Released 09.06.23

The Conversation

In this episode, Sophy and Laura discuss her book, Looking for Theophrastus: Travels in Search of a Lost Philosopher. Laura follows his story from Lesbos — where Theophrastus was born — to Athens, Northern Greece, and Turkey. She traces his adventures and enduring influence — a man equal to Plato and Aristotle — on a journey which brings him back from oblivion.

They delve into the magic of Ancient Greece — in Laura’s words, ‘a kind of Narnia for grownups’ — and the origins of science in myth. They discuss how Theophrastus left a legacy of separation between living organisms, and how Linnaeus’s science developed this theory, resulting in a hierarchical interpretation of nature that is only now being reevaluated.

They talk about the sanitisation that comes with certainty, and explore if quests need a resolution to make a good story. Most of all, they agree that wonder is the seed of living; it’s both the ‘wow!’ and the ‘what?’ that propels us to look for what lies beyond the horizon.