
Change perspective and change the story: thought experiment with "Briar Rose"
From Myth Matters by Catherine Svehla
March 21, 2026 · 32 min · Season 8 · Episode 4
About this episode
Catherine Svehla explores the role of myths and stories in personal and collective evolution through a thought experiment with 'Briar Rose'.
Send Catherine a text Message "But people must be taught lessons. Without them, none of them will ever learn. People are dreams and awkwardness and gawk. They prick their fingers Bleed and snore and drool. Politeness is as quiet as a grave, Unmoving, roses without thorns. Or white lilies. People have to learn." -- excerpted from "Observing the Formalities" by Neil Gaiman Our myths and old stories play a complicated role in our personal and collective evolution. On the one hand, they ar...
People in this episode
Host: Catherine Svehla
Topics covered
- mythology
- storytelling
- personal evolution
- collective evolution
- philosophy
- cultural narratives
Keywords
- myths
- stories
- Briar Rose
- Neil Gaiman
- cultural evolution
- philosophy
- narratives
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Observing the Formalities, Briar Rose
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