Episode #163 - The Creation of Meaning - Escape From Evil
The Creation of Meaning - Escape From Evil
This episode explores Ernest Becker’s theory that both religion and culture function as elaborate systems designed to manage our awareness of mortality. Rather than treating them as opposites, Becker sees them as intertwined tools for “death denial,” offering individuals a sense of symbolic immortality through cultural projects or by attaching meaning to what he calls transference objects—leaders, careers, romantic partners, even material possessions. He argues that our symbolic identities are constructed from illusions, and when these illusions are threatened, people often respond with hostility, even violence, to protect their sense of permanence. This leads Becker to the question of human evil—not just why it exists, but why it often feels good to those who commit it. His concept of “anthropodicy” shifts the focus from divine justification to understanding how fear and symbolic conflict drive human cruelty. Yet Becker also gestures toward hope through the idea of transcendence: by moving beyond cultural heroism and connecting with what he calls the “invisible,” individuals may discover a deeper, freer way of living. The episode closes by linking Becker’s vision to similar insights from Camus and Kierkegaard, suggesting that a thoughtful relationship with death can reveal meaning, not through certainty, but through presence, empathy, and an honest confrontation with life’s limits.
Further Reading:
The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker (1973)
Escape from Evil by Ernest Becker (1985)
Legacy: The Belief in Immortality and the Logic of Culture by Robert N. Bellah (2011)
See the full transcript here.
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