The Evolving Self Chapter 1 Discussion: The Mind and History | Flow Book Club

Travel Whys

Join us as we continue with our exploration of flow, reading Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow sequel: The Evolving Self: A Psychology for the Third Millennium (1993).

In the introduction, MC points out “...it is difficult to build a happy life by the simple addition of a series of flow experiences. The whole in this case is definitely more than the sum of its parts”. Beyond just a number of flow experiences, what is needed is “…a system of meanings that gives purpose to one’s being”.

MC explains, “Flow ended with the proposition that by understanding better our evolutionary past we might generate the grounds for a viable meaning system, a faith that can give order and purpose to our lives in the future. To know ourselves is the greatest achievement of our species. And to understand ourselves – what we are made of, what motives drive us, and what goals we dream of – involves first of all our evolutionary past. Only on this foundation can we build a stable, meaningful future.” That is the project of this book.

Chapter 1: The Mind and History

At the start of this book, MC begins laying out the argument for his thesis “that becoming an active, conscious part of the evolutionary process is the best way to give meaning to our lives at the present point in time and to enjoy each moment along the way”. We explore the idea of evolution as the selective survival of information. We also delve into the development of self-reflective consciousness.

Topics: “The Perspective of Evolution” “The Global Network” “At the Hinges of the New Millennium” “Chance, Necessity, and Something Else”, “Are We Hopelessly Bad?” “The Good and the Bad” “The Emergence of the Self”

Music:

“Ask Me Why” by Matthew Billman and K. Joia Houheneka

This discussion is done in partnership with the Meetup group 52 Living Ideas.

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