Lying flatism is a trending philosophy that has emerged in China and is practiced by young adults who choose to live a minimalist lifestyle and reject the pressures of society. Lying flatists refuse to participate in consumerist lifestyles, such as pursuing high-paying jobs, purchasing material possessions, getting married, or having children. They believe that personal efforts are no longer effective in improving their lives due to structural and societal factors.
I love this. So many countries are troubled by population decline yet aren’t doing much to make the future hopeful for people. I read somewhere that in the USA gen Z is more YOLO because they see no point in trying to work towards owning a home, raising children, etc. under the current conditions.
Yep, no point in racing towards life “milestones” that are no longer affordable or attainable for most people. Besides, the idea that these “milestones” are required for happiness is just an arbitrary societal pressure, and I think we all probably know someone who’s raced to check off all the boxes of these “milestones” but is unhappy, maybe because they rushed to marry someone they can’t even really comfortably talk to about serious things in a healthy constructive way, or maybe because they rushed to have kids without seriously thinking about what that commitment meant, or maybe because being a homeowner sucks up every ounce of savings they have so they have no flexibility to save, to travel, to do anything else
I had heard of lying flatism vaugely and I think a lot of people I know live this way, if they don’t specifically label it. I’m partnered up, but it’s more that it’s cheaper for us all to live together and we get along than some drive to pair up in the normal sense. It’s living in a ‘city is expensive and we like each other enough to share a small space’.
They believe that personal efforts are no longer effective in improving their lives due to structural and societal factors.
I mean, yeah. Yeah I can feel that. 😩
I love this, thanks for sharing. Sometimes I do think friendship might be a better investment of time and effort. It doesn’t seem like romantic relationships tend to last. Plus, with romantic relationships, the big drawback is having a second family (in-laws), and they’re often not very welcoming anyway. Gabor Mate talks a lot about how our system is really not supportive of mothers or of having kids in general. As a woman I often thought if I had children it looked like I might end up being a single mother because it seemed as though men either leave the relationship or they make very bad fathers… not a lot of good options. It seems easier to give it up altogether and just worry about yourself, which is enough, honestly. Just keeping up with chores, taking care of yourself and a career is already a lot. 😮💨 There’s barely any time and energy left to maintain any relationship.
I’ve had my heart broken three times in my adult life. Each time it took years of therapy and emotional work to get back to a point where I didn’t feel the ache and the loss.
You couldn’t pay me to get into another relationship, not when it’s taken so much work to find peace and contentment on my own.
