In contemporary society, the pervasive influence of capitalism extends beyond the economic realm into the psychological well-being of individuals. Mark Fisher's concept of "capitalist realism" and Gilles Deleuze's idea of "control societies" provide critical frameworks for understanding the intersection of capitalism and mental health. This essay explores how capitalist realism perpetuates a view of mental health that benefits the capitalist system by promoting individualism, depoliticizing mental illness, and creating a lucrative market for pharmaceutical companies. It also examines how this system reinforces neoliberalism by focusing on individual adjustment rather than social change.
Capitalist Realism: The Ubiquity of Capitalism
Capitalist realism refers to the pervasive belief that capitalism is the only viable economic and social system. This belief shapes our behavior, work, thoughts, and worldview, making it difficult to imagine alternatives. Within this framework, people become extreme victims of liberal ideology, unable to think outside of its confines. This environment fosters a belief that mental health issues are purely individual problems, stemming from chemical imbalances in the brain that can be fixed with medication.
The Depoliticization of Mental Health
The current ruling ontology denies any possibility of social causation of mental illness. Fisher argues that the chemico-biologization of mental illness is strictly commensurate with its depoliticization. By viewing mental health as an individual chemico-biological problem, capitalism reinforces its drive towards atomistic individualization, suggesting that individuals are sick because of their brain chemistry. This perspective benefits capitalism in two significant ways: it promotes individualism and anti-collectivism, and it creates a lucrative market for pharmaceutical companies.
Social Causes of Mental Illness
This view of mental illness overlooks the real socio-economic causes, such as social alienation and poor material conditions. Fisher emphasizes that while all mental illnesses are neurologically instantiated, their causation requires a social and political explanation. For instance, even if depression is associated with low serotonin levels, the question remains why particular individuals have low serotonin levels. A social and political examination reveals that factors like economic hardship, job insecurity, and social isolation play a crucial role in mental health.
Neoliberalism and the Privatization of Mental Health
In the late 20th century, a new objective model for diagnosing mental illness emerged, consisting of a checklist of symptoms deemed "not normal." Simultaneously, pharmaceutical companies developed new drugs to treat common conditions like depression and anxiety, aiming to make individuals "normal." This approach contributed to creating a static society where individuals are medicated to fit the "normal" behavior expected by capitalist society.
Control Societies and the Management of Individuals
Deleuze's concept of control societies highlights how modern systems manage and control individuals. The medicalization of mental health, through symptom checklists and pharmaceutical treatments, simplifies complex human emotions, making individuals easier to predict and manage. This transformation aligns individuals more closely with the machine-like creatures desired by capitalists, who benefit from a compliant and efficient workforce.
The Danger of Medicalizing Mental Health
By confusing normal human responses to life with mental disorders, society creates an illusion of a vast epidemic of mental illness. This medicalized illusion shifts the focus from social change to controlling individuals, reinforcing neoliberalism. Instead of addressing the socio-economic conditions that contribute to mental health issues, the system prioritizes individual adjustment through medication. This approach makes society more efficient but less human, as individuals become less capable of experiencing complex emotions and engaging in collective action for social change.
Conclusion
The capitalist realist perspective on mental health, supported by the control society framework, reinforces neoliberalism by promoting individualism, depoliticizing mental illness, and benefiting pharmaceutical companies. This system shifts the focus from addressing socio-economic causes of mental health issues to controlling individuals through medication. To challenge this pervasive ideology, it is crucial to repoliticize mental illness and recognize the social and economic conditions that contribute to mental health problems. Only by addressing these root causes can we create a society that prioritizes collective well-being over individual adjustment and control.
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