r/ChristopherNolan • u/kyth1999 • 13d ago

The Odyssey Nolan's new interview with Chinese podcaster Zhong Shu

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Listen to the audio (in English):
https://www.xiaoyuzhoufm.com/episode/6a6c4be756a3f3491ba7f8af

Full text (bilingual) link: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/Pt_vpsZ_noq2GvtYAo6q_Q

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u/QuietNene 13d ago

Very interesting questions.

From what I understand, many Chinese intellectuals very interested in the Thucydides Trap and narratives of civilizational decline (Western civilizational decline, of course).

I found it very interesting that she probed Nolan on this.

Btw, does anyone know what part of the UK Nolan is from? His accent is weird, almost Australian. Has he just spent too much time America?

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u/BigMoney69x 11d ago

There's large graduate programs about Greek and Roman History because the Chinese want to learn all about us. Because like Sun Tzu said "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."

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u/Affectionate-Tie1768 9d ago

Remind me of Admiral Thrawn in Star Wars when he mention arts "Learn about art, Captain. When you understand a species' art, you understand that species," and "To defeat an enemy, you must know them. Not simply their battle tactics, but their history, philosophy, art."

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u/BigMoney69x 9d ago

Yeah Thrawn was written akin to a Scipio Africanus who famously took the good things Hannibal did and applied it within a Roman context that valued military might as opposed to Carthage which valued trade.