Whether you’re an ‘innie’ or an ‘outie’, the television series Severance resonates so deeply because its vision of fragmented identity, emotional suppression and corporate control no longer feels futuristic. It feels uncomfortably familiar.

Bubbling beneath the surface of popular television series lie the cultural dreams, desires and disappointments of our time. In this way, culture is not a relic of the past but something alive in the present, offering glimpses of where we are heading. This is the power of art: it transcends the linear rational mindset often associated with modern western culture and taps into the instinctual realm that Carl Jung called ‘the collective unconscious’. From this vast, subterranean reservoir emerge signs, portents, and warnings, which manifest as imaginings of the future.

With the rise of streaming, modern television series have not only adapted to technological advancements but also delved into existential questions, challenging our collective cultural ideals, autonomy and sense of identity. Although the most recent season of the TV series Severance aired just over a year ago, its depiction of technological alienation and fragmented identity now feels less like speculative fiction than an unsettling portrait of contemporary life.

Created by Dan Erickson, Severance........

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