Jerusalem Demsas on The Dispossessed, Gulliver's Travels, and Of Boys and Men

Jerusalem Demsas on The Dispossessed, Gulliver's Travels, and Of Boys and Men

In this special episode, Tyler sat down with Jerusalem Demsas, staff writer at The Atlantic, to discuss three books: The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin, Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, and Of Boys and Men by Richard V. Reeves.

Spanning centuries and genres and yet provoking similar questions, these books prompted Tyler and Jerusalem to wrestle with enduring questions about human nature, gender dynamics, the purpose of travel, and moral progress, including debating whether Le Guin prefers the anarchist utopia she depicts, dissecting Swift's stance on science and slavery, questioning if travel makes us happier or helps us understand ourselves, comparing Gulliver and Shevek's alienation and restlessness, considering Swift's views on the difficulty of moral progress, reflecting on how feminism links to moral progress and gender equality, contemplating whether imaginative fiction or policy analysis is more likely to spur social change, and more.

Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video.

Recorded May 22nd, 2023.

Other ways to connect

Episoder(284)

Jonathan Haidt on Adjusting to Smartphones and Social Media

Jonathan Haidt on Adjusting to Smartphones and Social Media

In The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt explores the simultaneous rise in teen mental illness across various countries, attributing it to a seismic shift from a "play-based childhood" to a "phone-ba...

3 Apr 202459min

Fareed Zakaria on the Age of Revolutions, the Power of Ideas, and the Rewards of Intellectual Curiosity

Fareed Zakaria on the Age of Revolutions, the Power of Ideas, and the Rewards of Intellectual Curiosity

Those who know Fareed Zakaria through his weekly column or CNN show may be surprised to learn he considers books the important way he can put new ideas in the world. But Fareed's original aspiration w...

27 Mar 20241h 7min

Marilynne Robinson on Biblical Interpretation, Calvinist Thought, and Religion in America

Marilynne Robinson on Biblical Interpretation, Calvinist Thought, and Religion in America

Marilynne Robinson is one of America's best and best-known novelists and essayists, whose award-winning works like Housekeeping and Gilead explore themes of faith, grace, and the intricacies of human ...

20 Mar 202449min

Marc Andreessen on AI and Dynamism

Marc Andreessen on AI and Dynamism

In this interview, recorded at a16z's 2024 American Dynamism Summit, Tyler and Marc Andreessen engage in a rapid-fire dialogue about the future of AI, including the biggest change we'll see in the nex...

13 Mar 202427min

Marc Rowan on Financial Market Evolution and University Governance

Marc Rowan on Financial Market Evolution and University Governance

Marc Rowan, co-founder and CEO of Apollo Global Management, joined Tyler to discuss why rising interest rates won't hurt Apollo's profitability, why liabilities have traditionally been the weak spot i...

6 Mar 202456min

Masaaki Suzuki on Interpreting Bach

Masaaki Suzuki on Interpreting Bach

A conductor, harpsichordist, and organist, Masaaki Suzuki stands as a towering figure in Baroque music, renowned for his comprehensive and top-tier recordings of Bach's works, including all of Bach's ...

21 Feb 202456min

Ami Vitale on Photojournalism and Wildlife Conservation

Ami Vitale on Photojournalism and Wildlife Conservation

Ami Vitale is a renowned National Geographic photographer and documentarian with a deep commitment to wildlife conservation and environmental education. Her work, spanning over a hundred countries, in...

7 Feb 202454min

Rebecca F. Kuang on National Literatures, Book Publishing, and History in Fiction

Rebecca F. Kuang on National Literatures, Book Publishing, and History in Fiction

Rebecca F. Kuang just might change the way you think about fantasy and science fiction. Known for her best-selling books Babel and The Poppy War trilogy, Kuang combines a unique blend of historical ri...

24 Jan 20241h 3min

Populært innen Fakta

mikkels-paskenotter
fastlegen
dine-penger-pengeradet
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
foreldreradet
treningspodden
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
jakt-og-fiskepodden
takk-og-lov-med-anine-kierulf
sinnsyn
hverdagspsyken
rss-bisarr-historie
rss-kunsten-a-leve
gravid-uke-for-uke
tomprat-med-gunnar-tjomlid
rss-kull
rss-sunn-okonomi
fryktlos
rss-var-forste-kaffe
lederskap-nhhs-podkast-om-ledelse