Parody as the Path to Truth

Parody might be the highest level of intellectual engagement.

It lets you say things you otherwise can’t, engage secret thoughts in the open, and entertain ideas you don’t fully believe or disbelieve as if they are true.  The ability to take a conversation down a road of uncertainty without the need to defend the ideas seriously has huge benefits for intellectual exploration.  The removal of defensiveness through humor disarms the roadblocks to discovery.

For any idea, person, hobby, or topic, go find a handful of Twitter parody accounts.  You’ll find more truth and intrigue there than you will on the serious expert and pundit accounts.  I do this with sports all the time.  Parody sports Twitter accounts are 10x more interesting, informative, and insightful than real ones.

My goal is to engage more and more things at the level of parody until every great truth is equal parts profound and funny.

Save as PDFPrint

Written by 

Isaac Morehouse is the founder and CEO of Praxis, an awesome startup apprenticeship program. He is dedicated to the relentless pursuit of freedom. He’s written some books, done some podcasting, and is always experimenting with self-directed living and learning. When he’s not with his wife and kids or building his company, he can be found smoking cigars, playing guitars, singing, reading, writing, getting angry watching sports teams from his home state of Michigan, or enjoying the beach.