Edward Slingerland

Date: 2021-06-08 | Duration: 2h 49m

Episode Overview

Edward Slingerland, professor of early Chinese philosophy and author of Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization, joins Joe to make the scholarly case that alcohol has been a net positive for human social evolution. His colleagues were flabbergasted by the subject, but Slingerland has built a rigorous academic argument that intoxication — across cultures and millennia — served critical social bonding, trust-building, and creativity functions that sober minds couldn't access. They discuss the simulation theory of consciousness, how psychedelics de-pattern the brain to create connections between regions that normally don't communicate, the Wild West of marijuana quality in Los Angeles, and Slingerland's own pre-performance ritual (a shot and some cannabis to loosen up). It's a rare conversation that treats getting hammered as a serious subject of academic inquiry.

About Edward Slingerland

Edward Slingerland is a Distinguished University Scholar and Professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia, where he explores the intersection of philosophy, psychology, and culture. He is the author of the thought-provoking book "Drunk," which delves into the evolutionary and cultural significance of intoxication throughout human history. Slingerland's interdisciplinary approach has garnered attention for challenging conventional views on human behavior, making him a captivating figure in contemporary philosophical discourse. Known for his engaging lectures and insightful commentary, he invites listeners to reconsider the role of altered states in our lives, sparking curiosity and debate on topics that resonate deeply with our everyday experiences.

Key Moments

– Drunk — the academic case that alcohol helped build civilization
– Early Chinese philosophy and the study of intoxication
– Social bonding and trust-building that only intoxication enables
– Simulation theory of consciousness
– Psychedelics de-patterning the brain — connections between non-communicating regions
– Marijuana quality in Los Angeles — the Wild West
– Pre-performance ritual — shot and cannabis to loosen up
0:00:00 – What possessed you to write a book about getting hammered?
0:00:19 – My day job is early Chinese philosophy — colleagues are flabbergasted
0:24:20 – Shot and smoke before going on stage — my pre-performance ritual
0:45:14 – LA marijuana — the Wild West, you never know what you're getting
1:10:35 – Simulation theory — if we can do virtual reality now, what does that mean?
1:31:06 – Psychedelics de-patterning the brain — parts talking to parts that normally don't

Transcript Excerpt

Starting point is 00:00:00 Joe Rogan Podcast, check it out. The Joe Rogan Experience. Train by day, Joe Rogan Podcast by night, all day. So what possessed you to write a book about getting hammered? That's a really good question. Like, my colleagues are flabbergasted when they see the topic. So my day job is early Chinese philosophy, and I do comparative religion, and then I'm writing this book on alcohol. It actually grows organically out of work I've done before. Starting point is 00:00:36 So my specialty is early Chinese philosophy. My early work focused on this idea in early China of what I translated as effortless action. The word is wu-wei. It literally means no doing or not trying, but it's a spontaneous state. It's kind of like being in the zone in sports. So it's a state where you lose a sense of yourself as an agent. You feel like everything is just happening. You're not making any effort, and yet everything works perfectly. Starting point is 00:01:03 You solve problems. People like you. Everything works out. And the early Chinese thinkers want to get you into this state of wu wei. But they have this problem that I call the paradox of wu wei, which is how do you try not to try? You want to be spontaneous. You're not being spontaneous. How do you get from A to B? Starting point is 00:01:28 spontaneous? You're not being spontaneous. How do you get from A to B? And all of what I argue in my dissertation is that all of early Chinese philosophy is this series of attempts to solve the paradox. And no one does it because it's a genuine paradox. And so I revisit my first general audience book is called Trying Not to Try. And it's about this tension. And I walk people through the various strategies that the early Chinese came up with. But none of them really can be 100% effective because when you're trying not to try, cognitively you're activating the part of your brain Starting point is 00:01:56 that you want to shut down. Dan Wagner, the social psychologist, ta...

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Who was the guest on Joe Rogan Experience #1663?

Edward Slingerland was the guest on JRE #1663. This page includes the episode overview, topics discussed, and related resources.

What topics were discussed on JRE #1663?

On Joe Rogan Experience #1663 with Edward Slingerland, topics include Drunk — the academic case that alcohol helped build, Early Chinese philosophy and the study of intoxication, Social bonding and trust-building that only intoxication, and Simulation theory of consciousness.

Where can I read the transcript for JRE #1663?

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