Non-things

Byung-Chul Han is the author of more than twenty books including The Burnout Society, Saving Beauty and The Scent of Time.

• PrefaceFrom Things to Non-ThingsFrom Possessing to ExperiencingSmartphoneSelfiesArtifical IntelligenceViews of ThingsThe Villainy of ThingsThe Reverse of ThingsGhostsThe Magic of ThingsThe Forgetfulness of Things in ArtHeidegger’s HandThings Close to the HeartStillnessExcursus on the JukeboxNotes

“Byung-Chul Han […] has sounded the alarm about the next and even more sinister stage of societal evolution, wherein the terrestrial order itself gives way to the rising digital order.”Matthew Olemesky, The American Spectator“Han’s great achievement in this book is to describe something that anyone who spends their time working from home on a computer, consuming media on streaming platforms, finding dates on Tinder or keeping in touch with friends on Facebook or Instagram will already be at least dimly aware of, though far from necessarily sure how to conceptualise: the deep alienation, the restless dissatisfaction and confusion that one experiences with the world as it is mediated through a screen.”Literary Review“fascinating... Han manages... to carve out words in such a way that they appear to have the kind of physical quality that almost allows them to become objects in themselves.”Art Review“an aesthetic call to 're-romanticize' and 're-materialize' our relationship to the world.”Shanghai Literary Review“Reading Non-things reminds us of the dangers of severing ties to things since they give our lives meaning. The book points the way forward by suggesting that we must return to positive physical participation on Earth, surrounding ourselves and interacting with things while respecting their separateness. To go through life tethered to things, grounded by the history and memory they establish, is to walk with the Earth, rather than trampling over it or seeking to transcend it altogether.”Ecological Citizen“a compact, power punch of a book”Mandy Brown, A Working Library