Infinite Jest is a novel for 2026 episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 31, 2026 · 25 MIN

Infinite Jest is a novel for 2026

from The New Society | culture from the New Statesman

Thirty years ago, David Foster Wallace published Infinite Jest - a novel so sprawling, so formally strange, and so unnervingly prescient that it has never quite stopped happening. Set in a near-future North America obsessed with pleasure, entertainment, and escape, the book asked a question that feels even sharper today than it did in 1996: what happens when a culture confuses happiness with anaesthesia?Tanjil Rashid is joined by DT Max and Jonathan Derbyshire to discuss why the novel still matters, and what it can tell us about the world we’ve built since. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jan 31, 2026

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

Infinite Jest is a novel for 2026

0:00 25:59

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The New Society | culture from the New Statesman?

This episode is 25 minutes long.

When was this The New Society | culture from the New Statesman episode published?

This episode was published on January 31, 2026.

Can I download this The New Society | culture from the New Statesman episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!