Oikophobia: Why the West Hates Itself | Benedict Beckeld

In this episode, Quillette's Zoe Sankey speaks with philosopher and author Benedict Beckeld about oikophobia — the hatred of one's own culture — and what it means for the future of Western civilisation. Beckeld, whose landmark 2019 essay for Quillette introduced the concept to a wide audience, argues that cultural self-repudiation is not a modern pathology but a recurring feature of prosperous, secure societies. From ancient Athens to Imperial Rome to contemporary Europe, the pattern is the same: wealth and security produce the conditions for a civilisation to turn against itself — and history suggests the consequences are serious. 00:00 — Introduction 03:51 Conversation begins 04:33 — The conditions that produce oikophobia 07:24 — Historical cycles: Athens, Rome, France, Britain, America 08:43 — The decline of religion, androgyny, and gender roles 11:48 — How oikophobia weakens a civilisation's immune system 13:12 — Why the US is more resilient than Europe 17:36 — Monoculturalism, Israel, and the case for a dominant culture 20:18 — Why multi-ethnic societies become multicultural 23:37 — Cultural compatibility as a sliding scale 25:37 — The West's failure to demand assimilation 26:34 — Why Islam is not assimilable to the West 30:05 — Three philosophical reasons Islam resists assimilation 36:52 — Why Western converts to Islam are fleeing the wrong thing 39:26 — Can you put the cat back in the bag after decades of hedonism? 42:01 — What the West can learn from Japan 44:03 — Fertility rates and the role of religion 53:54 — The theological origins of the universal "we" 55:03 — Why universalism is weakening Western identity 01:00:20 — The different forms of antisemitism throughout history 01:04:38 — Freud's narcissism of small differences and Jewish identity 01:05:47 — Understanding antisemitism without excusing it Benedict Beckeld is a philosopher and the author of Oikophobia: Our Western Self-Hatred (Cornell University Press). His writing has appeared in Quillette, where his 2019 essay on oikophobia remains one of the publication's most widely read pieces. 🌐 benedictbeckeld.com 📺 YouTube: Benedict Beckeld 𝕏 @BenedictBeckeld ------ Quillette is an Australian-based online magazine that focuses on long-form analysis and cultural commentary. It is politically non-partisan, but relies on reason, science, and humanism as its guiding values. Quillette was founded in 2015 by Australian writer Claire Lehmann. It is a platform for free thought and a space for open discussion and debate on a wide range of topics, including politics, culture, science, and technology. Quillette has gained attention for publishing articles and essays that challenge modern orthodoxy on a variety of topics, including gender and sexuality, race and identity politics, and free speech and censorship. --- Quillette's revenue comes from our readers. We are a grassroots organisation that relies on voluntary subscriptions and community membership as our primary revenue stream. Support Quillette by becoming a subscriber: https://quillette.com/#/portal/signup Or donate send us a one-off tip: https://quillette.com/#/portal/support We made our website using Ghost, a powerful app for new-media creators to publish, share, and grow a business around their content. It comes with modern tools to build a website, publish content, send newsletters & offer paid subscriptions to members. Try it here: https://ghost.org/?via=claire91