Really True Fiction
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 in life and how thought crime makes us lose those things, how Winston is attracted to all the little things that will get him in trouble with the Party, post truth and how word manipulation unmoors us from ourselves, how Totalitarianism gets right to the deepest part of being human, class structure, joining in on a mass feeling, and how the mind must be destroyed and re-made for true tyranny to...
info_outline Ep. 87 - Taming The Darkness Within - (Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows)Really True Fiction
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 about: Students becoming more excellent than their teachers, changing your opinion of someone because they can change, believing in the cause, accepting help from others, leaving your safe havens for the bigger world, not hurting those who don't deserve it, being an inspiring figure, how emotions can blind you to other things that are going on, Voldemort's downfall being Harry's strengths, how tyranny...
info_outline Ep. 86 - That's Totally My Book - (Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince)Really True Fiction
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 as: Relationships as status vs feeling, the monster in the chest, Ginny's subtle art of not giving a fuck, being blinded by bias, humanized villains, evil downstream of fear, what happens when you refuse a tyrant, Malfoy starting in pride, standing up to optics and propaganda, scapegoating, solving problems as the actual best form of PR, navigating popularity, navigating management, Dumbledore's...
info_outline Ep. 85 - Kafka's Wet Dream - (Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix)Really True Fiction
Jump on the Hogwart's Express! We are going to back school! I'm very pleased to be joined by Dan Holder (who joined me on the Master and Commander episode) and Lydia Rollinson to talk about the fifth Harry Potter book. It was a total blast to have two Brits on to talk about a very British, as well as very archetypal, story. Talking about Order of the Phoenix we discuss the clash between Harry Potter and Evangelical Christianity in the 90s, avoiding hard problems, anxiety in regards to bureaucracies, Harry's blindspots, what it would be like to see your memories like a movie, adopting...
info_outline Ep. 84 - Spiral Of Uncertainty - (The Orphan Master's Son)Really True Fiction
For this episode of Really True Fiction I am pleased to have Stuart Kaija and Graham King on as guests to discuss the 2013 novel The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson (winner of the Pulitzer prize). I had never heard of this book before it being introduced to me for this episode and I thorougly enjoyed it. It is, broadly speaking, about the experiences of a young North Korean man through his rise, and fall, and rise again, and fall again in the North Korean's state apparatus. In this episode we discuss how the subconcious does the dirty work, how propaganda is never about the content...
info_outline Ep. 83 - Two Weevils - (Master & Commander)Really True Fiction
Welcome back! In the first new episode in over a year, I was very happy and enlightened with sit down and chat with my friend Dan Holder. When I asked Dan what story he would be most interested in talking about for RTF he quickly replied Master and Commander. As I learned, Master and Commander is a 20+ book series on the adventures of Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin. As such, we condensed the series down to watching the 2003 film Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World; starring Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany. I absolutely loved this film and can't believe I didn't see it...
info_outline Ep. 82 - What Did I Do? - (The Trial)Really True Fiction
In this episode we are discussing Franz Kafka's The Trial; written in 1914 but not published until 1925. This is an incredible and seminal work in modern literature and should be read by everyone. In this episode we talk about: - The style of a story that puts the audience in touch with the feelings of a character - If you don't know what you have done wrong than everything comes to mind and it is paralyzing and demoralizing - Bureaucracy as modern tyranny - The importance of trust in society - The bullet or the knife are never relative - Jostling and career maneuvering as the primary reason...
info_outline Ep. 81 - Hats Off To Conformity - (This Side Of Paradise)Really True Fiction
Welcome to our second foray into the world of F. Scott Fitzgerald. In this episode we discuss his first novel This Side Of Paradise. We talk about: - How it might feel to have peers die on mass, Eros and Thanatos, egoism vs. narrcacism, the resentment of educated people towards those who make more money than them, hedgehogs vs foxes, butthurtedness, definite optimism and pragmatism, speed and velocity, conformity, personality vs personage, the flywheel life, and cynicism. Thank you for listening to Really True Fiction, please tell your friends if you think they would be interested...
info_outline Ep. 80 - Bull In A Hedge Maze - (The Shining)Really True Fiction
For this eigthieth episode of RTF I am pleased to be joined by Alex Cormier to talk about the Kubrick film The Shining. Alex and I co-host a radio show called Full Spectrum Cinema, and you can find the link for that posted below. In this episode we discuss: - Stephen Kings horror is better shown in his human monsters vs his supernatural ones - The different ways Wendy and Jack fail as parents, and how Danny is scared to misbehave - Jack's substance abuse, "how did it get to this Jack?" - How the ugly can destroy the creative - Not facing hard things, undermining Jack's masculinity, Danny...
info_outline RTF UpdateReally True Fiction
A update minisode for RTF. This is all about why there haven't been as many new episodes and what the future will be. Part of the reason are the new creative projects David and I have embarked on. Please see links for those projects. The Canadian Story The Liberal Soul Nothing To Fear Full Spectrum Cinema
info_outlineHere is the conclusion of my four part series on the book The Open Society And Its Enemies by Karl Popper. This episode finishes up Popper's observations on Marx as well as his general overview on how we should best think about history. In this episode I discuss Popper's thoughts on:
- How upon success revolutionary leaders become the new ruling class - and how there are many different classes; not just two.
- How modern democracies are not what Marx knew as capitalism - political intervention as a less sexy but also less violent reform instead of revolution
- The impoverished conception of Marx's practical program
- Violence ended the exact moment it is not needed is the point of revolution
- The Left Wings ambivalence and ambiguity toward violence is something to be suspicious of - equality or table turning?
- The working class are realists and Marx had a lack of imagination in regards to Capitalism - the world today doesn't mean the world forever
- We can use our thoughts to change our environment - the ethos of The Liberal Soul is about reflection and being able to change your mind
- Honesty is making sure other people know what you mean by your words - traditions need to be analyzed before celebrated
- Rationalism vs Irrationalism
- Equality before the law - not a fact but a political demand based on a moral decision
- One can only learn if you take others seriously
Thank you once again for listening to The Liberal Soul. If you enjoy the podcast please subscribe and leave a rating or review.