🎧 LISTEN to this 5AM StoryTalk episode as audio here at Substack.
▶️ WATCH this episode at YouTube below.
📖 READ this episode by clicking on the transcription button.
Be sure to listen to also listen to Dacher’s bonus episode in which he breaks down a seminal piece of art from his life.
Awe is the psychological engine of human creativity, the very origin point of art, music, and the stories we use to make sense of our existence. Yet modern, hyper-individualistic culture has systematically built a buffer between us and everyday wonder — making us lonelier, feeding our anxiety, and actively handicapping our imaginations. Our art is paying the price for this, too.
UCLA Berkley Professor and psychologist DR. DACHER KELTNER knows a thing or two about this subject as the director of the Berkeley Social Interaction Lab, author of the book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life, and — oh yeah, because why not?! — a key creative consultant on Pixar’s Inside Out films.
He’s dedicated his life to the study of emotions and, in this capacity, he’s become one of the world’s leading voices on the very new study of awe.
My conversation with Dacher dives deep into:
The biological and cultural necessity of awe.
The startling revelations recent studies show about how autistics experience awe.
How a deficit of awe or even the manipulation of it can break down social cohesion and lead to the rise of dangerous leaders.
The terrifying ramifications for Hollywood and the arts as we navigate an era defined by the death of shared communal experiences.
How to find more awe yourself.
Much, much more.
Guys, I’m loathe to say this about anything I do, especially a podcast, but this is an incredibly important episode. I hope my conversation with Dacher moves and inspires you as much as it did me.
🔒 EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE: JAN STEEN'S PAINTING 'MERRY COMPANY ON A TERRACE'
Be sure to also listen Dacher’s bonus episode. He breaks down a seminal piece of art from his own life — a chaotic, brilliant work of Dutch Master Jan Steen that helped set him on a quest to better understand human emotions!
Bonus Episode: Dacher Keltner Talks Jan Steen's ' Merry Company on a Terrace'
🎙️ This is a 5AM StoryTalk Podcast BONUS EPISODE. Be sure to also listen to this week’s feature conversation — “Psychologist Dacher Keltner | The Cultural Necessity of Awe”.
If this podcast episode adds anything to your life but you’re not up for a paid subscription, you can still support my work here by buying me a “coffee”. It’s hugely appreciated - and you might even get a shoutout in the Notes!
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