Chapter 1, "The Crisis of Freedom," introduces the central paradox of Byung-Chul Han's "Psychopolitics": that freedom itself, under neoliberalism, is generating new forms of compulsion and constraint.

We are no longer deemed subjugated subjects but "projects" tasked with endless self-refashioning, leading to self-subjugation and compulsive achievement.

This system is described as a highly efficient way to exploit freedom, where individuals willingly exploit themselves as "absolute slaves" without an external master, transforming class struggle into an inner conflict.

The chapter also highlights how technologies like the internet, initially perceived as liberating, have evolved into a digital panopticon that relies on voluntary self-exposure and transparency to enable total control and psychopolitical steering.