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
Coleman Hughes on Colorblindness, Jazz, and Identity
Peter Thiel on Political Theology
Jonathan Haidt on Adjusting to Smartphones and Social Media
Fareed Zakaria on the Age of Revolutions, the Power of Ideas, and the Rewards of Intellectual Curiosity
Marilynne Robinson on Biblical Interpretation, Calvinist Thought, and Religion in America
Marc Andreessen on AI and Dynamism
Marc Rowan on Financial Market Evolution and University Governance
Masaaki Suzuki on Interpreting Bach
Ami Vitale on Photojournalism and Wildlife Conservation
Rebecca F. Kuang on National Literatures, Book Publishing, and History in Fiction
Patrick McKenzie on Navigating Complex Systems
Conversations with Tyler 2023 Retrospective
Fuchsia Dunlop on the Story of Chinese Food
John Gray on Pessimism, Liberalism, and Theism
Jennifer Burns on Milton Friedman and Ayn Rand
Brian Koppelman on TV, Movies, and Appreciating Art
Githae Githinji on Life in Kenya
Harriet Karimi Muriithi on Life in Kenya
Stephen Jennings on Building New Cities
Jacob Mikanowski on Eastern Europe
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall
The No-Frills Teacher Podcast
Heal, Survive & Thrive!
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
The Mel Robbins Podcast