Episode  

Angst: seeing how many movies are on Netflix and scrolling forever, never choosing one. As if we can control whether the ending of the movie we choose will have a good or bad ending.

"Let's say an elephant has a seizure and falls on your legs." Exceptionally detailed explanation of anxiety, dread and despair.

I love hearing you speak, you're very eloquent, funny and intelligent.

Thanks for the video about Kierkegaard's idea regarding choice and despair. Here's a quote from his book Either/Or - on choice, despair and repetition Imagine a captain of a ship the moment a shift of direction must be made; then he may be able to say: I can do either this or that. But if he is not a mediocre captain he will also be aware that during all this the ship is ploughing ahead with its ordinary velocity, and thus there is but a single moment when it is inconsequential whether he does this or does that. So also with a person-if he forgets to take into account the velocity-there eventually comes a moment where it is no longer a matter of an Either/Or, not because he has chosen, but because he has refrained from it, which also can be expressed by saying: Because others have chosen for him-or because he has lost himself. Already prior to one’s choosing, the personality is interested in the choice, and if one puts off the choice, the personality or the obscure forces within it unconsciously chooses. Then when a choice is eventually made-…one discovers that there is something that must be done over again, must be withdrawn, and this is often very difficult. There are stories about human beings whom mermaids or mermen have subjected to their power with their demonic music. To break the spell, so says the story, it was necessary for the person under the spell to play the same piece backward without making a single mistake. This is a very profound thought but very difficult to do, and yet this is the way it is. The error one has absorbed has to be rooted out in this way, and every time one makes a mistake one must begin all over again. As you see, this is why it is important to choose and to choose in time. I congratulate you for being still so young that even though you will always miss out on something, you nevertheless-if you have the energy or, more accurately, will to have the energy for it-can win what is the main concern of life, you can win yourself, gain yourself. Soren Kierkegaard, Either/Or II p. 164-165 1843 Hong translation

Thanks for educating, for free, during Corona virus outbreak. Stay safe and healthy. Lots of love and respect from Pakistan.❤️🇵🇰

“ The concept of dread is the possibility of freedom “ Kierkegaard

I absolutely love your podcast!! You've made a huge difference in my life. I'm poor but I donated 5 dollars because I love your show so much. :) Thank you for making these videos!!

I want the full bear story! Thanks for the podcast :)

This is really profound. I've come to pieces of this on my own but to hear it laid out so concisely brings a lot of clarity to what I've been feeling. Great video

The most difficult, frightening, fulfilling relationship is the one you have with yourself during your lifetime. S is right--it's the examined life--our own life--that hopefully leads to some kind of happiness. The race is to the happy!

Absolutely mind-blowing episode I must say! Brilliant job Stephen, Thank you !!!

Stephen, I would really like to hear that story with the Black Bear and how it cured your anxiety

I started watching this video kind of sad & depressed. But towards the ending I actually felt moderately okay, and I could even laugh about parts you've said during this video.. I guess it all depends on how you put things in perspective that defines the way you feel.

Thank you so much for this presentation. You really give us food for thought.

The self revelation is really cool. Thanks!

so has the story of the bear encounter been released? would love to read/listen to it. thanks

Wow, that was amazing. Thank you so much for this, sir! It was enlightening in every way possible, I was a bit confused with the concepts that I had to tackle when reading The Concept of Anxiety but this cleared up much of it. You're intelligent and extremely well-humoured. Keep it up!

enjoyed this, thank sir!

I have watched every single Kierkegaard video on youtube and not one helped me. They all use super philosophical terms, and I really didn't expect that the only helpful video would be audio only! cheers man

Your bear experience sounds like a sublime you once mentioned.

"A giant piece of your life has been taken from you by an epileptic elephant." LOL!!!

Did you ever post anything more about the bear encounter? I have felt that same sense of timelessness during encounters with other wild animals and am very curious to hear your insight into it! Thanks for positively contributing to society.

Bravo!

Thank you

You've fairly represented Kierkegaard...

Valuable

Id like to hear the full story about that bear encounter .

can do something with the book Thomas Nagel's essay "What is it like to be a bat?" and Thomas Nagel's Mind and Cosmos and maybe Gödel's Incompleteness Theorems and Johann Gottlieb Fichte ( people who find this interssand can find this on my youtube data base) but i'm curious about your perspective thanks

Hello Stephen, really enjoying the content it's super! But heres a thing: It's Pronounced "Kierke-gore" -Sincerely, a Dane

Wait, I want to hear the rest of the bear story!

I've made some videos with snippets of the philosophize this podcast over some nice nature videos and chill music if anyone wants to check them out! I'm getting into video editing and these podcasts (well especially the ones about existentialism) always make me feel better about life, they're just like 2 minutes long and take the main points :)

I understand

I love existentalist though. It changed my life. A whole 180°

I'm not afraid of loosing my footing, but how do I get the one I love make a choice, to try and fail with me?!?

Pascal talked about our fundamental emptiness before Kieregaard and he did so using a lot less pages and in a much more understandable fashion but I guess some folks like complicated.

It's like herpes of the spirit. LOL

Does he ever respond to comments?

The empty space is what makes the bowl useful.

What ever happened to the hiking black bear story?

I exercise to avoid dread.

If we despise you, we should love you, according to Kierkegaard. =)

❤

Where is this black bear book???

I don't understand why one should be subjective towards others. Can anyone explain? Thanks.

I LOVE MY MANE KG

I didn't know I had a "self".

🌷🙏🏻😇🌷

So, the bear....???

HOW DID YOU END IT LIKE THAT?!! what made you not have anymore anxiety?? why did u have to leave us hanging like that😭

There is no "self".

FOMO. "Anxiety is the diziness of freedom."

Herpes of the spirit

But shouldn't we experience or grasp the truth of his philosophy for ourselves . We got an answer, but don't we have to do the math and arrive at the answer for ourselves.

5 dollars, or your wife, or your phone, yep... all of your... objects?

WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU PUTTING BBQ SAUCE ON A SALAD???!!!!

This is a postmodern interpretation. To deny objective truth is one of the more common distractions from reality. He didn't deny it, but he realized that specific facts or truths are more or less important. Not all truths are relevant to me, but they certainly are objective. You're dumbing SK down to a pretentious college sophomore.

I love that you cover Kierkegaard, but you do society one of the greatest disservices in paraphrasing his comments in your own words. His words are profound. Quote them precisely and then explain in layman terms. Do not slight him by paraphrasing in your own words. Thanks

Christ, wonderful podcast but the full minute of repetitive rambling about amazon, patreon, your product page almost turned me off from this channel. glad I stuck through but might you consider moving all that stuff to the end of the podcast? It's far less cumbersome that way. And the fact that, after going through a minute you also had a false start wherein you restated the amazon and patreon stuff was really irksome. Great content, smart man, but unfortunate presentation