This episode’s vocabulary
Vicariously
adverb — in a vicarious way (= experienced through the activities of other people, rather than by doing something yourself).
Conservatively
adverb — in a way that is not fashionable or modern.
Adventurous
adj. — willing to try new or difficult things.
Disposition
noun — a natural tendency to do something, or to have or develop something.
Helicopter parenting
noun — a way of taking care of a child that involves a parent being very closely involved with their child's life, especially their education, and trying to control it too much.
Risk-averse
adj. — unwilling to take risks or wanting to avoid risks as much as possible.
To dive in/dive into something
phrasal verb — to start doing something suddenly and energetically, often without stopping to think.
To go off
phrasal verb — to leave a place and go somewhere else.
Workload
noun — the amount of work to be done, especially by a particular person or machine in a period of time.
Commitment
noun — a promise or firm decision to do something.
Motion
noun — the act or process of moving, or a particular action or movement.
Solo
adj. — alone; without other people.
Resourcefulness
noun — the ability to make decisions and act on your own.
To wind up
phrasal verb — to find yourself in an unexpected and usually unpleasant situation, especially as a result of what you do.
Spectrum
noun — a range of different positions, opinions, etc. between two extreme points.
Stability
noun — a situation in which something is not likely to move or change.
To gallivant
verb — to visit or go to a lot of different places, enjoying yourself and not worrying about other things you should be doing.
Bold
adj. — not frightened of danger.
To spice upsomething
phrasal verb — if you spice up something you add excitement or interest to it.
Monotonous
adj. — not changing and therefore boring.
Grievously
adverb — to a very severe or serious degree.
Questions and answers
Who likes to read adventure books?
People who are interested in adventures, no? In more detail, probably there are two kinds of people, people who can't afford to have real adventures. And people who would rather live vicariously through fictional people.
What kinds of people dislike adventures?
Well, people who aren't interested in adventures? Sorry, I'm not taking these questions seriously. Okay. Probably people who... Maybe they're just not interested in this kind of risk-taking behaviour and they're more conservatively minded. I think that's fairly safe to say that that would be how most people who aren't adventurous would describe themselves.
And why do they prefer being conservatively minded and not adventurous?
I don't think it's an act of preference. I think that's just a natural disposition that some people have, some people are more prone to taking risks than others. There was an interesting theory a while back, that there's a bacteria that exists in some people, but not in others and it influences your life choices. So perhaps they don't have this bacteria.
Why are some children addicted to adventure games?
Well, especially nowadays, they're a decent simulation of real-life experiences. And I guess, there's lots more helicopter parenting now. So they might not actually get the chance to have real-life adventures due to this. So it's just another way for them to engage in this adventurous behaviour without the risk.
Why do some people prefer to read adventure books, rather than take an adventure?
Well, risk-averse people might be more willing to dive into a book than dive into a canyon, I suppose. And there's less time to go off on adventures now. Because people's workloads are... Well, they were increasing, I don't know what it's like now. But last I checked, that was the case. And they have more commitments. As you get older, your commitments tend to grow, you can't really go off on a random adventure, if you have a family to take care of, can you?
Do you think adventures are important in life?
Well, depends entirely on the sort of person that you want to be. I mean, if you are the kind of person that values having lots of interesting stories to tell, about strange places that you've been to and strange activities that you've done, then that is something that will be important. But if you're not, and you prefer to be at home, where it's safe and calm and comfortable, and just everything going normally, then it will not be something that's important for you.
What do you think are the benefits of going on an adventure?
Well, it's an adventure. So you have lots of unique life experiences and stories to tell the grandkids if you survive your adventure to have grandchildren.
Anything else?
No. No-no, there are other things, of course. It's something to look back on, regardless of the kind of life that you've lived. When you're older, and kind of gone through the motions of everything that you're supposed to do in life, you can look back and think, oh, wow, it was very interesting. Good. And feel the sense of satisfaction.
Is it better to go on an adventure alone or with a group?
Well, I mean, if you're flying solo, then there's more, or there are more opportunities for self-development and chance to develop your resourcefulness as an individual. Although if you're a part of a group, then you could build connections with new people and strengthen existing bonds. So again, it really depends on what you want to achieve and the kind of person that you are.
Are there any risks associated with going on an adventure?
Well, lots of risks. It might, you know, adventures are sold as being interesting, but they might actually turn out to be quite boring. And of course, you could wind up with life-threatening injuries, if they end up being extremely interesting. Or you could also wind up dead, which is also not a good thing. So yeah, there's lots of risks that... But those are the three big ones. And they're sort of at the extreme ends of the spectrum. Boredom or death or injury.
Do you think that people should take more risks in their lives and go on adventurous trips?
Well, society depends on a certain level of stability in order to function. So if we all went gallivanting off into the sunset civilization would probably collapse. However, people could still be bolder, even just to spice things up a little bit. No one likes it when things are monotonous all the time, do they?
Do you think that experiencing adventures broadens people's horizons?
If they don't wind up dead or grievously injured then yes. You have the chance to meet interesting people and have experiences that lot's of other people would never have. And of course, you network with people along the way, so that also presents opportunities that you would not normally have. So I think so, yes.
Thank you, Rory, for your adventurous answers!