Perceiving the Scent of Time: A Path to a Genuine Experience of Life in the Work of Byung-Chul Han

Abstract

This article reflects on the contemporary temporal crisis, characterized by acceleration and dispersion, based on the work of Byung-Chul Han. It argues that modern society experiences a "de-temporalization" that atomizes identity and strips life of its existential meaning. The author proposes recovering the "scent of time" through vita contemplativa and the ability to linger, allowing experiences to concatenate with meaning and memory instead of being reduced to peaks of mere current events. In conclusion, perceiving this scent is not an escape from the present, but a necessary return to a genuine experience and the freedom granted by contemplation in the face of the animal laborans automated routine.