Episode
#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
2:56:51
Published: Thu Aug 20 2020
Description
Sheldon Solomon is a social psychologist, a philosopher, co-developer of Terror Management Theory, co-author of The Worm at the Core. Please support this channel by supporting our sponsors: - Blinkist: https://blinkist.com/lex – ExpressVPN at https://www.expressvpn.com/lexpod – Cash App: download app & use code "LexPodcast" Episode links: Sheldon's Website: https://www.skidmore.edu/psychology/faculty/solomon.php The Worm at the Core (book): https://amzn.to/31hQAXH Denial of Death (book): https://amzn.to/329Zxl4 If you would like to get more information about this podcast go to https://lexfridman.com/podcast or connect with @lexfridman on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Medium, or YouTube where you can watch the video versions of these conversations. If you enjoy the podcast, please rate it 5 stars on Apple Podcasts, follow on Spotify, or support it on Patreon. Here's the outline of the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. OUTLINE: 00:00 - Introduction 05:34 - Role of death in life 22:57 - Jordan Peterson 53:02 - Humans are both selfish and cooperative 56:57 - Civilization collapse 1:10:07 - Meditating on your mortality 1:16:10 - Kierkegaard and Heidegger 1:33:25 - Elon Musk 1:36:56 - Thinking deeply about death 1:45:53 - Religion 1:56:59 - Consciousness 2:03:39 - Why is Ernest Becker not better known 2:07:09 - AI and mortality 2:21:07 - Academia should welcome renegade thinkers 2:36:33 - Book recommendations 2:43:23 - Advice for young people 2:48:17 - Meaning of life
Chapters
The podcast host delves deeply into the topic of death and the human condition, citing influences from Nietzsche to Ernest Becker, and encourages listeners to engage in introspection beyond partisanship and divisive thinking.
00:00 - 02:51 (02:51)
Summary
The podcast host delves deeply into the topic of death and the human condition, citing influences from Nietzsche to Ernest Becker, and encourages listeners to engage in introspection beyond partisanship and divisive thinking.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
This podcast discusses the view that death is at the core of human consciousness and what drives us as humans, as discussed in the book The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker.
02:51 - 15:00 (12:08)
Summary
This podcast discusses the view that death is at the core of human consciousness and what drives us as humans, as discussed in the book The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
This podcast episode explores the significance of theory in various fields such as philosophy, science, and artificial intelligence.
15:00 - 23:41 (08:41)
Summary
This podcast episode explores the significance of theory in various fields such as philosophy, science, and artificial intelligence. The guest speaker shares her experience in graduate school and the value of a good theory in understanding the complexities of life and the world around us.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The podcast episode discusses the limitations of liberal and conservative political philosophy, both of which are framed based on assumptions about human nature that are false.
23:41 - 29:56 (06:14)
Summary
The podcast episode discusses the limitations of liberal and conservative political philosophy, both of which are framed based on assumptions about human nature that are false. The host also talks about the work of psychologist Jordan Peterson and his concerns about the arbitrary nature of meaning.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
According to John Locke, individuals have a natural right to their own bodies and can acquire property by exerting labor on natural resources while respecting the property rights of others.
29:56 - 43:18 (13:21)
Summary
According to John Locke, individuals have a natural right to their own bodies and can acquire property by exerting labor on natural resources while respecting the property rights of others. Private property rights are not found in the Bible or nature but are a product of human effort and capable of expanding indefinitely due to the vastness of the world's resources.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The complexities of the world make it difficult to represent it accurately in science, but it is important to consider how the current systems in place may lead to destructive outcomes in the future despite improvements in various measures of quality of life.
43:18 - 58:24 (15:06)
Summary
The complexities of the world make it difficult to represent it accurately in science, but it is important to consider how the current systems in place may lead to destructive outcomes in the future despite improvements in various measures of quality of life.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The world is facing multiple issues such as ethnic tensions, environmental degradation, economic instability, and psychological issues leading to a yearning for self-esteem.
58:24 - 1:09:32 (11:07)
Summary
The world is facing multiple issues such as ethnic tensions, environmental degradation, economic instability, and psychological issues leading to a yearning for self-esteem. Additionally, people are undergoing quiet economic pain due to closed businesses and broken dreams.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The podcast discusses how meditating on the concept of death through the Stoic approach can lead to personal transformation and growth, and that repressed death anxiety can have negative effects on human behavior.
1:09:32 - 1:17:00 (07:28)
Summary
The podcast discusses how meditating on the concept of death through the Stoic approach can lead to personal transformation and growth, and that repressed death anxiety can have negative effects on human behavior. The hosts explain that this concept has been prevalent since the time of antiquity among philosophers and theologians.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker shares insights from existential philosophers like Heidegger and Kierkegaard on the importance of facing the reality of our own mortality and the insignificance of our existence in the grand scheme of things.
1:17:00 - 1:29:09 (12:08)
Summary
The speaker shares insights from existential philosophers like Heidegger and Kierkegaard on the importance of facing the reality of our own mortality and the insignificance of our existence in the grand scheme of things.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The traditional approach to dealing with death anxiety is through faith, but there's a new emerging direction that seeks to use love and other alternatives.
1:29:09 - 1:33:36 (04:26)
Summary
The traditional approach to dealing with death anxiety is through faith, but there's a new emerging direction that seeks to use love and other alternatives. This is an idea that is currently being explored by academic psychologists, building on the earlier work of Ernest Becker.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker reflects on the importance of meditating on death, as he has noticed that many individuals whom he interacts with have not done so.
1:33:36 - 1:41:56 (08:19)
Summary
The speaker reflects on the importance of meditating on death, as he has noticed that many individuals whom he interacts with have not done so. He contrasts this with the belief in possible advancements in technology such as autonomous vehicles.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses the significance of considering thought experiments that question commonly held beliefs or theories, and why people often hesitate to entertain such ideas.
1:41:56 - 1:45:50 (03:54)
Summary
The speaker discusses the significance of considering thought experiments that question commonly held beliefs or theories, and why people often hesitate to entertain such ideas.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses the idea of feeling at home and contemplates the world without religion, reflecting on his skepticism towards religion due to the conflicts it causes.
1:45:51 - 1:52:21 (06:30)
Summary
The speaker discusses the idea of feeling at home and contemplates the world without religion, reflecting on his skepticism towards religion due to the conflicts it causes.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The podcast discusses Plato's allegory of the cave and the hypothesis that consciousness emerged as a way to better understand others in social settings, leading to exploration of big questions in faith and philosophy.
1:52:22 - 2:03:41 (11:19)
Summary
The podcast discusses Plato's allegory of the cave and the hypothesis that consciousness emerged as a way to better understand others in social settings, leading to exploration of big questions in faith and philosophy.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The hosts discuss the popularity of the book "Sapiens" and mention other famous artists and writers who only had modest sales during their lifetimes.
2:03:42 - 2:08:01 (04:19)
Summary
The hosts discuss the popularity of the book "Sapiens" and mention other famous artists and writers who only had modest sales during their lifetimes.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The fear and anticipation of death can spark creativity and lead to the development of new ideas.
2:08:01 - 2:12:11 (04:09)
Summary
The fear and anticipation of death can spark creativity and lead to the development of new ideas. However, many people don't think deeply about the concept of death in the same way they do about other philosophical topics.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The key to solving ethical problems using artificial intelligence may be a combination of a sense of mortality and an understanding of human behavior and thought processes.
2:12:11 - 2:16:14 (04:03)
Summary
The key to solving ethical problems using artificial intelligence may be a combination of a sense of mortality and an understanding of human behavior and thought processes. While creating machines with general intelligence may not be essential, creating machines that can effectively connect with humans requires an understanding of mortality and deeper human connections.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
Sex robots are still not commonly used for their intended purpose and there are speculations that it's possible for humans and robots to fall in love in the future.
2:16:14 - 2:20:19 (04:04)
Summary
Sex robots are still not commonly used for their intended purpose and there are speculations that it's possible for humans and robots to fall in love in the future.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker reflects on the significance of language in communicating with other humans and shares a personal experience from a job interview.
2:20:19 - 2:24:22 (04:02)
Summary
The speaker reflects on the significance of language in communicating with other humans and shares a personal experience from a job interview. They also discuss academia as a place for people with unique skills.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker advocates for the importance of in-person learning and the need for academia to celebrate and honor outsiders and free thinkers.
2:24:22 - 2:30:08 (05:46)
Summary
The speaker advocates for the importance of in-person learning and the need for academia to celebrate and honor outsiders and free thinkers.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses the impact upbringing and opportunities have on people, and how it relates to the current social issue of defunding the police, as well as efforts to create virtual education opportunities.
2:30:09 - 2:36:17 (06:08)
Summary
The speaker discusses the impact upbringing and opportunities have on people, and how it relates to the current social issue of defunding the police, as well as efforts to create virtual education opportunities.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
In this episode, the speaker discusses the fictional story about a person who finds out they are terminally ill and how they initially react, but ultimately lead to thoughts of mortality and meaning with the help of the existentialist philosophy of Kamu and Ernest Becker's works.
2:36:17 - 2:41:48 (05:30)
Summary
In this episode, the speaker discusses the fictional story about a person who finds out they are terminally ill and how they initially react, but ultimately lead to thoughts of mortality and meaning with the help of the existentialist philosophy of Kamu and Ernest Becker's works.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The podcast speaker suggests that life isn't entirely meaningless per se, but rather doesn't have an inevitable, intrinsic meaning, opening people up to possibilities.
2:41:48 - 2:48:22 (06:34)
Summary
The podcast speaker suggests that life isn't entirely meaningless per se, but rather doesn't have an inevitable, intrinsic meaning, opening people up to possibilities. The speaker also mentions their ill-equipped nature in a generation of Americans that choose one thing to pursue.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The significance of holding on to childhood memories and cultural roots, and how identity can be disorienting when stepping out of one's cultural bubble.
2:48:22 - 2:53:25 (05:02)
Summary
The significance of holding on to childhood memories and cultural roots, and how identity can be disorienting when stepping out of one's cultural bubble.
Episode#117 – Sheldon Solomon: Death and Meaning
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The work of a professor has greatly influenced the way we perceive ourselves and our existence in the world.
2:53:26 - 2:56:31 (03:05)
Summary
The work of a professor has greatly influenced the way we perceive ourselves and our existence in the world. His contribution includes popularizing the work of Ernest Becker and encouraging the formation of experimental existential psychology.