Attention enables individuals to become themselves, not merely survive

Evidence

Like sport, like music, attentional effort is first of all worthwhile for its individuation effects. The most important thing that it produces is not simply the possibility of pursuing the individuation of our being (helping us to avoid external threats of destruction), but, above all, the concrete realization of this individuation. To take up the vocabulary that Bernard Stiegler borrows from the Heideggerian tradition, attention does not only allow us to secure our ‘subsistence’ by avoiding death, and our ‘existence’ by bringing about the emergence of a unique and unprecedented life form through us; but, above all, it enables us to acquire a greater ‘consistence’ within the relationships that are woven in us. Far from helping us only to continue in being, it enables us to become ourselves. — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 486

Categorization

• XREF: Introduces Stiegler’s subsistence/existence/consistence triad — a key Frankfurt-to-digital media bridge concept. — connects to: Attention can be deliberately wielded, not just reclaimed; Individual identity is strengthened by representation in others’ attention — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 493; Exploiting attention is experienced as exploitation of the person themselves — Tim Wu, The Attention Merchants, 73 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Attention is an activity that forms persons, not a resource that platforms act upon #corroborates (0.85) — Annual Review of Anthropology contributors (⚠ verify author line), The Political Economy of Attention, 68
• Attention can be deliberately wielded, not just reclaimed #expands (0.82)
• Attention is the substrate of care for self, community, and planet. #expands (0.80) — The Friends of Attention, Attensity!, 93
• Individual identity is strengthened by representation in others’ attention #corroborates (0.78) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 493
• Exploiting attention is experienced as exploitation of the person themselves #qualifies (0.72) — Tim Wu, The Attention Merchants, 73