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Very Bad Wizards

Episode 265: Kekulé (Oh Yeah!)

Very Bad Wizards

Tamler Sommers & David Pizarro

Society & Culture, Philosophy

4.83K Ratings

🗓️ 25 July 2023

⏱️ 80 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The Summer of Cormac McCarthy continues – this time we dive into his one piece of non-fiction, the short essay “The Kekulé Problem.” How does our unconscious mind solve problems that conscious deliberation can’t crack? Why does it often work elliptically, in code, rather than giving us the answer directly in language? Is McCarthy right that the unconscious doesn’t trust language because it’s such a newcomer to the human brain?

Plus we select the finalists for our listener selected episode – thanks to our beloved patrons for all their terrific suggestions!

"The Kekulé Problem" by Cormac McCarthy

Pinker & Bloom 1990

Dijksterhuis & Strick 2016

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Transcript

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0:00.0

Very bad wizards is a podcast with a philosopher, my dad, and a psychologist, Dave Pizarro,

0:05.9

having an informal discussion about issues and signs and ethics.

0:09.4

Please note that the discussion contains bad words that I'm out of allow to say,

0:13.6

and knowing my dad some very inappropriate jokes.

0:17.2

You don't make up for your sins in the church.

0:20.2

You do it in the streets. You do it at home.

0:24.6

The rest is bullshit and you know it.

0:30.3

The cleaning of his fault and

0:34.6

a new attention to that man behind the curtain.

0:43.2

Who are you?

0:45.2

Who are you?

0:46.8

I'm very bad man.

0:48.3

I'm a very good man.

0:50.1

Good man.

0:54.4

They think he's lost and with no more brains than you have.

0:58.4

They know our attention.

0:59.6

Can I stand?

1:04.4

Anybody can have a brain?

1:08.4

You're a very bad man.

1:10.8

They're a very good man.

1:12.4

Just a very bad wizard.

1:15.2

Welcome to very bad wizards.

...

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