This month's Frame: Byung–Chul Han on how meaning makes time less fleeting

A framework to understand what makes time spent on digital platforms meaningful.

Across the globe people are spending more and more time on digital platforms. Having soared during the Covid-19 pandemic, time spent online now lies at a global average of 6 hours 37 minutes per day. 

At the same time, a growing number of people feel that the constant connection to digital platforms leads to an ever increasing pace of change they have little agency in directing. A common view is that the persistent frenzy of news, information and notifications received through digital connections drives an acceleration of life and less meaningful time spent offline. 

But is it really the case that more digital connection leads to less meaningful time spent? Or can we think of digital technology as a tool to create meaningful temporalities?

The framework

South Korean-German philosopher Byung-Chul Han has developed a useful approach to think about different ways of spending and thinking about time online. Han outlines 3 distinct understandings of time: mythical time, historical time and atomised time.

Mythical time

For Han, mythical time is a time that is full of meaning that transcends the present moment. What makes mythical time meaningful is repetition, stories, narratives and values that go beyond the present and repeat in a circular mode. An example here are social rituals and traditions that individuals and their communities develop in their lifetimes. Consider a group of university friends who continue to meet up monthly years after they left university. The key here is reliving again and again a moment of community experienced in the past.

Historical time

In contrast, historical time emphasises individual agency in the present that is related to a moment in the past and leads towards a goal in the future. Present events are linked on a continuous line, creating meaning based on change and progress. This leads to a linear, forward-oriented understanding of time. For instance, studying for an exam to complete a degree course one strived to be accepted on in the past, and where completing this degree will enable one to practice a favoured profession in the future.

Atomised time

Han argues that the widespread feeling of acceleration is not due to a factual acceleration of time. Rather, it stems from a sensation of time losing meaning and direction. Mythical and historical time are increasingly pushed aside by digital information and activities that are disconnected from any larger meaning and a clear historical trajectory. Atomised time is based on a presentism that is driven by instant online gratification and permanent distraction. The phrase doom-scrolling—aimless browsing of disconnected pieces of information—captures this sense of time, one that people often describe as a waste of time. 

Using the framework

Han's analysis may be driven by a pessimistic view of digital culture. Yet, the 3 different temporalities he describes provide a useful framework to assess what kind of time users spend on digital platforms and whether this time is experienced as meaningful, or not. 

Creating digital myths

Mythical forms of time do exist online. Take the example of friends who regularly come together online to revisit games they used to play when they were younger. Playing the game becomes a ritual that is strongly linked to a transcendent feeling of community; immersing themselves in a sense of familiarity, returning again and again to old levels, worlds, and character skins. In this context, technology serves as a bridge between the past and the present, enabling the preservation of meaningful experiences beyond the present.

Building aspirational futures 

Time spent online can also be historical. Users do spend their time online on activities that are embedded in a clear past-present-future trajectory. Consider teens who create Discord bots, design and selling NFTs, or design houses on Roblox for fun, but who also feel that this might help them in a future career in coding, digital business or architecture.This shows that digital platforms can serve as a tool to spend time in creative ways alone and with friends, enabling individuals to build their future selves in the present.

These examples highlight the ways in which technology can be a conduit for meaningful temporalities. Yet, meaningful experiences are often created by user workarounds. Rarely are they enabled through features specifically designed for mythical and historical temporal experiences. Digital platforms are, for the most part, focusing on providing the fleeting experiences of atomistic time—something that leads many users to struggle with information fatigue. 

In response digital platforms have started to help users regulate and have more agency in shaping their experiences. Features such as Apple screen time or Android Digital Wellbeing help users to set limits on social media use or adjust notifications to their individual needs. 

However, Han shows that simply focusing on addressing atomistic time will not be enough to help people find more meaning in their time spent online. Instead, platforms should intentionally design for mythical and historical temporal experiences. Here are some suggestions:

• Fostering digital rituals and recurring connections: digital platforms could foster deep and meaningful connections by giving users the tools to build recurring rituals.

• Historical contextualization of information: platforms could implement features that embed isolated pieces of information in a larger story related to past and future events for example by providing historical backgrounds or upcoming related events.

• Providing spaces and tools for personal growth: online platforms could help users to build and track personal growth—from learning new skills they need to looking back at where they started and how they’ve grown over time.

There are many other ways features could be designed to enable more historical and mythical temporal experiences. Critically, we argue here that time spent online is not inherently meaningless vs. meaningful time spent in real life. Rather, meaningful temporal experiences do happen online. Digital product teams should design more intentionally for these experiences to help people find and build greater meaning in their online existences.

Frames is a monthly newsletter that sheds light on the most important issues concerning business and technology.

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