paradigm) after postmodernism.
In other words.
MM is trying to be POST-postmodernism.
DEVELOPMENTAL GROWTH HIERARCHY
Freinacht emphasizes the importance of understanding human development through various stage based developmental theories.
And here is where most people (particularly postmodern oriented people) take umbrage.
NOTE: those of you who are familiar with Ken Wilber and Integral Theory will recognize a lot of this. And if you read the book. You (like me) may feel like Freinacht doesn’t give Wilber sufficient credit. There is a lot of discussion about this online. FYI: theres a WHOLE THING about it.
Anyway…
Because these developmental theories are (at least superficially) hierarchical. Critics of these types of models commonly object that hierarchal stage based conceptualizations are intrinsically oppressive instruments of dominance.
Few people object to Piajetiean stage based models of child development, e.g. children develop cognitively in stages from: (1) sensorimotor (age 0-2); (2) pre-operational stage (age 2-7); concrete operational (age 7-11
); formal operational (11 and up).
But to suggest that there are even more advanced stages of cognitive development, particularly when discussing adult development, makes a lot of people very uncomfortable.
And understandably so. Given the ways these types of evaluative/hierarchal systems have been used as justifications for eugenics and genocide in the not so distant past.
Given this understanding.
Freinacht posits that this type of a-prior denial of human development, whereby
Freinacht argues that there is copious evidence that one’s capacity to encounter increasing complexity, as well as one’s ability to adapt increasingly numerous and diverse perspectives can continue to develop over the lifespan.
Freinacht argues that there is an important difference between “domination hierarchies” and “developmental hierarchies”. Freinacht further argues that personal growth and maturity are crucial for creating a better society.
Freinacht asserts that if we can acknowledge that this type of emotional, cognitive, and moral development exists and is possible. And that development can be enhanced by education, therapy and training (meditation etc). We can reorganize and optimize our society to foster these and other forms of human development.
Freinacht asserts that if we can reorganize our society away from material/status accumulation, and towards sustainability, and basic social safety and security, than we can also optimize our society to foster emotional, cognitive, and moral development. And if we do all that, then we will all be MUCH better off than if we don’t.
THE LISTENING SOCIETY
Freinacht envisions a society that prioritizes listening and understanding over mere economic growth or power struggles. This society would value well-being, mental health, and personal development, ensuring that all citizens have the opportunity to reach their full potential.
Freinacht argues that in addition to healthcare, childcare and education, everyone should have a chance to get good therapy, learn how to meditate, learn how to be fit and eat healthy.
Freinacht argues that the Scandinavian countries are already heading in this direction. And he argues that the rest of the world would benefit by following suit.
HIPSTERS HACKERS AND HIPPIES (HHH)
Freinacht discusses the increasingly important role of a socially progressive creative class which he describes as HIPSTERS (lifestyle creatives); HACKERS (tech creatives) AND HIPPIES (spiritual and care giving creatives).
Freinacht posits that an internet driven economy is HIGHLY DEPENDENT on the HHH class for innovation and direction. And that the HHH class are driving, and will continue to drive society towards a green/socialist style Listening Society.
However.
The HHH simply can’t do their thing W/O lots and lots of social support (education, resources, affordable food, housing etc). And not all of them are going to have trust funds, or strike it rich with their INSTA, ONLY FANS, TECH START UP, or VEGAN GOAT MILK SOAP BOUTIQUE.
As such, Freinacht posits that the HHH and other educated, cultural creatives occupy a particularly PRECARIOUS NIECH (see below).
THE PROCARIATE
Freinacht introduces the term PROCARIATE (a play on words referring to the Marxian PROLETARIAT) to describe a this newly emerging social class. Who are (like the PROLETARIAT in the Industrial Revolution) important to the NEXT REVOLUTION (hopefully w/o all that SALINE STYLE STUFF).
Freinacht posits that the PROCARIATE consists of HHH types and other well-educated folks, with access to modern technologies, but who still find themselves in economically precarious situations regarding employment, housing, healthcare, childcare, and general life stability.
Umm 🤔 If by PROCARIATE he means EVERYONE except BOOMERS. Than yes
Anyway.
Unlike Marx’s PROLETARIAT , the PROCARIATE is often involved in creative, intellectual, or service-oriented work (See afore mentioned HHH), yet often lack the security and benefits associated with stable, long-term employment.
Despite having the skills and education to thrive, the PROCARIATE are trapped in, uncertain, temporary, or underpaid CRAPPY/JOBS/GIGS.
Freinacht suggests that the PROCARIATE’s growing ranks, coupled with our societies growing dependency on their CARE GIVING, SERVICE PROVIDING, CREATIVE/INNOVATIVE HHHness could have significant implications for the future of politics, economics, and societal organization. And like the Marxist PROLETARIAT, could have SIGNIFICANT POLITICAL POWER if they (BIG IF) could somehow UNITE.
INTEGRAL POLITICS
The political sentiments expounds are Freinacht expounds are CLEARLY technocratic Euro style LEFT/LIB in that they are advocating (a) animal rights and ecological, sustainability (GREEN); (b) universal basic income, and a HOST of other social programs (socialized healthcare/childcare/education and much mulch more), coupled with an extremely high rate of taxation (SOCIALIST); (c) a deprioritization of material accumulation coupled with a reorganization around psychosocial and spiritual development and wellbeing (HUMANISTIC); (d) emphasis on continued technological advancement (TECH).
Given all of that.
Freinacht attempts to bypass the TOXIC BINARY of contemporary LEFT/RIGHT political divisions.
Freinacht argues that there are GOOD/TRUE/BEAUTIFUL/EFFECTIVE aspects of each of the traditional EURO/US political orientations (when considered in their best forms), which he boils down to (1) LIBERAL (emphasis on SOLIDARITY), (2) CONSERVATIVE (emphasis on ORDER); (3) LIBERTARIAN (emphasis on FREEDOM).
Freinacht posits that a true listening society will include the very best ideas from each of the political traditions, and would strive to uphold SOLIDARITY, ORDER and FREEDOM.
NOTE: Freinacht concedes that all of this is a HUGE oversimplification. But he assures the reader that this is only BOOK 1, and intimates that BOOK 2 will go into greater detail.
GHAA!!!
There is SO much more to say about this book.
And there much more to say about Freinacht.
But I’m actually well into his next book.
So I’m going to stop writing this.
And go read that.
5/5 ⭐️
August 8, 2020
The most inspiring and perceptive book on society I've read so far. It offers much-needed hope and vision in times we need (to be co-creating) it.
I'd like to call it "mind-massaging", as like a powerful massage, reading it feels incredibly good but tensing up against it would just plain hurt. However, relaxing into it can help release long-held tensions and lead to healing.
The key concepts of metamodern code don't sound that new or radical to me, but I was amazed by how clearly Hanzi (/the writers) had verbalized and coherently put together multiple aspects of the new code that seems to be bubbling beneath the surface in many social spheres.
Respect!
This is a minor detail, but I would be very curious to hear the authors (or others that are part of the metamodern value meme) to shed light on the reason(s) for the openly provocative tone. I personally fall short of utilizing irony often / well, whereas staying merely sincere seems to fit my style better and keep me within my comfort zone. I'm also hoping it'd help disarm some defences in others so that they'd also feel more willing to seek mutual understanding.
Yet, that might be a mistake - maybe people would listen or 'get it' better with some provocation? However, I'm not yet convinced this is the case, so for now, I'll stick with aiming to understand and communicating sincerely, to the extent that I know how and it seems suitable for the context. Trying to stay rational, science-based and wholehearted at the same time seems to be provocative enough, just because of our psychological vulnerabilities related to competition / moralizing / inadequacy.
I'd like to call it "mind-massaging", as like a powerful massage, reading it feels incredibly good but tensing up against it would just plain hurt. However, relaxing into it can help release long-held tensions and lead to healing.
The key concepts of metamodern code don't sound that new or radical to me, but I was amazed by how clearly Hanzi (/the writers) had verbalized and coherently put together multiple aspects of the new code that seems to be bubbling beneath the surface in many social spheres.
Respect!
This is a minor detail, but I would be very curious to hear the authors (or others that are part of the metamodern value meme) to shed light on the reason(s) for the openly provocative tone. I personally fall short of utilizing irony often / well, whereas staying merely sincere seems to fit my style better and keep me within my comfort zone. I'm also hoping it'd help disarm some defences in others so that they'd also feel more willing to seek mutual understanding.
Yet, that might be a mistake - maybe people would listen or 'get it' better with some provocation? However, I'm not yet convinced this is the case, so for now, I'll stick with aiming to understand and communicating sincerely, to the extent that I know how and it seems suitable for the context. Trying to stay rational, science-based and wholehearted at the same time seems to be provocative enough, just because of our psychological vulnerabilities related to competition / moralizing / inadequacy.
August 10, 2018
Okay so if you have a Petersonian friend who you might want to rescue from all too individualistic and stubborn right-ish surrender - offer him (I mean it's probably him) this very book. Author mentions much of Petersonian Great Truths in a kind of matter of fact manner, sincerely addressing really existing serious issues embedded in political activism and social utopianism.
Personally I was interested in this work as being a merger between activism and individual responsibility. I think that contemporary left-leaning folks are obliged to understand how their peculiar circumstances where it is possible to address all their moral issues is a product of the culture of guilt which itself is a by-product of Christianity.
Personally I was interested in this work as being a merger between activism and individual responsibility. I think that contemporary left-leaning folks are obliged to understand how their peculiar circumstances where it is possible to address all their moral issues is a product of the culture of guilt which itself is a by-product of Christianity.
October 28, 2021
2020.03.06–2020.03.23,
2021.10.03–2021.10.23
Beyond the rhetoric, this contains a great deal of insights into politics, human development, the culture wars, etc. -- by and for people who grew up on the Internet. (The newly released audio narration was also a nice fit for the rhetoric.)
Contents
Freinacht H (2017) (16:23) Listening Society, The - A Metamodern Guide to Politics, Book One
Prologue
• Political Metamodernism Is the Future
• Who Is Hanzi Freinacht?
• Readers of Bronze, Silver and Gold
Introduction: What We Must Achieve
• This Book and the Next
• Metamodernism: The Philosophical Engine
• Academic Heresy
• The Reader Rebels
• Your Predictable Objections
• More Predictable Objections
• Psycho-Active Literature
• Sincere Irony
Part I: The New Political Landscape
01. How Politics Changed
• The Most Progressive Countries in the World
• Post-Materialist Values
• One Meta-Ideology Has Already Won
• There Is No “Center” of Politics
• The Voter’s Raw New Deal
02. Crisis-Revolution
• Newly Dug Trenches
• Hackers, Hipsters and Hippies
• Polarization and Trumpism Explained
• The Multidimensional Crisis-Revolution
• The Boom Equation
03. In a Nutshell
• The Basic Idea
• Should We Really Make People Happy?
• Don’t Scorn Happiness
• The Fabric of Hurt and Bliss
• Taking Up the Struggle
• Accepting the Risks
04. Possible and Necessary
• Yes, It Is Possible
• And, Yes, It Is Necessary
• How It Connects to Everyday Life
• An Empirical Example: Meditation in Schools
• Emotional, Social and Collective Intelligence
• Feeling Provoked Yet?
05. The Alternative
• Party about Nothing
• Got That Edge
• Transnationalism, Truly
• The Metamodern Aristocracy
06. Political Philosophy
• Transpersonal Perspective: Beyond Individuals
• The View from Complexity
• Beyond Left and Right, at Long Last
• Non-Linear Politics
• Liberal Innocence Lost
Part II: Psychological Development
07. On Stage Theories
• A Missing Piece of the Puzzle
• In Defense of Hierarchies among Humans
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Hierarchy
• Introducing Adult Development
• Domain-Specific Developmental Theories
• “Global” Developmental Stage Theories
08. Cognitive Development
• Meister L. Commons
• The Model of Hierarchical Complexity (MHC)
• • 0. Calculatory Stage (molecules)
• • 1. Automatic Stage (cells)
• • 2. Sensory or Motor Stage (amoeba)
• • 3. Circular Sensory-Motor Stage (insect, fish, newborn human)
• • 4. Sensory-Motor Stage (rat, small baby)
• • 5. Nominal Stage (pigeon, one-year-old toddlers)
• • 6. Sentential Stage (two/three years old)
• • 7. Pre-Operational Stage (three to five year olds)
• • 8. Primary Stage (five to seven years old)
• • 9. Concrete Stage (seven to eleven)
• • 10. Abstract Stage (ages eleven to fourteen)
• • 11. Formal Stage (ages fourteen to eighteen, if at all)
• • 12. Systematic Stage (eighteen and above, if at all)
• • 13. Metasystematic Stage (early twenties and above, if at all)
• • 14. Paradigmatic Stage (mid-twenties and above, if at all)
• • 15. Crossparadigmatic Stage (late twenties and above, if at all)
• What Is Intelligence? The Parrot Speaks
09. The Important Stages
• Stage 10 Abstract
• Stage 11 Formal
• Stage 12 Systematic
• Stage 13 Metasystematic
• No, I Still Can’t Believe It. I Won’t!
• Implications for Society
10. Symbolic Development
• Realdialektik
• Code and Cognitive Development
• Teleology and Determinism?
11. The Symbol-Stages
• The First Three Symbol-Stages: A, B and C
• Symbol-Stage D: Postfaustian (or Traditional)
• Symbol-Stage E: Modern
• Symbol-Stage F: Postmodern
• Symbol-Stage G: Metamodern
• Last Notes on Symbol-Stages
12. Subjective States
• Romantic Revenge
• High States, Low States
• The Scale of Subjective States
• Beyond Emotions
13. Reaching Higher
• A Definition of “Spirituality”
• What Everyday Life Feels Like on Average
• What It Means to Develop Your State
• Example of a “High State” Person
• Can Lower States Be Good?
• The Credibility Problem of Higher States
• Why Spiritual Communities Turn Into Cults
14. Depth
• Agony and Ecstasy
• Measuring Depth
• Developing Depth
• Beauty, Mystery and Tragedy
• • Depth as Beauty
• • Depth as Mystery
• • Depth as Tragedy
15. Wisdom Troubles
• Light and Dark Depth
• Wisdom Is Overrated
• Of Wisdom and Wise-Guys
• An Example from Bertrand Russell
16. Effective Value Meme
• The Awkward Uncle
• Why “Spiral Dynamics” Doesn’t Work
• From vMeme to Effective Value Meme
• The Dimensions of Development Come Together
• Zooming In on the Effective Value Memes
• • Archaic Value Meme
• • Animistic Value Meme
• • Faustian Value Meme
• • Postfaustian Value Meme
• • Modern Value Meme
• • Postmodern Value Meme
• • Metamodern Value Meme
17. Major Implications
• Death to TURQUOISE
• Higher Secularism Rising
• Why Bother with Just a Baby?
• Danger, Danger Cliché
• Some Very Well-Needed Nuance
• Developmental Imbalances Make You Sick
• The Philosopher’s Stone
• Rip Them Apart. Spare No One
• Implications for a Global Society
18. Development Matters
• Higher Stage Populations
• Why the Postmoderns Cannot Save the World
• The Great Stretching Out
• Development Matters
Appendix: Metamodernism
• Three Meanings of “Metamodernism”
• The Metamodern Paradigm, Condensed
• • Metamodern Stance Towards Life
• • Metamodern View of Science
• • Metamodern View of Reality
• • Metamodern Spirituality, Existence and Aesthetics
• • Metamodern View of Society
• • Metamodern View of the Human Being
• Origins of the Term “Metamodernism”
• The Difference between Post- and Metamodernism
• Bringing a New Metamodernism into Being
Notes
2021.10.03–2021.10.23
Beyond the rhetoric, this contains a great deal of insights into politics, human development, the culture wars, etc. -- by and for people who grew up on the Internet. (The newly released audio narration was also a nice fit for the rhetoric.)
Contents
Freinacht H (2017) (16:23) Listening Society, The - A Metamodern Guide to Politics, Book One
Prologue
• Political Metamodernism Is the Future
• Who Is Hanzi Freinacht?
• Readers of Bronze, Silver and Gold
Introduction: What We Must Achieve
• This Book and the Next
• Metamodernism: The Philosophical Engine
• Academic Heresy
• The Reader Rebels
• Your Predictable Objections
• More Predictable Objections
• Psycho-Active Literature
• Sincere Irony
Part I: The New Political Landscape
01. How Politics Changed
• The Most Progressive Countries in the World
• Post-Materialist Values
• One Meta-Ideology Has Already Won
• There Is No “Center” of Politics
• The Voter’s Raw New Deal
02. Crisis-Revolution
• Newly Dug Trenches
• Hackers, Hipsters and Hippies
• Polarization and Trumpism Explained
• The Multidimensional Crisis-Revolution
• The Boom Equation
03. In a Nutshell
• The Basic Idea
• Should We Really Make People Happy?
• Don’t Scorn Happiness
• The Fabric of Hurt and Bliss
• Taking Up the Struggle
• Accepting the Risks
04. Possible and Necessary
• Yes, It Is Possible
• And, Yes, It Is Necessary
• How It Connects to Everyday Life
• An Empirical Example: Meditation in Schools
• Emotional, Social and Collective Intelligence
• Feeling Provoked Yet?
05. The Alternative
• Party about Nothing
• Got That Edge
• Transnationalism, Truly
• The Metamodern Aristocracy
06. Political Philosophy
• Transpersonal Perspective: Beyond Individuals
• The View from Complexity
• Beyond Left and Right, at Long Last
• Non-Linear Politics
• Liberal Innocence Lost
Part II: Psychological Development
07. On Stage Theories
• A Missing Piece of the Puzzle
• In Defense of Hierarchies among Humans
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Hierarchy
• Introducing Adult Development
• Domain-Specific Developmental Theories
• “Global” Developmental Stage Theories
08. Cognitive Development
• Meister L. Commons
• The Model of Hierarchical Complexity (MHC)
• • 0. Calculatory Stage (molecules)
• • 1. Automatic Stage (cells)
• • 2. Sensory or Motor Stage (amoeba)
• • 3. Circular Sensory-Motor Stage (insect, fish, newborn human)
• • 4. Sensory-Motor Stage (rat, small baby)
• • 5. Nominal Stage (pigeon, one-year-old toddlers)
• • 6. Sentential Stage (two/three years old)
• • 7. Pre-Operational Stage (three to five year olds)
• • 8. Primary Stage (five to seven years old)
• • 9. Concrete Stage (seven to eleven)
• • 10. Abstract Stage (ages eleven to fourteen)
• • 11. Formal Stage (ages fourteen to eighteen, if at all)
• • 12. Systematic Stage (eighteen and above, if at all)
• • 13. Metasystematic Stage (early twenties and above, if at all)
• • 14. Paradigmatic Stage (mid-twenties and above, if at all)
• • 15. Crossparadigmatic Stage (late twenties and above, if at all)
• What Is Intelligence? The Parrot Speaks
09. The Important Stages
• Stage 10 Abstract
• Stage 11 Formal
• Stage 12 Systematic
• Stage 13 Metasystematic
• No, I Still Can’t Believe It. I Won’t!
• Implications for Society
10. Symbolic Development
• Realdialektik
• Code and Cognitive Development
• Teleology and Determinism?
11. The Symbol-Stages
• The First Three Symbol-Stages: A, B and C
• Symbol-Stage D: Postfaustian (or Traditional)
• Symbol-Stage E: Modern
• Symbol-Stage F: Postmodern
• Symbol-Stage G: Metamodern
• Last Notes on Symbol-Stages
12. Subjective States
• Romantic Revenge
• High States, Low States
• The Scale of Subjective States
• Beyond Emotions
13. Reaching Higher
• A Definition of “Spirituality”
• What Everyday Life Feels Like on Average
• What It Means to Develop Your State
• Example of a “High State” Person
• Can Lower States Be Good?
• The Credibility Problem of Higher States
• Why Spiritual Communities Turn Into Cults
14. Depth
• Agony and Ecstasy
• Measuring Depth
• Developing Depth
• Beauty, Mystery and Tragedy
• • Depth as Beauty
• • Depth as Mystery
• • Depth as Tragedy
15. Wisdom Troubles
• Light and Dark Depth
• Wisdom Is Overrated
• Of Wisdom and Wise-Guys
• An Example from Bertrand Russell
16. Effective Value Meme
• The Awkward Uncle
• Why “Spiral Dynamics” Doesn’t Work
• From vMeme to Effective Value Meme
• The Dimensions of Development Come Together
• Zooming In on the Effective Value Memes
• • Archaic Value Meme
• • Animistic Value Meme
• • Faustian Value Meme
• • Postfaustian Value Meme
• • Modern Value Meme
• • Postmodern Value Meme
• • Metamodern Value Meme
17. Major Implications
• Death to TURQUOISE
• Higher Secularism Rising
• Why Bother with Just a Baby?
• Danger, Danger Cliché
• Some Very Well-Needed Nuance
• Developmental Imbalances Make You Sick
• The Philosopher’s Stone
• Rip Them Apart. Spare No One
• Implications for a Global Society
18. Development Matters
• Higher Stage Populations
• Why the Postmoderns Cannot Save the World
• The Great Stretching Out
• Development Matters
Appendix: Metamodernism
• Three Meanings of “Metamodernism”
• The Metamodern Paradigm, Condensed
• • Metamodern Stance Towards Life
• • Metamodern View of Science
• • Metamodern View of Reality
• • Metamodern Spirituality, Existence and Aesthetics
• • Metamodern View of Society
• • Metamodern View of the Human Being
• Origins of the Term “Metamodernism”
• The Difference between Post- and Metamodernism
• Bringing a New Metamodernism into Being
Notes
January 8, 2019
Part political manifesto, part update of developmental theory. It deconstructs and reconstructs spiral dynamics and tweaks integral theory to leave out the woo woo introduced by Ken Wilber and introduces new aspects of complexity, state and depth and retains 'code' which relates to the SD stages.
A real upgrade to my operating system.
A real upgrade to my operating system.
June 26, 2020
I was largely unimpressed by Freinacht's analysis of social phenomena on FB so I decided at some point not to read his book. However that was a mistake. Since reading it, this book has provided lots of food for thought as I use this developmental psychology perspective to understand lots of the inexplicable reactions that occur on social media and beyond. It has also allowed me to see why people insist on bringing about certain structural affects (or why they resist acknowledging certain structural affects) when in conversation.
Freinacht's aesthetics are also very interesting; to align society along the lines of developmental psychology. There is much interesting material here if you can understand how to read and apply it. I look forward to reading his second book.
Freinacht's aesthetics are also very interesting; to align society along the lines of developmental psychology. There is much interesting material here if you can understand how to read and apply it. I look forward to reading his second book.
January 31, 2020
I strongly recommend this book!
It's one of those "psychoactive books" that can completely change your outlook on life.
In spite of the book's seemingly heavy topics, it is written in a captivating and easy-to-read non-academical personal narrative style, with lots of humor and irony interspersed.
It's one of those "psychoactive books" that can completely change your outlook on life.
In spite of the book's seemingly heavy topics, it is written in a captivating and easy-to-read non-academical personal narrative style, with lots of humor and irony interspersed.
May 8, 2023
What began with cringeworthy, insufferable writing ended up as one of the most thought-provoking books I have ever read.
April 8, 2020
- Wow. First political philosophy book I've read in a decade and first exposure to many of these terms, but his philosophy and perspective is unbelievably spot-on; he's created a framework that I've felt, but haven't been able to characterize. Hanzi brings you on a journey, but it's SO WORTH traveling the whole thing with him, and appreciating his edgy voice. The last 40% of the book, in particular, has meaningfully affected my framework for understanding the world and human behavior within it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2020
As a rational modern mind who is also a spiritual Dharma bum, I have felt an ideological loneliness of sorts. Yet with Hanzi I have A new best friend. A great and much needed book for this planet.
July 2, 2021
When I was reading this book I had to put it down sometimes because I was overwhelmed by the words. It felt/feel like I was upgrading my world view. Overwhelming
August 11, 2023
Many years ago, when I was at university, I submitted a final essay for a political science paper and was devastated to receive an A- for it: the lowest grade I have ever received.
It took me a lot of struggling and arguing with professors to finally realise what was wrong with my essay: Yes, I clearly understood the concepts, the overarching themes, the patterns and all the relevant 'ism' words. What I hadn't managed to do was separate my analysis from my own ideology - I'd devoted several paragraphs to arguing that a certain Prime Minister was a political genius, simply because I happened to agree with them ideologically. I'd tried very hard to disguise this fact in the essay and pretend that I was able to see across all perspectives, but the professor saw right through it.
The Listening Society is a book that makes the same fundamental mistake.
The authors (yes, plural, Hanzi Freinacht is not a real person) clearly understand what metamodernism is. They clearly understand developmental psychology and had this book solely focussed on the psychological and development potential of metamodernism, it would be a four or five star review from me.
What they fail to do is to apply a metamodern way of thinking to their approach to politics. This is a book that extols the virtues of listening to other perspectives in a non-judgemental way but fails to actually do so itself at every turn, instead remaining blindly devoted to a vaguely left-wing philosophy that the authors themselves ascribe to postmodernist thought. (And as an aside, if I wasn't writing this review at 2am and had more time to go into depth, I would also query their assumption that all postmodernists are automatically left-wing liberals.)
This is perhaps the most bitter disappointment of the book, which makes grandiose promises about how it will change the world, change politics and usher in a new political paradigm only to instead assault the reader with the same tired and trite clichés that the political left has been spouting since at least the 1960s, if not much earlier.
Worse yet, the book and its so-called 'ideology' is riddled with self-contradictions, which perhaps the authors might attempt to explain away as a metamodern oscillation between contradictory opinions but which in reality points only to a lack of self-reflection and a work that was written inside a left-leaning academic echo chamber and which has never actually engaged with anyone from the outside world (because of course, such people have lower effective meme values and are therefore not worth listening to - oh wait but the metamodernist supposedly listens to all perspectives, apparently! So which is it, 'Hanzi'?)
It's a book that claims to decry all forms of moralism and yet ploughs ahead anyway with a bunch of its own moral assumptions - often extremely skewed or bizarre ones like 'animal slavery is the worst form of injustice on the planet'.
That's not to say the book was awful - it wasn't. While I did occasionally get Ayn Rand vibes from it (in the sense that, just as reading Atlas Shrugged felt like being shouted at by a deranged Russian woman, this book often felt like being shouted at by some naïve German kids), I do think that it has important things to say not just about the metamodern episteme but also some worthwhile theories on why the metamodern episteme exists.
As stated earlier, the second half of the book is mostly excellent - even if the theories are seldom backed up by data and seem to be the product of wishful thinking or solely intuitive deduction (dare I call it magical thinking). It's still a very thought-provoking theory, albeit a flawed one.
Though the book dismally fails to articulate a coherent or original 'political metamodernism' (NB: they've taken mainstream progressive/green/liberal politics and rebranded it as metamodernism), the one politics-adjacent area where it does excel is by taking the rhetorical and artistic techniques of metamodernism and applying them to polemic:
The sincere irony of a book written by a constructed fictional philosopher who is simultaneously insufferably arrogant but also full of self-doubt and (conscious) self-contradiction was quite a fun framing device and the sort of thing that put me in mind of the works of David Foster Wallace.
The book also rather excellently blends logos, pathos and ethos in a way that I think is unique to works of the metamodern episteme and is quite effective at getting in your head and causing you to doubt the validity of your own criticism by patching over the book's many logical potholes and fallacies by barraging you with surprisingly effective emotional arguments. (For example, early in the book you're warned not to focus on parts of the book that you might have a problem with and to instead concentrate on the big picture. I'm more or less doing that anyway because, on reflection, it's a cop-out Hanzi, you're not a self-aware genius, you're just someone who knows that your argument is full of holes and you're trying to lampshade your way out of them.)
To this extent, the book offers a possible template for what metamodern political activism might look like - and how the techniques of metamodernism could be applied to rhetoric and polemic.
It's just a crying shame that the book's attempts to posit an actual metamodern political ideology will fall flat to anyone with more than a surface level understanding of political science or history. The book clings to the same long debunked, vacuous claptrap that consistently sees the radical left laughed out of ever coming near the levers of power and yet fails to adequately understand the reason why.
There's no magic spell that will bring about the post-materialist, post-scarcity society that this utopian vision would require in order to exist. The Marxists discovered the same thing when "true" communism failed to materialise - as did the Diggers before them and so forth.
This is just the same naïve and wishful thinking, rehashed and reheated but this time framed in an "everyone who doesn't agree with me is less developed and failing to think with adequate levels of complexity" - which is kind of ironic because claiming your argument is invisible to anyone but an elite and chosen few is the same technique that cults and religions use and the book is not short of contempt for religion.
If the book was just about psychology I'd give it four or five stars. If it was just about politics (as book two threatens to be) it would be one star.
Overall, I'm going to give it a very generous three stars and acknowledge that this book successfully demonstrates a metamodern metaxy/oscillation between being absolutely terrible and absolutely brilliant.
It took me a lot of struggling and arguing with professors to finally realise what was wrong with my essay: Yes, I clearly understood the concepts, the overarching themes, the patterns and all the relevant 'ism' words. What I hadn't managed to do was separate my analysis from my own ideology - I'd devoted several paragraphs to arguing that a certain Prime Minister was a political genius, simply because I happened to agree with them ideologically. I'd tried very hard to disguise this fact in the essay and pretend that I was able to see across all perspectives, but the professor saw right through it.
The Listening Society is a book that makes the same fundamental mistake.
The authors (yes, plural, Hanzi Freinacht is not a real person) clearly understand what metamodernism is. They clearly understand developmental psychology and had this book solely focussed on the psychological and development potential of metamodernism, it would be a four or five star review from me.
What they fail to do is to apply a metamodern way of thinking to their approach to politics. This is a book that extols the virtues of listening to other perspectives in a non-judgemental way but fails to actually do so itself at every turn, instead remaining blindly devoted to a vaguely left-wing philosophy that the authors themselves ascribe to postmodernist thought. (And as an aside, if I wasn't writing this review at 2am and had more time to go into depth, I would also query their assumption that all postmodernists are automatically left-wing liberals.)
This is perhaps the most bitter disappointment of the book, which makes grandiose promises about how it will change the world, change politics and usher in a new political paradigm only to instead assault the reader with the same tired and trite clichés that the political left has been spouting since at least the 1960s, if not much earlier.
Worse yet, the book and its so-called 'ideology' is riddled with self-contradictions, which perhaps the authors might attempt to explain away as a metamodern oscillation between contradictory opinions but which in reality points only to a lack of self-reflection and a work that was written inside a left-leaning academic echo chamber and which has never actually engaged with anyone from the outside world (because of course, such people have lower effective meme values and are therefore not worth listening to - oh wait but the metamodernist supposedly listens to all perspectives, apparently! So which is it, 'Hanzi'?)
It's a book that claims to decry all forms of moralism and yet ploughs ahead anyway with a bunch of its own moral assumptions - often extremely skewed or bizarre ones like 'animal slavery is the worst form of injustice on the planet'.
That's not to say the book was awful - it wasn't. While I did occasionally get Ayn Rand vibes from it (in the sense that, just as reading Atlas Shrugged felt like being shouted at by a deranged Russian woman, this book often felt like being shouted at by some naïve German kids), I do think that it has important things to say not just about the metamodern episteme but also some worthwhile theories on why the metamodern episteme exists.
As stated earlier, the second half of the book is mostly excellent - even if the theories are seldom backed up by data and seem to be the product of wishful thinking or solely intuitive deduction (dare I call it magical thinking). It's still a very thought-provoking theory, albeit a flawed one.
Though the book dismally fails to articulate a coherent or original 'political metamodernism' (NB: they've taken mainstream progressive/green/liberal politics and rebranded it as metamodernism), the one politics-adjacent area where it does excel is by taking the rhetorical and artistic techniques of metamodernism and applying them to polemic:
The sincere irony of a book written by a constructed fictional philosopher who is simultaneously insufferably arrogant but also full of self-doubt and (conscious) self-contradiction was quite a fun framing device and the sort of thing that put me in mind of the works of David Foster Wallace.
The book also rather excellently blends logos, pathos and ethos in a way that I think is unique to works of the metamodern episteme and is quite effective at getting in your head and causing you to doubt the validity of your own criticism by patching over the book's many logical potholes and fallacies by barraging you with surprisingly effective emotional arguments. (For example, early in the book you're warned not to focus on parts of the book that you might have a problem with and to instead concentrate on the big picture. I'm more or less doing that anyway because, on reflection, it's a cop-out Hanzi, you're not a self-aware genius, you're just someone who knows that your argument is full of holes and you're trying to lampshade your way out of them.)
To this extent, the book offers a possible template for what metamodern political activism might look like - and how the techniques of metamodernism could be applied to rhetoric and polemic.
It's just a crying shame that the book's attempts to posit an actual metamodern political ideology will fall flat to anyone with more than a surface level understanding of political science or history. The book clings to the same long debunked, vacuous claptrap that consistently sees the radical left laughed out of ever coming near the levers of power and yet fails to adequately understand the reason why.
There's no magic spell that will bring about the post-materialist, post-scarcity society that this utopian vision would require in order to exist. The Marxists discovered the same thing when "true" communism failed to materialise - as did the Diggers before them and so forth.
This is just the same naïve and wishful thinking, rehashed and reheated but this time framed in an "everyone who doesn't agree with me is less developed and failing to think with adequate levels of complexity" - which is kind of ironic because claiming your argument is invisible to anyone but an elite and chosen few is the same technique that cults and religions use and the book is not short of contempt for religion.
If the book was just about psychology I'd give it four or five stars. If it was just about politics (as book two threatens to be) it would be one star.
Overall, I'm going to give it a very generous three stars and acknowledge that this book successfully demonstrates a metamodern metaxy/oscillation between being absolutely terrible and absolutely brilliant.
January 31, 2024
Loved it.
Hanzi offers a new framework for adult development, by combining existing theories and building on four variables: complexity of cognition, cultural code, states of mind and depth of experience. Whether you agree with the framework or not, it offers a lot of food for thought.
The book is also a sort of a political manifesto for the 21st century, yet contemplative, ironic and abstractly nuanced, as is fitting for metamodernism.
Full of progressive ideas and ideals, yet mostly a fluid and enchanting read.
But do yourselves a favor - don’t google Hanzi Freinacht until before you’re done with the book. ;)
Hanzi offers a new framework for adult development, by combining existing theories and building on four variables: complexity of cognition, cultural code, states of mind and depth of experience. Whether you agree with the framework or not, it offers a lot of food for thought.
The book is also a sort of a political manifesto for the 21st century, yet contemplative, ironic and abstractly nuanced, as is fitting for metamodernism.
Full of progressive ideas and ideals, yet mostly a fluid and enchanting read.
But do yourselves a favor - don’t google Hanzi Freinacht until before you’re done with the book. ;)
August 6, 2020
If you thought David Foster Wallace is your jazz, then check this out. It's going to be worth it.
May 14, 2023
This is the best book I've ever read.
Imagine reading this paragraph sentence (which probably sounds crazy without having read the book).
And imagine that you feel it integrates 1. literally everything you thought was most important and insightful before reading this book and 2. the feeling you would expect to have by being driven by a powerfully motivating religion and 3. the sense of truth that you might get from a clarifying deep conversation with a good friend (not a sense of ultimate truth tho, because that's a red herring and isn't genuine).
We can go ahead to create a Green Social Liberalism 2.0,
working non-linearly,
co-developing ourselves
towards a listening society.
We go ahead with
pragmatic idealism,
with magical realism
and informed naivety.
At the crossroads of fact and fiction, we
work and play with religious fervor,
keeping an ironic smile at our own self-importance.
Development matters
Imagine reading this paragraph sentence (which probably sounds crazy without having read the book).
And imagine that you feel it integrates 1. literally everything you thought was most important and insightful before reading this book and 2. the feeling you would expect to have by being driven by a powerfully motivating religion and 3. the sense of truth that you might get from a clarifying deep conversation with a good friend (not a sense of ultimate truth tho, because that's a red herring and isn't genuine).
We can go ahead to create a Green Social Liberalism 2.0,
working non-linearly,
co-developing ourselves
towards a listening society.
We go ahead with
pragmatic idealism,
with magical realism
and informed naivety.
At the crossroads of fact and fiction, we
work and play with religious fervor,
keeping an ironic smile at our own self-importance.
Development matters
November 8, 2020
First of all - Hanzi convinced me to become a metamodernist, or rather - to call myself that. I wholeheartedly agree with him and will be promoting those ideas among my friends.
But, the book is not ideal. The most offending culprit is the style of writing. It's corny and cringe inducing. It's also unnecessarily long - being quite repetitive at the same time (it took me two years to get through it). Some claims are also more akin to wishful thinking than real state of the matter.
Nevertheless, what's most important - his science 'game' is very strong. Just look at the citations, he knows his deal. That's why I chose to trust Hanzi. Let the era of metamodernism begin, the faster, the better.
But, the book is not ideal. The most offending culprit is the style of writing. It's corny and cringe inducing. It's also unnecessarily long - being quite repetitive at the same time (it took me two years to get through it). Some claims are also more akin to wishful thinking than real state of the matter.
Nevertheless, what's most important - his science 'game' is very strong. Just look at the citations, he knows his deal. That's why I chose to trust Hanzi. Let the era of metamodernism begin, the faster, the better.
June 30, 2020
The most paradigm transformative book I've read since Antifragile, which is big claim for anyone who knows me. At present, I'm very much absorbed by the point of view as presented in this book. I'll need some time to think about it and read some other things before I can give a more objective assessment, but all indications are that this one is important.
Far more entertaining and readable than the cover would suggest.
Far more entertaining and readable than the cover would suggest.
September 12, 2021
It felt so meaningful and was so riveting that I read it three times back to back. I just started book two and feel pretty confident that these are some of the most important contemporary writings out there. If you're interested in blossoming grand naratives of society these are the books for you.
October 27, 2023
I really enjoyed it. I’m particularly intrigued by the historical insights & look forward to the book wholly dedicated to that.
I’d give it 5 stars if it wasn’t so dang optimistic about metamodernism.
I’d give it 5 stars if it wasn’t so dang optimistic about metamodernism.
March 27, 2020
READ IT!
June 10, 2020
This is a book all about the development of society and why it matters. Read it and learn all about cognitive, cultural, and psychological state development!
December 27, 2021
A friend of mine recommended this book when I told him about my intention to research the idea that really all of the issues humankind is facing (climate change, political polarization, overcomsumption, etc) can be brought back to (a lack of) psychological development of society and the individuals that make up that society and that we would do well to make this psychological development the main measuring stick for our success. Turned out to be a short research, because this book really explains all of that, but also, much more importantly, it explores the concept of human psychological development with much more analytical rigor as any other I’ve read.
Hanzi Freinacht pulls apart most of the existing theories of human development -because they all try to define human development under a single dimension- and posits his own by combining and adjusting several existing ones into not a single dimension, but four. And it makes sense. I won’t go into stage, code, state and depth here, but they turn out to be helpful dimensions with which to evaluate people, societies, ideas, you name it.
There might be some thoughts I have on certain claims or opinions, but those are partly a matter of taste, partly a matter of how one chooses to interpret the writing. The ironically smug tone is part of the act and I think it works to communicate the message, and to challenge you to think and feel and react, so I think it’s a good sign if you feel a little annoyed or shook here and there.
It’s a book that oscillates between irony and sincerity, pragmatism and idealism, romance and realism and it’s a great experiment. Sometimes the writing is analytical, sometimes sincere, sometimes almost stream-of-consciousness-like, but most of all it’s a fascinating theory, illucidated in an accessible, entertaining and -as far as my cognitive stage can judge- analytically sound manner. The thing makes you think, and that’s what a good book should do.
Hanzi Freinacht pulls apart most of the existing theories of human development -because they all try to define human development under a single dimension- and posits his own by combining and adjusting several existing ones into not a single dimension, but four. And it makes sense. I won’t go into stage, code, state and depth here, but they turn out to be helpful dimensions with which to evaluate people, societies, ideas, you name it.
There might be some thoughts I have on certain claims or opinions, but those are partly a matter of taste, partly a matter of how one chooses to interpret the writing. The ironically smug tone is part of the act and I think it works to communicate the message, and to challenge you to think and feel and react, so I think it’s a good sign if you feel a little annoyed or shook here and there.
It’s a book that oscillates between irony and sincerity, pragmatism and idealism, romance and realism and it’s a great experiment. Sometimes the writing is analytical, sometimes sincere, sometimes almost stream-of-consciousness-like, but most of all it’s a fascinating theory, illucidated in an accessible, entertaining and -as far as my cognitive stage can judge- analytically sound manner. The thing makes you think, and that’s what a good book should do.
October 28, 2024
яка ж каша в голові цього Ганзі (насправді - у двох головах, бо це псевдо шведів Деніеля Ґьорца і Еміля Фрііса). От він легко пише про новітню революцію і згадує
The Orange Revolution of Ukraine.
а потім як всратий експерт уже пише про сучасну Україну:
What unites a village psychic in modern Ukraine (let’s say she also has schizotypal tendencies, a psychiatric condition often associated with unconventional beliefs) with a member of a rural San tribe (bushmen) hunter-gatherer in southern Africa? They are both of the Animistic effective value meme.
Власне, він про інші країни десь стільки ж знає, тому краще слухати, що він каже про свою рідну Скандинавію.
Загальна настанова більшості публікацій Фрайнахта — «метамодерного ціннісного мему» ще не існує, але його потрібно сформувати, адже за ним майбутнє. В Скандинавії є кілька політичних груп, які наближаються до його розуміння, але вони ще лишаються, по суті, постмодерними. На його/їхню думку, панівна метаідеологія скандинавських країн — соціал-лібералізм з екологічним відтінком, який він пропонує називати «Зеленим соціальним лібералізмом». Ця метаідеологія може призвести до становлення «метамодерної нелінійної політики» або ж «метамодерної фрактальної перспективи», але бракує найголовнішого — нової еліти. Актуальна проблема — відсутні��ть метамодерної аристократії, що володіє системною і ясною картиною того, що відбувається. Це «ті, хто думають комплексно, ніколи не вдаються до магічних переконань чи редукціонізму, і якими рухає глибока внутрішня глибина, які можуть працювати транснаціонально та працювати над створенням суспільства, яке більше слухає [a more listening society], це ті, хто може ставитися до всіх інших ціннісних мемів з добротою та повагою».
The Orange Revolution of Ukraine.
а потім як всратий експерт уже пише про сучасну Україну:
What unites a village psychic in modern Ukraine (let’s say she also has schizotypal tendencies, a psychiatric condition often associated with unconventional beliefs) with a member of a rural San tribe (bushmen) hunter-gatherer in southern Africa? They are both of the Animistic effective value meme.
Власне, він про інші країни десь стільки ж знає, тому краще слухати, що він каже про свою рідну Скандинавію.
Загальна настанова більшості публікацій Фрайнахта — «метамодерного ціннісного мему» ще не існує, але його потрібно сформувати, адже за ним майбутнє. В Скандинавії є кілька політичних груп, які наближаються до його розуміння, але вони ще лишаються, по суті, постмодерними. На його/їхню думку, панівна метаідеологія скандинавських країн — соціал-лібералізм з екологічним відтінком, який він пропонує називати «Зеленим соціальним лібералізмом». Ця метаідеологія може призвести до становлення «метамодерної нелінійної політики» або ж «метамодерної фрактальної перспективи», але бракує найголовнішого — нової еліти. Актуальна проблема — відсутні��ть метамодерної аристократії, що володіє системною і ясною картиною того, що відбувається. Це «ті, хто думають комплексно, ніколи не вдаються до магічних переконань чи редукціонізму, і якими рухає глибока внутрішня глибина, які можуть працювати транснаціонально та працювати над створенням суспільства, яке більше слухає [a more listening society], це ті, хто може ставитися до всіх інших ціннісних мемів з добротою та повагою».
February 21, 2021
Upsides:
- Critiques one or low dimensional models of human development, and offers a useful model with separate (but interrelated) axes of growth. I have many nits with the specific stages, but the general mental model is extremely useful, and something I plan to expand on.
- INCREDIBLE breakdown of the implications and interrelations of these stages. This by far was the highlight of the book.
- Really enjoyed the HHH (Hackers, Hippies, and Hipsters) chapter, and got the sense that he has deep insight into where culture meets psychology. I found myself recontextualizing personal things through his lenses.
Downsides:
- He acknowledges that effective value memes are shaped by material constraints and our environment, but doesn't dive much deeper here. If a metamodern society is the symptom of new technological and economic realities, we would want to know what technological realities we need to build.
- Whiffs of IYI elitism through the book. Occasionally quick to tip into blatant (modernist) reductionism / scientism (what he can't see doesn't exist).
- Understanding of emotional / spiritual development felt somewhat weak, and partially acknowledged. That being said, the breakdown of developmental imbalances make up for that.
Even while finding myself disagreeing with many points in the book, I feel a clear shift in my thinking before and after. Overall, a great read.
December 29, 2023
I wanted to give this book 5 stars, but as others said, the prose is just too annoying sometimes.
The literary mechanism of 'the great Hanzi' as the fictional author was certainly interesting and does actually contribute to conveying metamodern ideas by its own right. However, it is overdone and is more adversarial than necessary, which probably has lost many people that would otherwise be more receptive to these ideas. And also, I swear Hanzi mentions his other books 30 times throughout the book, which is not exactly a good look (and one still isn't even out yet).
That said, I think the content is clearly written, and is both thought-provoking and refreshing. I recommend it to anyone open to having their worldview challenged or refined, depending on how you see it.
The literary mechanism of 'the great Hanzi' as the fictional author was certainly interesting and does actually contribute to conveying metamodern ideas by its own right. However, it is overdone and is more adversarial than necessary, which probably has lost many people that would otherwise be more receptive to these ideas. And also, I swear Hanzi mentions his other books 30 times throughout the book, which is not exactly a good look (and one still isn't even out yet).
That said, I think the content is clearly written, and is both thought-provoking and refreshing. I recommend it to anyone open to having their worldview challenged or refined, depending on how you see it.
September 22, 2024
This book has probably the best intellectual content of any book I've read. Beyond conveying deep philosophical insights, this book proclaims and supports a model for human progress and one of the few optimistic visions of the future. It really impacted me. All at once, this book has deeply changed how I understand my life philosophy, personal development, theory of change, and people. Recently, someone asked what my life philosophy is, and I said "metamodern." And this book felt real. Some passages deeply resonated with me, especially about the suffering in the world. It wasn't perfect, though; it starts slow, and is a tad lengthy and over-explained at certain points. Despite the simple, clear language and important ideas, I found this book rather hard to get through. It also seems to idolize the Nordic countries a little too much. But overall, for being at its core a political philosophy book, it offers an accessible understanding of some pretty complex, comprehensive ideas. This book won't be my top recommendation, but I will probably be talking about its ideas for years.
Quotes:
- “At the micro sociological level, most humans are doing better then ever. Yet there is so much confusion, suffering, and bitter resentment. How many beautiful privileged people have I not heard whisper to me, late at night, that if it were up to them, they would never have been born; that they are angry with the world; that they were let down; that they live with guilt and self doubt; that their friends and families are hypocrites? These are signs of alienation sufferered by modern humans”
- “metamodern activists relentlessly make naive efforts to do great things, things that are unlikely to occur at each attempt, but almost certain to occur in the long run, somewhere, somehow”
- “the truth is that you don’t have the truth; that you never will”
- Metamodern seeks a universal truth with deep sincere faith (postfaustian) that everyone can insolently agree on (modern) while finding all cracks and excluded voices in that story (postmodern)
Quotes:
- “At the micro sociological level, most humans are doing better then ever. Yet there is so much confusion, suffering, and bitter resentment. How many beautiful privileged people have I not heard whisper to me, late at night, that if it were up to them, they would never have been born; that they are angry with the world; that they were let down; that they live with guilt and self doubt; that their friends and families are hypocrites? These are signs of alienation sufferered by modern humans”
- “metamodern activists relentlessly make naive efforts to do great things, things that are unlikely to occur at each attempt, but almost certain to occur in the long run, somewhere, somehow”
- “the truth is that you don’t have the truth; that you never will”
- Metamodern seeks a universal truth with deep sincere faith (postfaustian) that everyone can insolently agree on (modern) while finding all cracks and excluded voices in that story (postmodern)
September 26, 2024
an optimistic roadmap for our human development in society
I read this a few years ago and it’s well worth revisiting. It gives a comprehensive look at contemporary society, and offers a roadmap for what could be next, if we develop a more empathetic approach to thinking about our fellow humans.
He espouses looking at complexity through an adult development lens as this allows us to relate more to the nuance of human development and worldviews and to seek greater understanding and less judgment. Basically it helps us to better leaders.
Good for enlivening the spirit of optimism.
I read this a few years ago and it’s well worth revisiting. It gives a comprehensive look at contemporary society, and offers a roadmap for what could be next, if we develop a more empathetic approach to thinking about our fellow humans.
He espouses looking at complexity through an adult development lens as this allows us to relate more to the nuance of human development and worldviews and to seek greater understanding and less judgment. Basically it helps us to better leaders.
Good for enlivening the spirit of optimism.
December 24, 2024
My book of 2024! Super inspiring and mind blowing, moved me deeply and helped me develop new perspectives on things, get more on track with my purpose …and it helped me keep faith into a weller and wiser future especially during the recent political developments, globally as in Europe or Germany.
Thank you, Hanzi!
Thank you, Hanzi!
May 18, 2023
I cannot even begin to express how much I love this book, and how much it has helped me to navigate my education, my relationships, and the world with greater compassion and understanding. Thank you Hanzi!
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