Discipline operates through prohibition while achievement society operates through the positive modality of Can.
Evidence
Disciplinary society is a society of negativity. It is defined by the negativity of prohibition. The negative modal verb that governs it is May Not. By the same token, the negativity of compulsion adheres to Should. Achievement society, more and more, is in the process of discarding negativity. Increasing deregulation is abolishing it. Unlimited Can is the positive modal verb of achievement society. Its plural form—the affirmation, “Yes, we can”—epitomizes achievement society’s positive orientation. Prohibitions, commandments, and the law are replaced by projects, initiatives, and motivation. Disciplinary society is still governed by no. Its negativity produces madmen and criminals. In contrast, achievement society creates depressives and losers. — Byung-Chul Han, The Burnout Society, 27
Categorization
- XREF: The May-Not vs. Should vs. Can modal-verb schema is the precise mechanism the reader needs to test against a personal week.
- DEFINE: Defines both regimes by their governing modal verbs, the load-bearing distinction of the chapter.