The Unhappy Rebellion of Radical Joy

The New Discourses Podcast with James Lindsay, Ep. 147

We're hearing a lot about "joy" now that the Kamala Harris and Tim Walz campaign have made it a byword of their project, so we have to ask what they mean by it. We all know, by this point, that Communists share your vocabulary but do not share your dictionary. So what might they mean by "joy"? Well, it appears what they mean by joy is "radical joy," which is a kind of religious ecstasy associated with believing they are going to accomplish Communism, or at least their revolution. Radical joy is rooted in "critical hope" together with a certain anger, hatred, and libido dominandi, all as expressions of "erotic" energy seeking liberation. In Herbert Marcuse's words, it is "the joy of rebellious victims." In this episode of the New Discourses Podcast, host James Lindsay walks you through a variety of Marxist sources to discuss the concept of "radical joy" and reveal it for what it is. Join him to see through the mask of "joy"!

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