Hikikomori, Japan's social recluses

nationalgeographic.com

19 points·rhezab··4 comments

It's easy to be critical of these people, much as it is easy to poke fun at "spoiled Millennials" in the West.

Though I can appreciate their perspective. If society around you is a frantic rat race, and you're not allowed to live for yourself, and it doesn't seem to make a difference what you do, then why bother?

I don't quite feel the same, but I admit much of modern life is so discouraging as to be a farce of a civilization.

Social isolation seems to be a big part of it. Friendships, jobs, and even family ties feel fleeting and superficial. Why work on building a life when everything shifts so much that your environment, activities, and social contacts completely change every couple of years?

I agree. Some parts of modern life seem to strip sense of agency and sense of control away from us, which is in itself super depressing. Reminds me of this Paul Graham post (http://www.paulgraham.com/todo.html) where he distills the top regrets of the dying into a single piece of advice: don't be a cog.

there are lonely and alone people everywhere; the japanese have just given them a name, which seems far too broadly applied (goes out at night to get food but stays inside during the day vs been inside for ten years and refuses to speak).

I guess if you name a thing it becomes a thing.

The Shut-ins.

I think the definition is accurate enough: people who recluse inside their rooms or houses for extended periods of time and don't have any real life social relationships.

So not just 'lonely'.

Also to get food at night in Japan doesn't necessarily mean that you have to interact with people: I've heard you can buy pretty much anything from the vending machines.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com