Peter Boghossian is an American philosopher and an assistant professor of philosophy at Portland State University. WebsitePeter BoghossianWikipediaPeter BoghossianX (Twitter)@peterboghossianYouTubePeter BoghossianGooglePeter BoghossianPosts: Peter Boghossian (1)Impossible Conversations Navigating conversations across ideological dividesBooks: Peter Boghossian (7)How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide by Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay (2019)Impossible Conversations Peter Boghossian (2019)Impossible Conversations Navigating Continue reading Peter Boghossian American philosopher
New Discourses convened in October of 2019 in the National Liberal Club of London for a day-long conference titled Speaking Truth to Social Justice. There, Portland State University philosophy professor Peter Boghossian gave a talk about the need to “speak truth in the face of danger,” parrhesia, as the Ancient Greeks called it, as this Continue reading The Way Forward Peter Boghossian (2019)
How can we begin to resolve our problems, if even our conversations about them keep breaking down? video playerImpossible Conversations | Peter Boghossian The larger point is that what we need to do is we need to speak openly and honestly about things and if we don’t those problems – the earth doesn’t give a Continue reading Impossible Conversations Peter Boghossian (2019)
In our current political climate, it seems impossible to have a civil conversation with someone who has a different opinion. Dialogue is shut down when perspectives clash. Heated debates on Facebook and Twitter often lead to shaming, hindering any possibility of productive discourse. In this book, How to Have Impossible Conversations, Peter Boghossian and James Continue reading How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide by Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay (2019)
video player Harvard Commencement speech 2013 | Oprah Winfrey Transcript This is a transcript of where she talks about the importance of having face-to-face conversations with people with whom you may disagree. Her words are a timely reminder that we can’t outsource empathy to algorithms. Real connection demands real conversation—even and especially with those we Continue reading Oprah Winfrey Harvard Commencement Speech Oprah Winfrey (2013)
And even though this is the college where Facebook was born, my hope is that you would try to go out and have more face-to-face conversations with people you may disagree with. That you’ll have the courage to look them in the eye and hear their point of view. And help make sure that the speed and distance and anonymity of our world doesn’t cause … | Oprah Winfrey Continue reading Have More Conversations with People Whom You Disagree Oprah Winfrey
A conversation covenant is an agreement between two or more persons to abide by a set of rules when engaging in conversation. The rules are intended to help people work in harmony to create a psychologically safer space for difficult or seemingly impossible conversations. | David Gurteen and David Creelman Continue reading What Is a Conversation Covenant? David Gurteen and David Creelman
Differing viewpoints can lead to tension and misunderstandings in challenging conversations. A conversation covenant provides a structured approach to ensuring respectful and constructive dialogue. Establishing agreed-upon guidelines helps create a safe environment for discussing even the most difficult topics. Continue reading Conversation Covenant Creating a psychologically safer space for difficult conversations
Polarization is reshaping how we perceive and communicate with one another. Disagreement has turned into division, and conversation into confrontation. We need new ways of talking that rebuild trust, restore understanding, and make it possible to think together across our differences. Continue reading Polarization Is Tearing Us Apart We are polarized across political, religious, moral, and racial divides
Our beliefs are deeply rooted and are based on little evidence, yet we argue and fight over them. It is essential that we better understand the nature of our beliefs and how they are formed and learn to question and revise them. Continue reading Rethinking Our Beliefs It is not easy to change our beliefs
Speak with Less Conviction Reduce Emailing and Texting ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close Disagree constructively: Disagreement is an inevitable part of life. Most of the time, we do it poorly. We need to learn to Continue reading Disagree Constructively How to disagree well
Conversational Continuous Self-improvement ** Impossible Conversations Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter What’s the Vibe? Please be patient as this may take up to a minute to load… Close A difficult conversation is unpleasant, one where we feel discomfort and awkwardness, such as asking our boss for a pay rise or confronting a neighbor. Continue reading Difficult Conversations Navigating emotionally challenging conversations
An impossible conversation may feel futile as it occurs between individuals who possess radically different ideas, beliefs, morals, politics, or worldviews. Such conversations are likely to lead to arguments and even physical altercations. So, how can we engage in impossible conversations? Continue reading Impossible Conversations Navigating conversations across ideological divides
