Ep. 357: Feuerbach on the Evolution of Philosophy (Part One)
Mark, Wes, and Dylan continue to look at Ludwig Feuerbach's "Principles of the Philosophy of the Future" (1843), recounting his story about how increasingly mature notions of God should lead philosophy eventually to a materialism where the sensual is the real. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) . Visit https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-...
49m Dec 16, 2024
49m
PEL Presents PMP#186: From Oz Books to Wicked Film
We're coming up on the 125th anniversary of L. Frank Baum's children's book, The Wizard of Oz, and the film version of (the first half of) the musical Wicked has been released. Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al talk about the landmark 1939 film musical, the 1978 film The Wiz, Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked, the stage musical, the other Oz books by Baum, Maguire, et al, and other films like 1...
55m Dec 12, 2024
55m
Ep. 356: Feuerbach Against Theology (Part Two)
We dig in and start our detailed treatment of Ludwig Feuerbach's essay "Principles of the Philosophy of the Future" (1843). Feuerbach claims that people don't realize that the entity they worship is really just whatever it is about humanity and the world that we value, wrongly posited as an independent entity. So God is a mirror for any given society. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (ht...
52m Dec 09, 2024
52m
PEL Presents NEM#225: Loudon Wainwright III, the Reporter-Songwriter
Loudon has released 30 albums since 1970. He's the quintessential singer-songwriter, relying on crafty, personal lyrics delivered dynamically and typically solo, though his studio work has varied in production style and orchestration level over the years. We discuss "How Old is 75" from Lifetime Achievement (2022), "Road Ode (Live)" from Career Moves (1993), and "Be Careful There’s a Baby in t...
1hr 9m Dec 08, 2024
1hr 9m
Philosophy vs. Improv #86: Friends with App-Platter Benefits w/ Sarah Shockey and Tommy Maranges
It's a TEAM PLAY episode just in time for the holiday season! Returning guests improviser and podcaster (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/marty-sarah-love-wrestling/id1134012081) Sarah and recovering Philosophy Bro Tommy join Mark and Bill to talk AND EXPERIENCE friendship, with our longest single improv scene to date. What is friendship? Do you know your friends enough to imitate them? Do...
59m Dec 06, 2024
59m
Ep. 356: Feuerbach Against Theology (Part One)
On Ludwig Feuerbach's "Principles of the Philosophy of the Future" (1843) and the introduction to The Essence of Christianity (1841). What was the original point of religion? Can we retain what was emotionally good about it yet direct our efforts to purely practical matters? Feuerbach says yes, and this was a key influence on Marx. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexami...
51m Dec 02, 2024
51m
PEL Presents PMP#185: Steve Martin: X-Tuple Threat
Steve Martin was the biggest comic celebrity in the late '70s, became a huge movie star, and now delivers gentle comedy and fast banjo licks according to his desired rich guy schedule. In light of the popularity of Only Murders in the Building, we consider his many talents. Our 50ish hosts Mark and Sarahlyn are all in on this guy, but our 40ish hosts Lawrence and Al are not necessarily tickled....
51m Dec 01, 2024
51m
PEL Presents SUBTEXT: The Aesthetics of Death in "Beetlejuice" (Part 1)
Adam and Barbara Maitland are dead, but their troubles have just begun. The farmhouse decor of their home is under threat from the pretentious modernism of Delia Deetze, and her plan to remake it in her own image could turn their post-life purgatory into earthbound hell. Solving this problem leaves them with an impossible choice between figuring out how to navigate an intractable netherworld bu...
43m Nov 30, 2024
43m
Ep. 355: Marx on Alienation (Part Two)
Continuing on "Estranged Labor," "Private Property and Communism," and "The Power of Money on Bourgeois Society" with guest Lawrence Dallman. Does capitalism give rise to alienation, or is it alienation that is responsible for capitalism? Does a person (capitalist) have to be responsible for someone's alienation? What would we be like unalienated? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https:...
50m Nov 25, 2024
50m
PEL Presents PvI#85: Prototype Protoplasm w/ Mike Gorgone
Mike hosts the Hitchhikers and Appetizers podcast (https://improvinaction.com/projects/hitchhikers-and-appetizers/) , and we recorded this episode a bit before Halloween, before the election and the consequent mass exodus, as a sort of memo to the future, i.e. you. We blister our way through many topics including discovery, hospital dramas, time travel sex, self-experimentation, ancient aliens,...
52m Nov 21, 2024
52m
Ep. 355: Marx on Alienation (Part One)
On three of Karl Marx's Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844, "Estranged Labor," "Private Property and Communism," and "The Power of Money on Bourgeois Society." Featuring guest Lawrence Dallman. What is the plight of the working poor? It's that they are in an unnatural situation with regard to their work, which is supposed to gain them a sense of self but doesn't do so when it's a res...
39m Nov 18, 2024
39m
PREMIUM-PEL Thick-of-Fall Nightcap 2024
Mark, Wes, and Seth talk about horror media and what scares us in light of Halloween. We then give some follow-up discussion re. our Williamson and Chappell interviews. Do we actually want to participate in Williamson's science-minded analytic philosophy of the future? Were we too one-sided in our trans coverage? We respond to an email about our trans episode. If you're not hearing the full ve...
10m Nov 17, 2024
10m
PEL Presents (SUB)TEXT: A Strange Fashion of Forsaking in the Poetry of Thomas Wyatt (Part 1)
As an advisor to Henry VIII and ambassador to France and Italy, poet Thomas Wyatt was something of a professional court-surfer, practiced in riding the peaks and troughs of royal favor. Such were his verbal and diplomatic gifts that, though twice accused of and imprisoned for treason, he was twice released. His poetry reflects all the intrigue, paranoia, airlessness, and downright cruelty of th...
52m Nov 16, 2024
52m
Ep. 354: Guest Tim Williamson on Philosophic Method (Part Two)
We continue talking with Tim about Overfitting and Heuristics in Philosophy (2024), considering Tim's overall project and view of what philosophy should be doing and with what tools. We get into modeling, ethics, public philosophy, and more. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) . Visit https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and t...
41m Nov 11, 2024
41m
Ep. 354: Guest Tim Williamson on Philosophic Method (Part One)
Oxford philosophy professor Timothy Williamson talks to us about his new book, Overfitting and Heuristics in Philosophy. How can we best apply the insights of philosophy of science to philosophy itself? Maybe some alleged philosophical counter-examples are just the result of psychological heuristics gone wrong. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) . Visit...
43m Nov 04, 2024
43m
PEL Presents #184: !BREAKING! Comedy News
Many people use shows like Last Week Tonight or The Daily Show to not just satirize the news but to provide us with our news. Late night shows, SNL, and many other shows get in on this, and conservative media is catching up via Gutfield! How does the comedy news format relate to panel shows, podcasts, and other light-hearted political talk? For more, visit prettymuchpop.com (http://prettymuchp...
53m Nov 03, 2024
53m
PEL Presents PvI#84: Interesting? w/ Lorraine Besser
Lorraine teaches at Middlebury college (https://www.middlebury.edu/college/people/lorraine-besser)  and has recently written The Art of the Interesting: What We Miss in Our Pursuit of the Good Life and How to Cultivate It (https://lorrainebesser.com/the-art-of-the-interesting-2/) . How does "the interesting" fit into human flourishing? How do we know when some attractive stimulation is really i...
52m Nov 03, 2024
52m
Ep. 353: Reid on Visual Knowledge (Part Two)
Concluding our treatment of "Of Seeing" in Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense. We continue to hammer at this idea of "resemblance" between mental contents and physical objects, consider more carefully Reid's level of support for the primary/secondary quality distinction, how he treats non-signifying feelings like pain and warmth, and his comparison of sense experienc...
48m Oct 28, 2024
48m
PEL Presents NEM#224: Steve Dawson (Dolly Varden) Elevates Americana
Steve fronted Chicago's Dolly Varden for six albums from the '90s through 2013. He also started releasing albums under his own name 2003 and has just released his seventh. We discuss "A Mile South of Town" (and listen at the end to "Oh, California") from Ghosts (2024), the title track from The Dumbest Magnets by Dolly Varden (2000), and "Bronko Nagurski," a 1989 recording by the early iteratio...
1hr 6m Oct 26, 2024
1hr 6m
Ep. 353: Reid on Visual Knowledge (Part One)
We're continuing our treatment of Thomas Reid's Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense (1764), now discussing ch. 6: "Of Seeing." Does vision provide the exception to Reid's point that our sensations do not resemble objects in the world? Images surely seem to do so! What does this mean for Reid's epistemology? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexam...
49m Oct 21, 2024
49m
PEL Presents PMP#183: Classic Universal Monster Movies
It's our Halloween episode! Brooker Nourse from the Autopsy of a Horror Movie podcast (https://horrorpress.com/autopsy-of-a-horror-movie/) joins the gang about a wave of 1930's films including Dracula, Frankenstein, and The Invisible Man. Are these actually enjoyable to modern audiences? For more, visit prettymuchpop.com (http://prettymuchpop.com/) . Hear bonus content at https://www.patreon.c...
52m Oct 20, 2024
52m
PEL Presents PvI#83: Half Philosophizing (Season 4 Premiere)
Welcome to the beginning of a new round of shenanigans on Philosophy vs. Improv. Let the senior slump begin! Your hosts Mark Linsenmayer and Bill Arnett here talk a blazin' stream of consciousness and then have a pretty long improv scene. Are we already always philosophizing? Watch the proceedings unedited on YouTube (https://youtu.be/8-XoYpctfAU) . Hear more at philosophyimprov.com (http://...
52m Oct 18, 2024
52m
Ep. 352: Thomas Reid on Smelling and Knowledge (Part Two)
Continuing on Inquiry into the Human Mind, getting further into the chapter on smelling as well as the conclusion and Reid's exchange with Hume. What exactly is our relation with objects in the world according to Reid? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) . Visit https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and bonus content.
49m Oct 14, 2024
49m
Love Dishonored in Euripides' "Medea" - Part 6
Wes & Erin continue their discussion of Ancient Greece’s most notorious battle of the sexes, and Euripides’ rumination on the question of whether the Athenian ideals of rationality and moderation sufficiently honor the instinctual side of human nature.
50m Oct 13, 2024
50m
Ep. 352: Thomas Reid on Smelling and Knowledge (Part One)
On Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense (1764): the introduction, conclusion, ch. 2 "Of Smelling" ch. 4 "Of Hearing," and some correspondence between Reid and Hume. According to Reid, the big mistake of "modern" philosophy is thinking that objects in the world need to resemble the sensations we have of them. Smelling is supposed to give us an obvious counter-example: t...
55m Oct 07, 2024
55m
PEL Presents PMP#182: Tim Burton: Shtick Macabre
In light of the new Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, we discuss the films of director (and occasional writer) Tim Burton since his career was firmly established by his early work in the '80s including the original 1988 Beetlejuice. Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al have very mixed reactions to the new film, but we agree that the animation style that characterizes his vision is very rich and has had a m...
52m Oct 07, 2024
52m
PREMIUM-Ep. 351: Sophie Grace Chappell on Transgender (Part Two)
Mark, Seth and Dylan continue talking about philosophy surrounding trans phenomena in light of our interview with Sophie Grace about Trans Figured. In this supporter-exclusive discussion, we get into sex and gender as cluster concepts, ethical theory in equity discussions, and the practical matters you'd expect: sports participation, pronouns, bathrooms and dress codes. If you're not hearing ...
15m Oct 06, 2024
15m
Ep. 351: Guest Sophie Grace Chappell on Transgender (Part One)
Mark, Seth, and Dylan interview this British philosophy prof about her new book, Trans Figured, and philosophy's role in discussing transgender. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) . Part two of this episode (with just the PEL guys) will only be available to PEL supporters. Visit https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to this along with our massive pac...
53m Sep 30, 2024
53m
PEL Presents NEM#223: Dale Crover (Melvins) the Accidentalist
Though Dale is known as the long-time drummer for Washington sludge-metal band Melvins ('88-present), he's also a guitarist and singer who led the band Altamont though four alternative rock albums ('97-'05) and has now released his third full-length, stylistically varied solo album. We discuss "I Quit" from Glossolalia (2024), "Bad Move" from The Fickle Finger of Fate (2017), and "The Bit" by ...
1hr 10m Sep 29, 2024
1hr 10m
Ep. 350: Rorty on Justification and Essentialism (Part Two)
Concluding on "Universality and Truth" from Richard Rorty's Pragmatism As Anti-Authoritarianism. It it coherent to simply not have a theory of truth? Rorty claims that he's not a relativist; he's just avoiding some useless parts of philosophy that just cause problems, including inculcating the respect for a non-human absolute, and this attitude undermines democracy. Get more at partiallyexamin...
52m Sep 23, 2024
52m
PEL Presents PvI#82: LIVE in Personability w/ James Whittington
Chicago's iO Theater was graced on August 21 by Mark, Bill, and special guest theater educator James Whittington (https://www.secondcity.com/people/james-whittington) , who spoke about embodiment (see Maurice Merleau-Ponty (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/tag/maurice-merleau-ponty/) ), the possible disconnect between meaning and tone, and being in the physical presence of greatness. They acte...
54m Sep 21, 2024
54m
Ep. 350: Rorty on Justification and Essentialism (Part One)
On "Universality and Truth" and "Pan-Relationalism," which are lectures 3-5 in Richard Rorty's Pragmatism As Anti-Authoritarianism. How do we justify democracy? Rorty says we don't have to refer to transcendent Truth or Good to do this. He also denies the disinction between essential and accidental properties, and in fact between substance and property: Everything is just described in terms of...
51m Sep 16, 2024
51m
PEL Presents PMP#181: M. Night Shyamalan's Films Are a Trap
In light of the new film Trap, we look at this writer/director's oeuvre. Was he a bright light (The Sixth Sense) that at one point went out (certainly by The Happening), and has that light gone back on as he's regained full control in his most recent films (Knock at the Cabin, The Visit, et al.)? Is he a genius, overrated, or somehow both? Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al disagree both about Tr...
56m Sep 15, 2024
56m
PEL Presents NEM#222: Amy Rigby's Nostalgic Simplicity
Amy started out as an NYC punk fan, was in the "cow punk" band Last Roundup with her brother, and then in a vocal trio called The Shams that released an album and an EP around 1993. She finally emerged as a full front-person as a solo artist in 1997; she's since released nine solo albums plus three more with her husband Wreckless Eric (https://nakedlyexaminedmusic.com/nem206-wreckless-eric/) , ...
1hr 15m Sep 13, 2024
1hr 15m
Ep. 349: Rorty's Pluralistic Pragmatism (Part Two)
Continuing on Richard Rorty's Pragmatism As Anti-Authoritarianism, ch. 1, "Pragmatism and Religion" and 2, "Pragmatism as Romantic Polytheism." Rorty evaluates past pragmatists' approaches to religion, arguing contra James that it can't be "privatized," that democratic social goals involve shared rationality, which means that all of our beliefs are open to the judgment of our peers. Get more ...
51m Sep 09, 2024
51m
PREMIUM-Closereads: Merleau-Ponty on the Body
We begin a long series on Maurice Merleau-Ponty's "Phenomenology of Perception" (1945), focusing on Part I, "The Body": "Experience and Objective Thought." To get the whole recording (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/2024/09/09/closereads-merleau-ponty-on-the-body-part-one/) , you can become a PEL Citizen (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/membership-options/) , or simply go subscribe to the ...
15m Sep 06, 2024
15m
Ep. 349: Rorty's Pluralistic Pragmatism (Part One)
On Richard Rorty's Pragmatism As Anti-Authoritarianism (1997), ch. 1-2 about religion. Should democracy be defended on absolutist grounds, e.g. by reference to God-given or natural rights, the nature of Man, or the dictates of Reason? Rorty says no! Democracy, ethics, and even truth itself are a matter for societies to decide for themselves. Monotheistic religion provides a negative model for ...
47m Sep 02, 2024
47m
PEL Presents PMP#180: Season Four Wrap: Nostalgia
As Pretty Much Pop ends its 5th year of podcasting, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al break from our usual format to talk in a more free-form way about the thin line between the "new" media we talk about on the show and the classics of yesteryear. For more, visit prettymuchpop.com (http://prettymuchpop.com/) . Hear bonus content at https://www.patreon.com/prettymuchpop or by subscribing via Appl...
42m Aug 31, 2024
42m
Ep. 348: Tim Williamson's Knowledge-First Epistemology (Part Two)
Continuing on "Knowledge First Epistemology" (2011), "Justifications, Excuses, and Sceptical Scenarios" (2015), and "Morally Loaded Cases in Philosophy" (2019). How does knowledge-first epistemology relate to reliabilism? What are its moral implications? Does W. have a good argument against relativism and skepticism? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) ....
51m Aug 26, 2024
51m
PREMIUM-PEL End-of-Summer Nightcap 2024
Mark, Wes, and Dylan again talk politics, including conspiracy theorist psychology, whether post-modernism is responsible for current "post-truth" discourse on the Right (see the PvI David Shields episode (https://philosophyimprov.com/pvi80-alternative-facts-david-shields/) ), our previous guest John Ganz who now has a bestselling book (https://www.amazon.com/When-Clock-Broke-Conspiracists-Amer...
9m Aug 25, 2024
9m
Ep. 348: Tim Williamson's Knowledge-First Epistemology (Part One)
On "Knowledge First Epistemology" (2011), "Justifications, Excuses, and Sceptical Scenarios" (2015), and "Morally Loaded Cases in Philosophy" (2019). Is knowledge basic, or is it dissolvable into more basic ingredients such as justification, truth, and belief? Williamson argues that these latter things should instead be defined in terms of knowledge. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (htt...
48m Aug 19, 2024
48m
PEL Presents PMP#179: Deadpool Gets Meta
We discuss the Deadpool films in light of the new Deadpool & Wolverine, which leaves the fourth wall thoroughly smashed. Is the new film just a meta-text about the existence of other Marvel films? Is this just a particularly irreverent phase in superhero films (contra Christopher Nolan Batman seriousness)? Featuring Mark, Sarah, Al, Lawrence, and Al. For more, visit prettymuchpop.com (http://p...
52m Aug 18, 2024
52m
PEL Presents NEM#221: David Nagler Goes Brazilian
The New York-based singer/keyboardist/guitarist had several releases with Nova Social from '98-'14 while also serving as music director for Wesley Stace's Cabinet of Wonders (https://www.cabinetofwonders.com/) variety show. After four solo releases, he's formed a new project setting his droll lyrics in a '60s Brazilian setting called As For the Future. We discuss "Koan for the Music Business" ...
1hr 23m Aug 16, 2024
1hr 23m
Ep. 347: Nyaya Sutra Against Buddhist Skeptics (Part Two)
Mark, Seth, and Dylan now turn to ch. 4 of Dasti/Phillips' Nyaya Sutra: Selections with Early Commentaries about the self. Buddhism famously claims that there is no self, and the Nyaya philosophers respond with both common-sensical arguments (e.g. psychological properties must be possessed by something) and religious (without a soul, what persists through reincarnation?). Get more at partially...
38m Aug 12, 2024
38m
PEL Presents PvI#80: Brief, Alternative Facts with David Shields
Internationally best-selling author David (https://www.davidshields.com/)  wrote a book (https://sublationmedia.com/product/how-we-got-here-melville-plus-nietzsche-divided-by-the-square-root-of-allan-bloom-times-zizek-squared-equals-bannon-by-david-shields/)  (and made a film (https://www.how-we-got-here-film.com/) ) called How We Got Here, which traces the gradual path in the history of ideas ...
47m Aug 11, 2024
47m
Announcement: Philosophy vs. Improv Live in Chicago on Wed. 8/21
Mark and Bill (with a special improvising philosopher guest) will be recording our PvI season finale live on stage at the iO Theater (aka The Freemont) in Chicago at 1501 N Kingsbury St, on Wednesday, Aug. 21 from 6-7pm. Please come join us! This is a FREE SHOW, with no need to buy tickets in advance and plenty of street parking. After watching us, stick around for Bill's regular Wednesday imp...
1m Aug 11, 2024
1m
Ep. 346: Nyaya Sutra Against Buddhist Skeptics (Part One)
We're continuing to explore Nyaya epistemology, in this part focusing on ch. 3, "In Defense of the Real," in Nyaya Sutra: Selections with Early Commentaries (2017). Sponsors: Apply for convenient term life insurance from Fabric by Gerber Life at https://meetfabric.com/PEL. Get a $1/month e-commerce trial at https://shopify.com/pel. Time is short for your enrollment in Mark's Big Books in Cont...
52m Aug 05, 2024
52m
PEL Presents NEM#220: Jah Wobble's Bass Worship
John Wardle (named Jah Wobble by Sid Vicious) started playing bass in John Lydon's post Sex Pistols band Public Image Ltd. in 1978, left after two albums, and has since recorded 50+ solo and collaborative albums, largely led by the bass, but spanning many genres including some particularly famous work in the world-music area. We discuss "Last Exit" from A Brief History of Now (2023), "21 Towar...
1hr 17m Aug 03, 2024
1hr 17m
Ep. 346: Nyaya Sutra on Knowledge (Part Two)
Continuing on ch. 1, "Knowledge Sources," of the Matthew Dasti/Stephen Phillips presentation of the Nyaya-Sutra: Selections with Early Commentaries. We finish up perception and then talk about inference and testimony. Are these all independent sources, or do they, e.g. all reduce ultimately to perception as Western empiricists claim? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com (https://partiallyexa...
53m Jul 29, 2024
53m
PEL Presents PMP#178: The Bear's Incomplete Dish
We discuss Christopher Storer's culinary dramedy in light of the release of its strange third season. What made this a uniquely wonderful show in its first season? Is the unsatisfying character of this season just a matter of its being only the first half of what was originally planned? We talk about the flashbacks, the cameos, the comedy, "food porn," and more. For more, visit prettymuchpop.c...
55m Jul 28, 2024
55m