attention-economy-resistance

The chapter frames doing nothing—refusing productivity and commodified attention—as a subversive act that challenges capitalist logic.

2 chapters across 1 book

How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy (2019)Jenny Odell

Chapter 4 comes mainly from my experience as an artist and art educator long interested in how art can teach us new scales and tones of attention. I look both to art history and to vision studies to think about the relationship between attention and volition—how we might not only disentangle ourselves from the attention economy but learn to wield attention in a more intentional way. This chapter is also based on my personal experience learning about my bioregion for the first time, a new pattern of attention applied to the place I’ve lived in my entire life.

Chapter 4 explores how art and vision studies inform new modes of attention that resist the attention economy by fostering intentionality and volition. Odell reflects on her personal experience engaging deeply with her bioregion, illustrating how sustained attention cultivates awareness of ecological and cultural interdependencies, which in turn seeds responsibility and activism. The chapter argues for reclaiming attention as a revolutionary act that can restore meaningful connections beyond capitalist productivity and digital commodification.

Chapter 6

Chapter 6 of Jenny Odell's 'How to Do Nothing' primarily consists of extensive citations and references that underpin the book's arguments about resisting the attention economy through engagement with nature, community, and alternative media. The chapter connects historical, ecological, and technological perspectives, highlighting the interplay between human behavior, social media dynamics, and environmental consciousness. It emphasizes the importance of place-based knowledge, collective memory, and critical perspectives on digital platforms as tools for emancipation and resistance.