“Today the primary issue is not the competition of people among one another and the antagonisms that result from the spirit of competition. Quite the contrary: People today form a team, a well-oiled group that works smoothly together, since this is the only way that large enterprises can function. Modern industry and economics have effectively developed to the point that, as a requisite for operation, they need people who […] possess as little individuality as possible, and who are ready to obey an anonymous authority while suffering from the illusion of being free and subject to no authority.” (p. 22)
Fromm’s observation anticipates Byung-Chul Han’s critique of the “achievement society,” where individuals no longer confront external authority but internalize it as self-optimization. We mistake this self-exploitation for freedom. Fromm’s “illusion of being free” is consistent with Han’s claim that neoliberal subjects believe themselves autonomous while conforming to invisible demands of productivity.
The “well-oiled group” (i.e., an efficient business organization) evokes Han’s notion of smoothness—in Saving Beauty—a social condition stripped of conflict, negativity, and friction, in which individuality dissolves in seamless, smooth cooperation. Fromm’s emphasis on obedience to “anonymous authority” aligns with Han’s concern about the disappearance of distance and respect, as hierarchy gives way to horizontal control masked as voluntary effort. Both thinkers warn against a society that erodes singularity in favour of efficiency and masking domination under the guise of freedom and harmony.