Attention extraction thrives on gratifications we must relearn to want against

Evidence

Because let’s be honest. There is an immediate, if slightly queasy, gratification that comes from submitting to the call of our devices. (The Attention Activist and former Google ad-strategist James Williams likes to cite the philosopher Harry Frankfurt: The central challenge of our moment is “to want what you want to want” in the face of the onslaught.) In sanctuaries, we replace these passing gratifications with deeper rewards of presence and connection, to fortify our desire for another world when we must cross again through the frackfields. — The Friends of Attention, Attensity!, 346

Categorization

• XREF: The Frankfurt citation (‘want what you want to want’) connects to the reader’s prior interests in freedom and autonomy — a second-order volition framing of attention as will. — connects to: Deep learning requires appreciating difficulty rather than chasing good feelings in the classroom. — bell hooks, Teaching to Transgress: Education as…, 300
• DEFINE: Defines the motivational core of the sanctuary’s function — fortifying desire against the frackfields.