Summary of Mattias Desmet's The Psychology of Totalitarianism

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 The events in the cathedral of Pisa later took on mythical proportions, embodying the cultural and social upheaval that characterized the centuries that followed. With the power of reason, man could adjust the world around him, while remaining unchanged himself.

#2 The original practice of science, which was the basis of the Enlightenment, was open-mindedness. It suspended prejudice about the things being observed, and it considered uncertainty a virtue. It let the facts speak for themselves and decide for themselves what kind of thought or theory they preferred to unite with.

#3 The pursuit of reason led to the most sublime insights, which were then used to improve the lives of everyone. The laws of mechanics only apply to a very limited part of reality, and scientists are able to empathize with all entities of the external world.

#4 The scientists of the twentieth century reevaluated the great religious and mystical writings, such as the Upanishads, and realized that they offered a better grasp on reality than any logical, rational discourse.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Jul 13, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822547025

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Insights on Mattias Desmet's The Psychology of Totalitarianism

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The events in the cathedral of Pisa later took on mythical proportions, embodying the cultural and social upheaval that characterized the centuries that followed. With the power of reason, man could adjust the world around him, while remaining unchanged himself.

#2

The original practice of science, which was the basis of the Enlightenment, was open-mindedness. It suspended prejudice about the things being observed, and it considered uncertainty a virtue. It let the facts speak for themselves and decide for themselves what kind of thought or theory they preferred to unite with.

#3

The pursuit of reason led to the most sublime insights, which were then used to improve the lives of everyone. The laws of mechanics only apply to a very limited part of reality, and scientists are able to empathize with all entities of the external world.

#4

The scientists of the twentieth century reevaluated the great religious and mystical writings, such as the Upanishads, and realized that they offered a better grasp on reality than any logical, rational discourse.

#5

The tree of science also produced a branch that took root in the opposite direction of scientific practice. Based on the great achievements of science, some people became entrenched in ideology, and science became a belief system.

#6

The credo of mechanistic materialism is that only those who doubt it voluntarily declare themselves foolish or insane. In this way, the tree of science sprouted a branch that grew in the opposite direction from the original shoots.

#7

The scientific discourse became an ideology, and as such, it lost its ability to truthfully convey information. As a result, the world-renowned statistician John Ioannidis published an article bluntly entitled Why Most Published Research Findings