1 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:05,600 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of 2 00:00:05,640 --> 00:00:10,880 Speaker 1: My Heart Radio. Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and 3 00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:13,920 Speaker 1: this is the Monster Fact, a short form series from 4 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,560 Speaker 1: Stuff to Blow Your Mind focusing on mythical creatures, ideas, 5 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:26,079 Speaker 1: and monsters in time. One of my favorite films of 6 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:31,000 Speaker 1: all time is easily The fantasy musical Labyrinth, a movie 7 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:35,320 Speaker 1: that summons the combined creative talents of Jim Hinson, Brian Froud, 8 00:00:35,800 --> 00:00:40,920 Speaker 1: Carrie Jones, David Bowie, Sarah Connolly, and composer Trevor Jones, 9 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 1: just to name a few. While its predecessor film The 10 00:00:45,760 --> 00:00:51,000 Speaker 1: Dark Crystal took its fantasy world creation incredibly seriously, Labyrinth 11 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: leans more into pure musical fun and python esque absurdity. 12 00:00:57,040 --> 00:00:59,920 Speaker 1: Now there's a lot of this flavor to discuss in Labor, 13 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:03,040 Speaker 1: but I wanted to talk specifically about the four guards 14 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 1: that Sarah encounters as she makes her way across the 15 00:01:06,520 --> 00:01:11,919 Speaker 1: Goblin King's labyrinth. They are doglike humanoid creatures that guard 16 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 1: a pair of doors. They are either conjoined beings and 17 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:19,280 Speaker 1: therefore two guards, or they are affixed behind their signature 18 00:01:19,319 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: shields in a way that allow for two beings per shield. 19 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,160 Speaker 1: Their absurd appearances of course, linked to their visual resemblance 20 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:30,959 Speaker 1: to double headed European playing cards, in which a king, queen, 21 00:01:31,040 --> 00:01:34,800 Speaker 1: jack or joker is double bodied and double headed in 22 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:37,720 Speaker 1: such a way that the card can be discernible from 23 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:42,120 Speaker 1: either side of the table. According to St. Bindet and 24 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:46,080 Speaker 1: the Excellent Labyrinth Festiary, the heads of the left door 25 00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:49,120 Speaker 1: guardian are Alf and Jim, while the heads of the 26 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 1: right door are Ralph and Tim. When Sarah encounters the guardians, 27 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:59,240 Speaker 1: she quickly learns the rules concerning their doors. One door 28 00:01:59,360 --> 00:02:01,800 Speaker 1: leads to the assle at the center of the labyrinth, where, 29 00:02:01,840 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 1: of course, Sarah is trying to go in order to 30 00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:09,440 Speaker 1: rescue her step brother Toby, while the other door leads 31 00:02:09,480 --> 00:02:15,720 Speaker 1: to bum certain death. The lower heads have no idea 32 00:02:15,760 --> 00:02:19,679 Speaker 1: which doors which, but the upper heads do, but Sarah 33 00:02:19,760 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 1: is only permitted to ask one of them. Furthermore, one 34 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:26,320 Speaker 1: of the two guards always tells the truth, while the 35 00:02:26,360 --> 00:02:30,280 Speaker 1: other one always lies, So Sarah faces a conundrum. How 36 00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:32,639 Speaker 1: can she find out which door is which? How can 37 00:02:32,720 --> 00:02:36,200 Speaker 1: she risk asking the wrong guard and being lied to. 38 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:44,119 Speaker 1: The scenario instantly invokes what is known as the liar's paradox. 39 00:02:44,639 --> 00:02:47,600 Speaker 1: If a liar tells you they are lying, well, then 40 00:02:47,639 --> 00:02:50,880 Speaker 1: they are telling the truth. Consider the statement quote, this 41 00:02:50,919 --> 00:02:54,120 Speaker 1: sentence is a lie unquote. If that statement is true, 42 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:58,600 Speaker 1: then it's false. If it's false, then it's true. Oh mind. Sarah, 43 00:02:58,639 --> 00:03:01,240 Speaker 1: of course, is a bright young woman and makes the 44 00:03:01,360 --> 00:03:04,480 Speaker 1: short work of the guardians and their attempts to confuse her. 45 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:09,000 Speaker 1: As John Touri points out in the paper objective falsity 46 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:12,520 Speaker 1: is essential to lying an argument from convergent evidence published 47 00:03:12,560 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: in philosophy studies. In one she engages in what is 48 00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:21,600 Speaker 1: called answer laundering. If Sarah simply asked one of the 49 00:03:21,639 --> 00:03:24,440 Speaker 1: guards which doors which, then it might be a true 50 00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:27,000 Speaker 1: or untrue statement that she gets in return, and her 51 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 1: chances therefore are no better than simply picking a door 52 00:03:29,919 --> 00:03:36,200 Speaker 1: at random. Instead, she launders one answer through another tory 53 00:03:36,360 --> 00:03:39,960 Speaker 1: explains quote by asking one guard whether the other guard 54 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: would say that this door leads to success. Sarah deduced 55 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:46,200 Speaker 1: the correct one either she gets the truth about a 56 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:49,920 Speaker 1: lie or a lie about the truth. Whenever she has 57 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:53,240 Speaker 1: told yes, the correct answer is no, and whenever she 58 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:57,400 Speaker 1: has told no, the correct answer is yes. The truth 59 00:03:57,440 --> 00:04:00,560 Speaker 1: and the lie dependably canceled each other out In scenario 60 00:04:00,640 --> 00:04:05,680 Speaker 1: provided to restresses that lies cannot be true. Urry points 61 00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:07,640 Speaker 1: out that the riddle of the Four Guards is a 62 00:04:07,720 --> 00:04:12,000 Speaker 1: variant of the Knights and Naves logic puzzle from Raymond 63 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:17,800 Speaker 1: Smoleans publication What is the name of this book? The 64 00:04:17,880 --> 00:04:20,440 Speaker 1: scenario in the book that closely resembles the scene from 65 00:04:20,520 --> 00:04:24,720 Speaker 1: Labyrinth involves a knight and a nave otherwise indistinguishable. Who 66 00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:27,760 Speaker 1: guard a fork in the road? Which road do you take? 67 00:04:28,279 --> 00:04:30,839 Speaker 1: Dare you ask these two men, given that one is 68 00:04:30,880 --> 00:04:34,359 Speaker 1: secretly a noble knight and the other secretly a vile nave, 69 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:36,400 Speaker 1: Only one of them is going to give you a 70 00:04:36,440 --> 00:04:38,560 Speaker 1: good answer. The other one is going to lie to you. 71 00:04:38,839 --> 00:04:43,280 Speaker 1: The solution again comes via answer laundry. Ask which path 72 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:47,440 Speaker 1: the other individual would say is the correct one. So 73 00:04:47,600 --> 00:04:51,240 Speaker 1: this is how the Four Guards of Labyrinth work, unless 74 00:04:51,279 --> 00:04:56,320 Speaker 1: I am lying, which I am not. Tune in for 75 00:04:56,360 --> 00:04:59,960 Speaker 1: additional episodes of The Monster Fact each week. As always, 76 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:02,760 Speaker 1: you can email us at contact at stuff to Blow 77 00:05:02,760 --> 00:05:13,640 Speaker 1: your Mind dot com. Stuff to Blow Your Mind is 78 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:16,360 Speaker 1: a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from 79 00:05:16,360 --> 00:05:19,400 Speaker 1: my Heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 80 00:05:19,440 --> 00:05:21,240 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.