The closest thing to this vague description I can think of is The Sunset Limited[0]. Though that doesn't deal with not being able to contribute, or maybe it doe

The closest thing to this vague description I can think of is The Sunset Limited[0]. Though that doesn't deal with not being able to contribute, or maybe it does in the sense that it's seen but unchanging. Another thought is that of Mozart's contemporary Salieri who could recognize greatness, but not produce it (according to the movie anyway). Bleak views. A pragmatic measure could be to reduce suffering experienced in total, even if not one's own. [0] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1510938/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1510938/