Kimbal Musk on growing up in South Africa | Lex Fridman Podcast Clips

Summary

The speaker reflects on growing up in South Africa during the 1980s, amidst the violence and protests against apartheid. They share a formative experience witnessing a murder, highlighting the stark contrast in valuing human life between South Africa and the United States. The conversation delves into the societal impact of perceiving human life as disposable, and how this perspective can both enable mass violence and foster a unique appreciation for life's fleeting nature, leading to a more carefree and joyful existence.

Takeaways

• 🌍 Growing up in South Africa during the 1980s was marked by widespread violence and social unrest.
• 📉 The fall of apartheid was a significant period in the speaker's life, shaping their worldview.
• 🌟 The United States is appreciated for valuing human life, in contrast to the experiences in South Africa.
• 🗣️ The speaker witnessed firsthand the disregard for human life, with people being killed in public.
• 🚆 A formative experience involved witnessing a murder on a violent train, highlighting the casual acceptance of death.
• 🩸 The impact of violence was profound, with the speaker stepping into a pool of blood and walking through it.
• 📈 The speaker contrasts the value of human life in different countries, noting a lower value in the Soviet Union compared to the United States.
• 🌐 Violence on a mass scale is easier when individual lives are considered disposable.
• 🎉 Despite the violence, there was a sense of joy and celebration in South African communities, embracing life's impermanence.
• 🥗 The speaker recalls dinners with black friends, highlighting the joy found in accepting mortality and living in the moment.
• 💡 The message is to maximize joy and happiness in life, embracing the fact that everyone's life will eventually end.

Q & A

Where did the speaker grow up and how did the environment shape their perspective on violence?

The speaker grew up in South Africa during the apartheid era. The violence they witnessed firsthand, including participating in anti-apartheid protests and seeing a murder, shaped their view on the value of human life and the acceptability of violence.

What was a significant aspect of the speaker's social life in South Africa?

A significant aspect of the speaker's social life was participating in anti-apartheid protests, which involved mixing with people of different races and backgrounds.

How did the speaker's experience with violence in South Africa influence their appreciation for life in America?

The speaker's experiences with violence in South Africa, where human life was not highly valued, made them appreciate the value placed on human life in America, where it is taken more seriously.

What was the age of the speaker when they witnessed a murder?

The speaker was around 16 or 17 years old when they witnessed a murder on a train.

How did the community react to the murder the speaker witnessed?

The community reacted with a sense of normalcy, as everyone walked through the blood and continued on their way, reflecting a societal acceptance of violence and a lower value on human life.

What philosophical concept does the speaker suggest underlies many ideologies?

The speaker suggests that the concept of human life being disposable underlies many ideologies, making it easier to engage in mass violence and suffering.

How does the speaker compare the value of human life in the Soviet Union, the United States, and South Africa?

The speaker believes that the value of human life was lower in the Soviet Union compared to the United States, and that in South Africa during apartheid, life was not valued as much, leading to a different social dynamic.

What impact does the loss of a life have on the speaker's community?

The loss of a life in the speaker's community is very painful and creates a significant social vacuum, as it is a reminder of the high value placed on individual lives.

How does the speaker describe the coexistence of violence and joy in their experiences?

The speaker describes that despite the violence, there was a sense of joy and celebration in moments of community and togetherness, as accepting mortality allowed for a deeper appreciation of life.

What is the speaker's perspective on living a longer life?

The speaker believes that living a longer life should be about maximizing joy, happiness, and peace, rather than being attached to misery or suffering.

How does the speaker's experiences in South Africa contrast with their experiences in America?

The speaker contrasts the violence and lower value of human life in South Africa with the higher value placed on human life and the seriousness with which death is treated in America.

Outlines

00:00

🗡️ Formative Experiences in Violent South Africa

The speaker reflects on growing up in South Africa during the 1980s, a time marked by violence and apartheid. As a teenager, they were deeply involved in anti-apartheid protests, which were a significant part of their social life. They describe the stark contrast between the value of human life in South Africa and the United States, recalling a traumatic incident where they witnessed a murder on a train. The speaker emphasizes the societal acceptance of violence and the disposable nature of individual lives in South Africa, which was a stark contrast to the value placed on human life in America. They also discuss the philosophical underpinnings of violence and how it's easier to inflict suffering on a mass scale when human life is considered less valuable. Despite the violence, the speaker notes a sense of joy and celebration in South African culture, stemming from an acceptance of mortality and a focus on living in the moment.

05:00

😃 Maximizing Joy Through Acceptance of Mortality

The conversation shifts to the idea of embracing the inevitability of death as a means to maximize joy and happiness. The speaker suggests that acknowledging the transient nature of life allows individuals to let go of attachments and enjoy every moment more fully. They argue that this acceptance of mortality fosters a celebratory element in life, as seen in their experiences with friends in South Africa. The speaker concludes by advocating for living longer with the goal of achieving joy, happiness, and peace, rather than succumbing to misery.

Keywords

💡South Africa

South Africa is the country where the speaker grew up and experienced firsthand the violence and racial tensions during the apartheid era. It serves as the backdrop for the speaker's formative experiences and contrasts with their appreciation for the value of human life in America.

💡Apartheid

Apartheid was the policy of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination in South Africa, which heavily influenced the speaker's early life and social interactions. The fall of apartheid is mentioned as a significant historical event that coincided with the speaker's teenage years.

💡Violence

Violence is a central theme in the speaker's recollection of their upbringing, highlighting the pervasive and normalized nature of aggression and harm in South Africa. It contrasts with the speaker's later experiences in a society that values human life more highly.

💡Human Life

The value placed on human life is a key concept in the speaker's narrative, contrasting the disposable nature of life in South Africa with the high regard for individual lives in America. This concept is central to understanding the speaker's reflections on societal values and personal growth.

💡Protests

Protests were a significant part of the speaker's social life and community engagement during their formative years. They were a response to the apartheid regime and symbolize the collective action against racial discrimination.

💡Social Vacuum

The social vacuum refers to the void left in a community when a person dies. The speaker contrasts the pain and impact of this vacuum in America with the seemingly lesser impact in South Africa due to the devaluation of human life.

💡Soviet Union

The Soviet Union is mentioned as another example of a society where the value of individual human life was lower compared to the United States. It serves as a comparative case to illustrate the global variability in how societies value human life.

💡Mass Violence

Mass violence refers to widespread and large-scale acts of aggression against a population. The speaker suggests that societies that undervalue human life may find it easier to engage in or accept mass violence, as the individual losses are less impactful.

💡Joy

Joy, in the context of the video, is the positive emotion that arises from embracing mortality and living life fully. The speaker contrasts this with a more somber approach to life, suggesting that acknowledging the inevitability of death can lead to a more joyful existence.

💡Mortality

Mortality refers to the inevitability of death. The speaker discusses how acknowledging one's mortality can lead to a more appreciative and joyful approach to life, as it encourages individuals to cherish each moment and let go of attachments.

💡Celebration of Life

The celebration of life is the idea of embracing and enjoying life to its fullest, despite its temporary nature. The speaker contrasts this with a more somber or fearful approach to life, highlighting the beauty of living fully in the face of mortality.

Highlights

Growing up in South Africa during a violent period.

The fall of apartheid in the 1980s.

Community social life intertwined with anti-apartheid protests.

The stark contrast in valuing human life between South Africa and America.

Witnessing violence firsthand, such as a stabbing on a train.

The age of 16 or 17 during the formative experience of witnessing death.

The societal reaction to violence, stepping over blood and continuing on.

The underlying philosophy of disposable human life in violent societies.

Comparing the value of human life in the Soviet Union versus the United States.

The ease of mass violence and suffering in societies with lower human life value.

The social vacuum created by the loss of an individual in a community.

The beauty and celebratory element found in places with a lower value of human life.

The joy of life when mortality is accepted.

Enjoying life to the fullest by letting go of attachments.

The goal of living longer should be focused on joy, happiness, and peace.

Maximizing joy as a life goal.

Transcripts

growing up in South Africa you said it

was a violent place what are some

formative moments that you remember from

that time South Africa was so I grew up

in uh a paride South Africa but more

specifically the fall of AP parite so it

was was the 80 I was a teenager in the

80s and uh our community would would

um part of our social life frankly was

the anti- aparte protests and to go be

with white people black people kind of

mix mixing it all

together the most formative experience

is frankly how much I appreciate a place

like America where we have value for

human

life so that was a country where where

human life was not valued it was

a it's a weird thing to come from that

to here where where we we take it so

seriously if someone dies in a war or

something like that and um we just

didn't take it seriously in South Africa

people died but people were killed I saw

someone killed in front of

me um with uh was getting of a train and

it's a very violent train known known

for violence we were stupid kids we

didn't really listen to our parents we

went on this train and uh the doors

opened and I had people trying to get

off the train and in front of me two

black people one black guy just stabbed

this knife in the side of this other

black guy's head and you're like what

the and you just I'm I got to get

off the train how old were you this time

probably 16 or 17 and I got to get off

the train and everyone is trying to get

me to get off because you know they're

all behind me so I step off and I step

into the pool of blood one foot and then

I just walk for about 100 Paces while

the stickiness of the blood just kind of

for my sneakers just on one foot just

like leaves a footprint behind me and

you just walk on you just walk on did

the others as well everyone walked on

that's an interesting point you make

underlying the violence is a kind

of philosophy that human life is

disposable the individual life is

disposable I mean that underlies many

ideologies you know I grew up in the

Soviet Union the value of human life was

lower there than in the United States

the value of the individual in the

United States is really high there's

probably an index you can put together

like yeah right

exactly per nation that that's a really

interesting way to put it because

violence is much easier on a mass scale

suffering causing suffering on a mass

scale is much easier when you don't

value the human life I've heard this

before where which I think I agree with

is when someone is killed someone is

someone's taken from our lives the the

vacuum that it creates the social vacuum

is extraordinarily painful and and it

truly is true I mean if someone in my

community passes away very very sad for

me and when you go to a place where

where you live grow up in a place where

where that human life is not valued

there's there's something about the

there's a little bit little bit less of

of social vacuum created because

everyone is kind of expecting everyone

to potentially be taken out at any

moment um but then there's also a beauty

to it because there's a much more of a

celebr

celebratory element when we my my cousin

Russ and I we again we're stupid kids we

shouldn't be doing this but we' go into

the townships where all a lot of the

violence would be happening and we

really didn't see most of the violence

there it was in in these more protests

and so so forth but but the the there's

a joy that also comes

from lower value of human life there's a

real Joy like everyone is like well I

mean it's beautiful it's we we have

dinner with black friends you know

friends with their family we were still

pretty young and um and there was just a

real joy to it when you accept mortality

yeah you you can really enjoy life you

can really enjoy I mean I think there's

actually quite a nice inside I I've

never really put it that way but I think

that's right actually I think you you

just chill out a bit take things a

little less seriously cuz life does end

for everybody it does right and if you

just head on accept that fact yeah you

can just enjoy every single moment and

let go of this attachment uh and just

enjoy the moment it's a real I do love

that we will live longer and so forth

but we should live longer with a with

the goal of joy and the goal of

happiness and peace um not of

some some form of misery that you choose

to attach yourself to maximize Joy

maximize Joy that's

right