On Bullshit
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On Bullshit
Parking info: The parking lot may be busy; u can find street parking on Mayview Ave residential area instead.
In this session we discuss Frankfurt’s writing On Bullshit.
Bullshit is speech intended to persuade without regard for truth.
Unlike a liar, who knows the truth and deliberately tries to conceal it, the bullshitter is indifferent to whether what they say is true or false.
This indifference makes bullshit more dangerous than lies, because it erodes the very value of truth itself.
Frankfurt describes a Fourth of July speaker who proclaims:
“Our great and blessed country, whose Founding Fathers under divine guidance created a new beginning for mankind.”
He argues this is paradigmatic bullshit because:
- The speaker doesn’t care whether the country is truly “great” or “blessed,” or whether the Founding Fathers were divinely inspired.
- The goal is not truth, but emotional effect—to stir patriotic sentiment, regardless of factual accuracy.
- It’s “hot air”: speech that sounds meaningful but lacks genuine substance or concern for truth.
Why is bullshit prevalent?
Why is bullshit undesirable?
What is the relation between bullshit and truth?
On Bullshit