The Selfie That Wasn't: On Projection, Spirituality, and Knowledge of Other Minds

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Can something as ordinary as a selfie crack open a window onto the deepest questions of mind, faith, and mortality? In this episode, Emma and Sereptie sit down with writer Jonathan Malesic to unpack his essay "Unfaithful Reproductions," which begins with a photo taken on his dying father's deathbed, a photo he long assumed was a selfie, until he learned otherwise. From there the conversation ranges from Feuerbach's theory of religious projection to reality shifting, Christian mysticism, and the strange intimacy of Substack, all circling the same impossible question: can we ever really know another mind, or do we only ever encounter our own reflection cast back at us? What unfolds is a wide-ranging, unexpectedly moving meditation on grief, technology, and the leap of faith required just to believe we understand each other at all.

Jon's essay: https://thepointmag.com/examined-life/unfaithful-reproductions/

The End of Burnout: https://www.ucpress.edu/books/the-end-of-burnout/paper

Jon's Substack: https://substack.com/@jonmalesic

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The Lenox Institute for Advanced Study: https://lenoxinstitute.org/