Really True Fiction23 Kesä 2021

Ep.7 - Individualism Vs. Egoism

In this episode of The Liberal Soul I take a little detour down a Karl Popper path and discuss a section from his book The Open Society And Its Enemies. There is an incredible section of that book where Popper dissects the difference between individualism and egoism; and how Plato conflated them for his own propaganda. By equating individualism with egoism, Plato made it easy to dismiss as uncaring, selfish, and without interest in altruism. Popper points out a simple logic in error from Plato that leads to this (intentional?) misunderstanding.

Popper points out that individualism in the philosophic sense is contrasted against collectivism, not altruism. By stating that individualism is a synonym of egoism, Plato forgoes the responsibility of arguing the merits or demerits of collectivism (which is unsurprising given his totalitarian ambitions discussed in The Republic). In this formulation, Popper argues that a person can be a Individualist Altruist (caring for the wellbeing of individual people). This is the idea I explore in this episode.

In this episode I talk about:

- The example of the individualist - altruist in the figure of Charles Dickens

- The phenomenon of NIMBY (not in my back yard), and the longer, deeper, further and harder work it actually is to help people who are struggling and suffering.

- Pericles sense of justice vs. Plato's.

- Music and the arts as a prime example of the benefit and need for individualism

- How the quirky individual is no good for a collectivist culture or state

- Some quotes from Plato demonstrating his intentional dishonesty

- Some of the totalitarian ideas in Christianity inherited from Plato

- And how individualism isn't just an abstract idea to make it work; it needs to be alive in the hearts of people.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(119)

Bonus - The Liberal Soul

Liberal souls are people who are genuinely curious and interested in the world, they find vanity boring, and they live to see themselves and others flourish existentially in their finite time on the p...

3 Elo 12min

Ep. 91 - The Spirit of Science - (Arrival)

In this episode we dive into the fabulous 2016 film Arrival; directed by Denis Villenueve and based on a short story by Ted Chiang. In this episode we discuss the contextual nature of language, seeing...

9 Marras 20251h 30min

Ep. 90 - Bright Eyed And Bushy Tailed - (Boogie Nights)

Big thanks to Graham King for joining me on episode 90! In this episode we chat about the great film Boogie Nights (1997) by Paul Thomas Anderson. In this episode we wrangle with notions of: The es...

11 Joulu 20241h 30min

Bonus - The Hardest Thing To Predict Is The Future - (1984 vs. Brave New World)

Welcome to a bonus episode of Really True Fiction. Those with a keen eye will have noticed that our last two episodes were on 1984 and Brave New World. So, for a bonus, Dan and I do a bit of a compare...

24 Marras 202452min

Ep. 89 - May The Ford Be With You - (Brave New World)

Welcome to part two of our double bill on famous dystopia! In this episode Dan Holder and I delve into the 1931 novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. While disecting Huxley's vision of a dys(u?)topi...

16 Marras 20241h 20min

Ep. 88 - Hegel's Wet Dream - (1984)

In this episode my friend Dan Holder and I dive into maybe the most referenced/least read book ever: 1984. In this episode we chat about Orwell's favourite pub, paying attention to the little things i...

30 Loka 20241h 15min

Ep. 87 - Taming The Darkness Within - (Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows)

Finally, we made it. I was very grateful to once again be joined by Dan Holder, Lydia Rollinson and Graham King to finish off the Harry Potter books. In this last instalment of the series we talk abou...

17 Huhti 20242h 39min

Ep. 86 - That's Totally My Book - (Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince)

Welcome to the first foursome for Really True Fiction! A big thanks to Dan, Lydia and Graham for joining me to chat about the (best?) sixth Harry Potter book. In our conversation we cover such ground ...

17 Helmi 20242h 28min