Is Genius a Myth? (Helen Lewis)

Pulling The Thread with Elise Loehnen

Elise Loehnen

Society & Culture, Religion & Spirituality, Self-improvement, Education

4.8 • 900 Ratings

🗓️ 26 June 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In her new book, The Genius Myth, journalist Helen Lewis explores how and why we label certain people geniuses; and the impact this has on said geniuses, us, and culture at large. Today, we talk about our perception of the exceptional, and some of our more pernicious and dark misperceptions. For the show notes, head over to my Substack. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, it's Elise Lunan, host of Pulling the Thread.
0:04.0	Today I'm talking to journalist Helen Lewis, who has a new book out called The Genius Myth.
0:10.2	Iron Hard has arrived on Disney Plus.
0:12.9	Rui, what is going all with you?
0:14.8	From Marvel Television, an executive producer Ryan Coogler.
0:17.8	I wanted to build something undeniable, but now I'm in trouble.
0:20.8	Don't miss the sixth episode of Vand.
0:22.7	I joined a crew of criminals, and now I'm about to get killed by Doreenge Man in the Cake.
0:27.8	Be the first to experience the all-new series.
0:30.6	You've bitten off a hell of a lot more than you can chew.
0:32.7	I can chew a lot.
0:33.6	Marvel Television's Iron Hard.
0:35.5	Now streaming, only on Disney Plus.
0:37.7	18 plus subscription required.
0:39.1	Decent Cs Apply.
0:39.8	Hi, it's Elise Loonan,
0:42.6	Hi, it's Elise Loonan, host of pulling the thread.
0:53.6	On this show, we pull apart the web in which we all live to understand who we are and why we're here.
0:59.9	My hope is that these conversations spark moments of resonance and plant tiny seeds of awareness so that we might all collectively learn and grow.
1:10.3	Here is today's guest, Helen Lewis, on one of the genius myths that we'll get into today.
1:15.6	And I think that's quite a powerful thing too, because we want our geniuses to be extraordinary.
1:20.6	We don't want them to be living quiet little bourgeois lives where they're nice to their partners and doting on their parents.
	...

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