A Return to Magic: The Illogical Roots of Progress

In this episode I talk about the role that magic, superstition, irrationality has played in human progress, specifically the so-called Enlightenment. I will use the life of Paracelsus, the Swiss physician, alchemist and lay theologian of the German Renaissance, as an exemplar of one who paved the way for progress, yet believed wholeheartedly in things that today we would not associate with intellectual advancement.

I want to show how much of science and engineering came not from some departure from myth and magic as the usual narrative goes, but because of beliefs in things that today seem counter to enlightened thinking.

I will argue that there are strong evolutionary mechanisms behind superstition and irrational thinking, and that to continue making progress humanity will need to return to magic. 

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