Our Stories and Our Selves: Why the narratives we tell shape the way we think about the world

Our Stories and Our Selves: Why the narratives we tell shape the way we think about the world

di Kirsty

Storia Società e cultura

Stagione 1

Ep 8: Moon Stories

The moon has been a source of curiosity and stories for as long as we've been human. Stories about werewolves, the man on the moon and fantastic voyages were popular long before we landed there. The story of the space race was a central cold war narrative. However there are also conspiracies about it, and misinformation abounds. In this episode I speak with Quinn, Chris and Chris from the Failure to Launch Podcast about moon stories, and how, as frustrating as conspiracy stories are, they can be kinda fun, but when it comes down to it humans have definitely been to the moon. Listen to Failure to Launch where ever you get podcasts such as Apple or Spotify or watch on Youtube and follow them on BlueSky Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Music from https://pixabay.com/users/good_b_music-22836301/ Key sources were: https://moonhoaxdebunked.blogspot.com/ https://hoaxes.org/archive/permalink/the_great_moon_hoax the Episode cover also came from a New York Sun print on this site. A full source list can be found on https://www.ourstoriesandourselves.com/

Ep 7: Stories about Shakespeare

Shakespeare is one of the most famous writers, in English, of all time. Stories abound about who he was and what he achieved, but what is the truth of them? What do these stories tell us about the time he lived in, and the things which have happened since then? This episode explores the stories about Shakespeare, and how they affect how we think about literature and language. source list available at https://www.ourstoriesandourselves.com/ Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Music from https://pixabay.com/users/good_b_music-22836301/ Image by Samuele">https://pixabay.com/users/samueles-1246195/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=2984316">Samuele Schirò from Pixabay">https://pixabay.com//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=2984316">Pixabay

Ep 6: Creative non-fiction isn't a contradiction

History can be pretty boring when it’s a series of dry facts, but fitting it to a narrative arc, while engaging, can also lead to problems. This week I speak to Kelly Gaumont from the Canuck is a Slur podcast about creative non-fiction, facts, storytelling and the opportunities of new media. Kelly’s linktree: https://linktr.ee/CanuckIsASlur And Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/canuckisaslur/about If you have thoughts, drop me an email at ourstoriesandourselves@gmail.com or on Bluesky at ourstories.blusky.social. Blatantly stealing some of Kelly’s pre-show notes because they are great Kate Beaton, creator of the history-heavy comic strip Hark! A Vagrant; was a major gateway for me to develop a newfound interest in Canadian history specifically (although the strip was not at all limited to that), because it was now trying to tell me the same information through a much more engaging medium Here is an example Here is another Here is one that isn’t Canadian at all Ryan North, creator of the heavily-constrained comic strip Dinosaur Comics taught me that format constraints (such as having the six-panel visual arrangement of your comic never change for decades on end) can actually allow your creativity to flourish as it pushes against those limitations, as well as allow your audience to have a familiar structure through which they can understand your message Here is one about stories and literature Here is one that refers to the Canadian phenomenon of bagged milk Ryan North studied computational linguistics, so he wrote a lot of comics about various aspects of language that you can learn a lot from Some of the other things we mentioned: Story Garden: https://youtu.be/YUfzr5tJlpo?si=5rEOPHZsyhH5aLjs Beneath the skin: https://linktr.ee/beneaththeskinpod Lions led by Donkeys: www.youtube.com/@lionsledbydonkeyspodcast7424 Revolutions Podcast by Mike Duncan: revolutionspodcast.com

Ep 5: Fiction and Reality

Sometimes fiction depicts reality and sometimes it can change it. This episode I look at several fiction stories which have change the world. I also look at the way fiction can distill reality into a story which is even more true. Quote Origin: Truth Is Stranger than Fiction, But It Is Because Fiction Is Obliged to Stick to Possibilities; Truth Isn’t – Quote Investigator®. (2015, July 15). https://quoteinvestigator.com/2015/07/15/truth-stranger/ Quote Origin: A Lie Can Travel Halfway Around the World While the Truth Is Putting On Its Shoes – Quote Investigator®. (2014, July 13). https://quoteinvestigator.com/2014/07/13/truth/ Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens The Jungle by Upton Sinclair Lady Chatterley’s Lover D H Lawrence Books that Changed the World: The 50 most influential books in human history, Andrew Taylor, Quercus Full source list available at https://www.ourstoriesandourselves.com/ Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Music from https://pixabay.com/users/good_b_music-22836301/

Ep 4: How stories survive

Episode 4: How stories survive There are so many reasons that some stories survive and others don't. In this episode I talk to Thomas O'Mahony, podcaster, podcast producer, and digital conservationist about DVD rot and the importance of preserving physical media. Some of Tom’s podcasts are https://linktr.ee/beneaththeskinpod and https://www.patreon.com/c/ThisGuySucked/posts?redirect=true source list available at https://www.ourstoriesandourselves.com/ Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Music from https://pixabay.com/users/good_b_music-22836301/ The article that prompted the conversation: https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/03/they-curdle-like-milk-wb-dvds-from-2006-2008-are-rotting-away-in-their-cases/ The Pachiko album Tom mentioned including the ‘rot’ songs https://open.spotify.com/album/2MASm01cgG0a0CgioQpe6Q?si=msVBNr5xSmyeMTHWLat5Bg

Ep 3: Stories of Conformity and Compliance

Why do people commit atrocities? What stories do people tell themselves to make it acceptable, and how can we understand this? Some of the studies taught in psychology 101 try to understand this, but sometimes, the pervading social stories told at the time of the studies also get in the way. This episode explores the Stanford prison experiment, the Milgram compliance experiments and what they do and don't tell us about the holocaust and abuses at Abu Ghraib. source list available at https://www.ourstoriesandourselves.com/ Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Music from https://pixabay.com/users/good_b_music-22836301/

Ep 2: Stories of Polio treatments and vaccines

This episode is about Polio, and the stories about it that led to panics, stories that led to changes in the way medicine was practiced and stories about the vaccines. This may sound like a bit of a jumble, but stories and they way they shape our lives is a thread that pulls it all together. Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Turns out my source list for this episode was too long for the episode notes section so you can find it at: https://ourstoriesandourse.wixsite.com/our-stories-and-our

Ep 1: The Power of Stories

Episode 1 The Power of Stories Stories have been with us for as long as we’ve been human. We use them to entertain, to share information, to motivate and inspire. This episode is an introduction to the power of stories, and some of the ways they affect us. Get in touch on OurStoriesAndOurSelves@gmail.com or @ourstories.bsky.social Turns out my source list for this episode was too long for the episode notes section so you can find it at: https://ourstoriesandourse.wixsite.com/our-stories-and-our

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