logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2022
10m 44s

Selective Vision

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

Sara Wheeler reflects on the harm done by seeing the world only from our own point of view.

"At the heart of both day-to-day thoughtlessness and internecine slaughter lies a failure to see things through the eyes of another. If we all tried to see clearly rather than selectively - well, you know, I think the planet would get on quite a lot better."

Producer: Sheila Cook Sound: Peter Bosher Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Penny Murphy

Up next
Mar 2025
Our Revels Now Are Ended
Howard Jacobson reflects on the radio essay, after almost two decades of A Point of View.With nods to Clive James, body-pierced baritones and with a plentiful supply of svelte notebooks, Howard explains why he believes the radio essay is 'more than words on paper'...why it captur ... Show More
10m 26s
Mar 2025
How History Begins Again
The celebrated American theorist, Francis Fukuyama, in his book 'The End of History and the Last Man' argued that US-style liberalism was the ultimate destination for all mankind, 'the final form of human government'.John Gray explains why he believes his prophecy has been turned ... Show More
10m 18s
Mar 2025
Elbows Up: Canada v Trump
After Donald Trump proposed that Canada could be consumed as America's 51st State, Adam Gopnik reflects on his homeland's history with the United States and Canada's new-found patriotic toughness - and how it differs from nationalism. 'It’s is only a little startling, though very ... Show More
10m 36s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2023
Can You See What I See?
Everyone sees the world differently. Exactly which colors you see and which of your eyes is doing more work than the other as you read this text is different for everyone. Also different? Our blind spots – both physical and social. As we continue celebrating Black History Month, ... Show More
13m 14s
May 2021
Seeing Your Way
In today’s society, everyone is entitled to their opinion and able to share their point of view, but we can often become stuck on our vantage point and not consider someone else’s opinion. Being open to seeing things differently can lend a fresh perspective that can provide a new ... Show More
6m 2s
Dec 2023
Episode 633: A Self-Aware Old Man
Your hosts talk about how we perceive the world and the challenge of mindfully updating our perceptions. 
57m 49s
Aug 2020
#4 Relative Perspective
In this episode, I highlight the filters between how you view the things you do and how others view them. And how it's a double-edged weapon to undermine the work you do. Music in the background: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qap5aO4i9A 
17m 57s
Jul 2016
Frame of Reference
What shapes the way we perceive the world around us? A lot of it has to do with invisible frames of reference that filter our experiences and determine how we feel. Alix Spiegel and Hanna Rosin interview a woman who gets a glimpse of what she's been missing all her life – and the ... Show More
56m 47s
Nov 2014
Just Culture
Margaret Heffernan explores why big organisations so often make big mistakes - and asks if the cure could be the aviation industry's model of a "just culture".In the past ten years, there have been a string of organizational failures - from BP to the banks, from the Catholic Chur ... Show More
28m 14s
Nov 2022
Vision
And at last I see the light. In episode 64 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss vision in the second installment of their ongoing series on the five senses. They discuss the prevalence of visual metaphors for knowledge, and why sight has historically been the most privileged of ... Show More
56m 11s
Nov 2023
Happy Hour #143: Reflecting on the Holidays
With everything going on the world, we reflect on our state of minds and the state of the world.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 
23m 47s