The End of Critical Thinking - It's Worse Than You Think

Summary

Craig Perry argues that fragmented, fast-paced online content can encourage fragmented thinking. Drawing on George Orwell’s essay Politics and the English Language, he describes a self-reinforcing loop: vague or careless writing weakens thought, and weak thought produces more vague writing. Writing can help break that loop because it requires people to clarify, organize, and test their ideas.

Perry’s central recommendation is to write and publish one essay each week. The goal is not simply to create content, but to develop original perspectives, learn from feedback, and become a clearer thinker. He cautions against using AI to write an essay for you, arguing that this skips the effort of deciding what you actually think. However, he recommends using AI as a discussion partner to challenge ideas and expose gaps in reasoning.

Practical Strategies and Routine

• Choose a problem that genuinely matters to you. Frame it as a clear, single-sentence issue, then state your view and consider a possible solution.
• Spend about 30 minutes thinking before drafting.
  • Take a walk, ideally somewhere pleasant.
  • Talk through the problem and your argument.
  • If using AI, ask it to challenge your reasoning and help develop a concise outline—around 2,000 words, according to Perry.
  • Read AI responses aloud and answer them in your own words to make your thinking more specific.
• Draft for 30–60 minutes without interruption.
  • Write from the outline and focus on getting a first draft down.
  • Avoid using AI to generate the essay; choose the wording yourself.
  • If you get stuck, strengthen the outline or clarify the relevant section.
  • Minimize distractions: close other tabs, avoid email, and put your phone in another room.
• Publish the essay rather than waiting until it feels perfect. Perry sees publication as a way to test ideas with real readers and receive feedback.
• Review the response after a few days or up to a week. Consider measures such as reads, responses, and sharing, then use what you learn to improve future essays.
• Treat ideas as perspectives, not unquestionable laws. Build arguments, remain open to criticism, and revise them when weaknesses appear.

Orwell’s Warning Signs of Poor Writing

Perry summarizes Orwell’s warning signs as:

• Relying on stock phrases
• Making simple ideas sound complicated
• Using impressive-sounding words without clear meaning
• Using empty language to signal group identity

Perry also says short-form content may be associated with poorer attention and cognitive performance. He cites a meta-analysis, but the subtitles do not identify it.

Presenters and Sources

• Presenter: Craig Perry
• George Orwell: Politics and the English Language (1946)
• Jared Henderson: Mentioned by Perry in connection with online discussion of literacy
• Unnamed meta-analysis: Perry refers to a review of 71 studies involving nearly 100,000 participants; the subtitles do not provide its title or authors.