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isinkpen 's review for:
Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope
by Mark Manson
challenging
funny
informative
medium-paced
I was very disappointed by this book. The blurb makes it sound like it's going to be an analysis of current social and political situations with an eye on psychology, but it's really not. There was some useful formulations about the "thinking" versus "feeling" brain that I've found helpful, hence the 2 stars. But apart from that, the message of the book essentially felt like "the world is in much better state and we're all much better off than ever before in history so really we all need to stop complaining and be grateful for what we have".
While I understand and agree with the psychological benefits of gratitude, and I also agree that in *some* factors our lives are much better than they would have been 100 years ago, this felt ignorant and cold-hearted when the world is facing devastating environmental destruction, a rise in authoritarianism, and increasing wealth inequality. While I understand I should resist depression and apathy, I do think that I have the right to say everything is f*cked and that I'm sad or angry about that. Manson is clearly coming from a very privileged position, assumes the reader is too, and aggressively tries to make you feel guilty about ever worrying or feeling bad about the current state of the world.
And don't get me started on the undercurrent of "you're depressed because you're letting yourself be". Like yes, to some extent your health is under your control and you can make choices that are better for you. BUT chronic illness, neurodivergence, poverty and all sorts of other things can put a hard limit on the degree your health and happiness is under your control! How can a psychologist not be sensitive to that?
Finally, the ending rant/speculative fiction(??) about AI was bizarre, and I still don't know if it was sarcastic or not.
I also became very mistrustful of his interpretations and references to research/philosophy when he used a book/author/subject I am very familiar with and COMPLETELY misrepresented it.
I started this book surprised and interested at the refreshing angle he was taking to contemporary problems. I finished it furious I'd wasted 2 weeks reading it.
While I understand and agree with the psychological benefits of gratitude, and I also agree that in *some* factors our lives are much better than they would have been 100 years ago, this felt ignorant and cold-hearted when the world is facing devastating environmental destruction, a rise in authoritarianism, and increasing wealth inequality. While I understand I should resist depression and apathy, I do think that I have the right to say everything is f*cked and that I'm sad or angry about that. Manson is clearly coming from a very privileged position, assumes the reader is too, and aggressively tries to make you feel guilty about ever worrying or feeling bad about the current state of the world.
And don't get me started on the undercurrent of "you're depressed because you're letting yourself be". Like yes, to some extent your health is under your control and you can make choices that are better for you. BUT chronic illness, neurodivergence, poverty and all sorts of other things can put a hard limit on the degree your health and happiness is under your control! How can a psychologist not be sensitive to that?
Finally, the ending rant/speculative fiction(??) about AI was bizarre, and I still don't know if it was sarcastic or not.
I also became very mistrustful of his interpretations and references to research/philosophy when he used a book/author/subject I am very familiar with and COMPLETELY misrepresented it.
I started this book surprised and interested at the refreshing angle he was taking to contemporary problems. I finished it furious I'd wasted 2 weeks reading it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism