The Gray Area with Sean Illing

A philosopher's psychedelic encounter with reality

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Why don't more philosophers take psychedelic drugs seriously as a means of examining reality? Sean Illing talks with Justin Smith-Ruiu, professor of philosophy, whose recent essay "This Is a Philosopher on Drugs" tells of how experimenting with psilocybin and other substances led to a radical reevaluation of nearly everything in his life — including his views on the nature of reality. They discuss the roots of an alternative worldview in the thought of German polymath G.W. Leibniz, what it means to say — as Socrates does — that philosophy is "preparation for death," and why psychedelics aren't more often explored in contemporary philosophy.

Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area

Guest: Justin Smith-Ruiu, philosopher; author

References: 

  • "This Is a Philosopher on Drugs" by Justin E.H. Smith (Wired; Mar. 7)
  • Justin Smith-Ruiu's Hinternet (Substack)
  • The Internet Is Not What You Think It Is by Justin E.H. Smith (Princeton; 2022)
  • "The brutal mirror: What the psychedelic drug ayahuasca showed me about my life" by Sean Illing (Vox; Nov. 2, 2019)
  • G.W. Leibniz, "The Monadology" (1714)
  • René Descartes, Meditations on First Philosophy (1641)
  • Irrationality: A History of the Dark Side of Reason by Justin E.H. Smith (Princeton; 2019)
  • Plato, Phaedo (for Socrates's claim that philosophy is preparation for death)
  • Reality+ by David Chalmers (W.W. Norton; 2022)
  • David Chalmers on The Gray Area (Jan. 10, 2022)
  • Justin's review of David Chalmers: "The World as a Game" (Liberties, vol. 2 no. 4)
  • "The Death of Ivan Ilych" by Leo Tolstoy (1886)
  • How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan (Penguin; 2018)


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    This episode was made by: 

    • Producer: Erikk Geannikis
    • Engineer: Patrick Boyd
    • Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall

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