Overthink12 Apr 2022

Gossip

Why do humans in every known culture love juicy gossip? Some theorists say gossip evolved as the modern version of picking fleas off our friends, reassuring those around us of our shared social bonds. Others argue that it reinforces social norms by outlining what behaviors are bad, or even scandalous. In episode 49, Ellie and David gossip about gossip — when is it wrong to gossip, and when might it be the ethical choice? Many scholars throughout history have condemned gossip as idle chitchat that slanders others, but some feminist and decolonial thinkers have reclaimed its utility for fighting against systems of oppression that exclude them from formal modes of communication. Episode 49 spills the tea on gossip.

Works Discussed

Sipping with Socrates, “Socrates’ view of gossip”
Immanuel Kant, Anthropology
Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica
Soren Kierkegaard, The Present Age: On the Death of Rebellion
The Bible, 1 Timothy 5:13
Megan L. Robbins and Alexander Karan, “Who Gossips and How in Everyday Life?”
Robin Dunbar, Grooming, Gossip, and the Evolution of Language
Giambattista Vico, The New Science
Baumeister, Roy F., Liqing Zhang, and Kathleen D. Vohs, “Gossip as Cultural Learning”
Survivor
Ranajit Guha, Elementary Aspects of Peasant Insurgency in Colonial India
Sissela Bok, Secrets: On the Ethics of Concealment and Revelation

Support the show

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(176)

Attention

Are you paying attention when you scroll online? In episode 176 of Overthink, Ellie and David draw your attention to attention. They explain why attention is so hard to define and debate the extent to...

2 Jun 57min

Coolness

Play it cool and play this episode. In episode 175 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about what it means to be cool. From swag gap relationships to Mark Zuckerberg and the manosphere’s failed attempt...

26 Mai 54min

Climate Action with Kyle Whyte

What resources do Indigenous studies provide for addressing the crisis of human-made climate change? And how is the climate crisis linked to settler colonialism? In episode 174 of Overthink, Ellie and...

19 Mai 55min

Theft

Thou shalt not miss this episode! In episode 173 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about theft. They discuss our moral intuitions around theft, how feudalism and capitalism may be founded upon an ori...

12 Mai 55min

Closer Look: Fanon, Wretched of the Earth

Does decolonization require violence? In episode 172 of Overthink, Ellie and David take a closer look at Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth, “the bible of decolonization.” They discuss Fanon’s b...

5 Mai 59min

Butts

Bottom, rump, booty, fanny, tush, and derriere! In episode 171 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about butts. Why do humans have bigger rear ends than other animals? Why are butts often seen as a sit...

28 Apr 52min

Care with Premilla Nadasen

The discourse around today's crisis of care responds to the shredding of America's social safety net, but leaves out the most vulnerable almost entirely. In episode 170 of Overthink, Ellie and David d...

21 Apr 49min

Discipline

With the rise of hustle culture, the grind, and capitalist productivity, we often associate discipline with toxicity. But is there still value in disciplining oneself? In episode 169 of Overthink, Ell...

14 Apr 58min