"WhatifAlthist" | World History, Philosophy, Culture

Understanding Modern Civilization

whatshot 137 snips

Mar 22, 2024

The discussion kicks off with architecture reflecting civilization, contrasting medieval and modern styles. It explores the evolution from religious to humanistic ideologies and critiques the disconnect of modern elites from cultural roots. The rise of managerial states and the illusion of superiority over history are examined, alongside the complexities of social planning. Additionally, the parallels between ancient Gnostic beliefs and modern ideologies shed light on societal decay. Emphasis is placed on reevaluating community roles to combat loneliness in an era marked by burnout and disillusionment.

01:16:57

forum

Ask episode

view_agenda

Chapters

menu_book

Books

auto_awesome

Transcript

info_circle

Episode notes

Intro

00:00 • 4min

chevron_right

The Evolution of Modernity: From Medieval Roots to Postmodernism

03:49 • 5min

chevron_right

Cultural Shifts and Modern Ideologies

08:33 • 26min

chevron_right

The Illusion of Modernity

34:54 • 16min

chevron_right

The Complexity of Social Planning and Human Experience

51:21 • 4min

chevron_right

The Illusion of Control: Understanding Reality and Worldviews

55:32 • 2min

chevron_right

Gnosticism and Modernity: A Critical Intersection

57:24 • 17min

chevron_right

The decline of the West

Oswald Spengler

The Happiness Hypothesis

Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom

Jonathan Haidt

In 'The Happiness Hypothesis,' Jonathan Haidt delves into the nature of happiness, fulfillment, and meaning. He discusses the division of the self into two parts: the primitive limbic system and the rational neocortex, using the metaphor of a rider and an elephant to explain the relationship between conscious and unconscious processes. Haidt examines 'Great Ideas' from ancient thinkers like Plato, Buddha, and Jesus, and evaluates them in light of contemporary psychological research. He argues that happiness is influenced by both internal and external factors, including biological set points, life conditions, and voluntary activities. The book also explores the importance of social relationships, the role of adversity in personal growth, and the concept of 'vital engagement' in work and life.

A conflict of visions

Thomas Sowell

In this book, Thomas Sowell explores the fundamental differences in visions of human nature that underlie many political and ideological disputes. He identifies two primary visions: the 'constrained' vision, which sees human nature as inherently self-centered and limited by systemic processes, and the 'unconstrained' vision, which views human nature as malleable and perfectible through societal intervention. Sowell argues that these visions shape opinions on a wide range of issues, from justice and equality to power and social institutions. The book blends history, economics, philosophy, and law to provide a comprehensive understanding of these conflicting visions and their implications for political thought and action.

American Civil Rights Law

Richard Hanania

The Coddling of the American Mind

Jonathan Haidt

Greg Lukianoff

The book explores how the ideas 'what doesn’t kill you makes you weaker,' 'always trust your feelings,' and 'life is a battle between good people and evil people' have become embedded in American culture. These 'Great Untruths' contradict basic psychological principles and ancient wisdom, leading to a culture of safetyism that interferes with young people’s social, emotional, and intellectual development. The authors investigate various social trends, including fearful parenting, the decline of unsupervised play, and the impact of social media, as well as changes on college campuses and the broader context of political polarization in America.

The Righteous Mind

Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion

Jonathan Haidt

In this book, Jonathan Haidt draws on twenty-five years of research on moral psychology to explain why people's moral judgments are driven by intuition rather than reason. He introduces the Moral Foundations Theory, which posits that human morality is based on six foundations: care/harm, fairness/cheating, loyalty/betrayal, authority/subversion, sanctity/degradation, and liberty/oppression. Haidt argues that liberals tend to focus on the care/harm and fairness/cheating foundations, while conservatives draw on all six. The book also explores how morality binds and blinds people, leading to social cohesion but also to conflicts. Haidt aims to promote understanding and civility by highlighting the commonalities and differences in moral intuitions across political spectra.

The master and his emissary

The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World

Iain McGilchrist

This book argues that the division of the brain into two hemispheres is essential to human existence, allowing for two incompatible versions of the world. The left hemisphere is detail-oriented, prefers mechanisms to living things, and is inclined to self-interest, while the right hemisphere has greater breadth, flexibility, and generosity. McGilchrist takes the reader on a journey through the history of Western culture, illustrating the tension between these two worlds as revealed in the thought and belief of thinkers and artists from ancient to modern times. He argues that the increasing dominance of the left hemisphere in today’s world has potentially disastrous consequences.

A Secular Age

Charles Taylor

In 'A Secular Age', Charles Taylor explores the transformation of Western society from a pre-modern world where belief in God was inescapable to a modern secular age where believing in God is just one option among many. Taylor argues against the 'subtraction story' of secularization, which posits that religion has been removed from society. Instead, he describes a complex historical process involving the Reform movement in Christianity, the rise of disciplinary society, and the emergence of exclusive humanism. The book examines how these changes have affected the conditions of belief and unbelief, and how they have shaped modern social forms, moral orders, and spiritual experiences.

A Secular Age

Charles Taylor

Seeing Like a State

How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed

James C. Scott

In this book, James C. Scott examines the failures of centrally managed social plans and the destructive consequences of high-modernist ideologies. Scott argues that states often impose simplistic visions on complex societies, ignoring local, practical knowledge and leading to disastrous outcomes. He identifies four conditions common to all planning disasters: administrative ordering of nature and society, high-modernist ideology, authoritarian state power, and a prostrate civil society. The book critiques various utopian projects, including collective farms, compulsory villagization, and urban planning, and advocates for a more nuanced approach that respects local diversity and practical knowledge.

Walking through French cities reveals a shocking architectural transformation—medieval centers abruptly give way to identical glass-and-steel modernist structures. This pattern repeats GLOBALLY from California to China. Archaeologists thousands of years from now would reasonably conclude a single empire conquered Earth after the World Wars, imposing its aesthetic everywhere simultaneously. This unacknowledged cultural revolution represents history's most profound civilizational shift that we're forbidden from questioning.

SPONSORS:

NetSuite:

More than 41,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, the #1 cloud financial system bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, HR, into ONE proven platform. Download the CFO's Guide to AI and Machine learning: https://netsuite.com/102

Shopify:

Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, handling 10% of U.S. e-commerce. With hundreds of templates, AI tools for product descriptions, and seamless marketing campaign creation, it's like having a design studio and marketing team in one. Start your $1/month trial today at https://shopify.com/cognitive

Go to https://www.galaxylamps.co/whatif and use code WHATIF to get your Galaxy Projector 2.0 with 15% off!

LINKS:

Link to Pluribus. Cancellation Insurance-https://becomepluribus.com/creators/20

Link to my podcast- / @commonground-qg5oj

Link to my Twitter-https://twitter.com/whatifalthist?ref...

Link to my Instagram-https://www.instagram.com/rudyardwlyn...

Bibliography:

Tragedy and Hope by Carroll Quiggley

The Master and His Emissary by Ian McGhilChrist

Seeing Like a State by James C Scott

A Secular Age by Charles Taylor

The Unabomber's Manifesto by Ted Zazynsky

The Ascent of Humanity by Charles Eisenstein

The Happiness Hypothesis by Jon Haidt

The Righteous Mind by Jon Haidt

The Growth Delusion by David Pilling

The Third World Century by Charles Stewart Goodwin

The Leviathan and its Enemies by Samuel Francis

Regime Change by Patrick Deneen

After Liberalism by Paul Gottfried

The Culture of Narcissim by Lasch

Stolen Focus by Johann Hari

Lost Connections by Johann Hari

Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman

Evil by Baumeister

The True Believer by Eric Hoffer

Behave by Sapolsky

The Decline of the West by Oswald Spengler

Sex and Power in History by Amaury de Riencourt

The Eye of Shiva by Amaury de Riencourt

The Coddling of the American Mind by Jon Haidt

The Culture Map by Erin Meyer

Man and His Symbols by Carl Jung

Dominion by Tom Holland

Sapiens Yuval Noah Harari

War in Human Nature by Azar Gat

The Lonely Crowd by David Riesman

Spiteful Mutants by Edward Dutton

Atrocities by Matthew White

The Dictators by Richard Overy

Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder

The Rise of the West by McNeil

Europe by Norman Davies

The Invention of Yesterday by Tamim Ansary

The History of Manners by Norbert Elias

Ultrasociety by Peter Turchin

Millennium by Ian Mortimer

The Evolution of Civilizations by Carroll Quiggley

The Pursuit of Power by William McNeill

The Knowledge Machine by Michael Strevens

Reason, Faith and the Struggle for the West by Sam Gregg

Maps of Meaning by Jordan Peterson

A Conflict of Visions by Thomas Sowell

Sexual Personae by Camille Paglia

Envy by Helmut Schoeck

Cynical Theories by James Lindsay

Intellectuals and Society by Thomas Sowell

Foragers, Farmers and Fossil Fuels by Ian Morris

Th History of Philosophy by Will Durant

The Philosophy of History by Hegel

Stillness is the Key by Ryan Holliday

Examined Lives by James Miller

Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker

The Rebel All by Joseph Heath

The Lessons of History by Will Durant

Seven Theories of Human Nature by Stevenson

Trump and a Post Truth World by Ken Wilbur

Technics and Civilization by Lewis Mumford

A World after Liberalism by Matthew Rose

Fire in the Minds of Men by Billington

The Secret History of the World by Mark Booth

The Myth of Disenchantment by Strom

Coming to Our Senses by Morris Berman

A History of the Jews by Paul Johnson

Home Top podcasts Popular guests