The Academy Podcast

In this episode we cover Book 3 of the Nichomachean Ethics where Aristotle goes over "Action Theory" and what exactly can be considered a voluntary and desired action versus what cannot. And Aaron crashes out just thinking about it.

And we are back! In this episode we begin to breakdown the definition of virtue for Aristotle, what it consists of, and how does one achieve it. The famous "Golden Mean" is brought up, and we wonder whether or not Aristotle is secretly a hedonist. Please enjoy!

Here we are laying the groundwork to go through Aristotle's "Nichomachean Ethics". In this episode we cover teleology, politics, kinds of goods, the common good, and categories of the sciences in order to establish our future discussions on happiness and virtue. Thank you for listening! Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter @academy_podcast.

And so begins a new series on Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics! We begin with a broad introduction on who Aristotle was, what defined him as a philosopher, and the various multitudes of topics we will be covering in this series. Please enjoy as we struggle to cover one of the greatest minds of western philosophical thought!

We finish our coverage of Boethius by discussing Time, God's foreknowledge, predestination, and our limited perspective on fate. theacademypodcast@outlook.com @academy_podcast

Welcome back! In this episode we cover some heavy topics such as: the problem of evil, the ontological status of justice, and the difference between fate and providence. This one was fun to record! Be sure to follow us @academy_podcast

Aaron finally gets to talk about the concept of Anamnesis and the act of memory!

In this episode we give a wide overview of the concept of "Transcendentals". This is a heavy philosophy episode that covers metaphysics in the Middle Ages and the true nature of happiness. This one definitely deserves some note taking.

In this episode of covering Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy, we begin to lay the groundwork for his metaphysics for following episodes. We cover Mistress Fortune, the object of happiness, and the nature of change.

Hello and welcome to our walk through of Boethius' Consolation of Philosophy. In this episode we cover the introduction of Lady Philosophy, the use of Platonic and Stoic philosophies as a means of dealing with pain and anguish, and the initial thesis statement of the work being that unchanging reason governs the universe. There is a lot to cover in this episode to lay a firm foundation for wha...

Welcome to our new series where we are covering (Saint) Boethius and his famous work: The Consolation of Philosophy which will serve as our first foray into the philosophy of the Middle Ages. In this episode we talk a lot about the historical and philosophical context in which Boethius is living and writing in; his personal life, various forms of Christianity, the fall of the western Roman Empire,...

Our final episode on J.S Mill's Utilitarianism! In this episode we cover Mill's conception of Justice over the course of history, recap all of his thoughts regarding the makeup of Utilitarianism, provide personal reflections, and briefly talk about our favorite rapper. We are excited to finally tie off another series!  Be sure to follow us @academy_podcast on instagram and twitter!

Welcome back! In this episode of the Academy Podcast we begin to expand upon Mill's definition of utilitarianism as we discuss his theory of the mind with associationism, the relationship of utilitarianism to egoism, normativity within ethics, and ask about the role and place of virtue. This one was a lot of fun to record as Aaron tries his best to stop Daniel from taking jabs at Mill's arguments....

In this episode we cover sections I and II of J.S Mill's essay "Utilitarianism". We discuss the definition of Utilitarianism, what constitutes gradations of pleasure, and how he envisions people would know how to seek pleasure. This is a dense episode that gives an overview to J.S Mill's most important contributions to the pleasure-pain principle of ethics.   

And welcome back! We are launching our new series on J.S Mill's essay "Utilitarianism" which is a very important work in the history of philosophy. We go over the historical context in which the essay was written, the biography of Mill himself, the deficiencies in the original iteration, and what Mill was hoping to correct in his essay. We hope you enjoy this series, wherever you listen to us plea...

In our final episode on Notes From Underground we cover the climax and falling action of the Underground Man. Dostoevsky's philosophy of love and redemption is laid bare and the final critique against the philosophy of Rational Egoism is delivered. Please enjoy this final act! 

In this episode we cover the rising action of Notes From Underground in which the Underground Man navigates a dinner party with supposed friends and attempts to show the best of himself. Following the debacle that ensues, the Underground Man gives chase to Zerkov and his friends only to happen upon an unlikely character: a prostitute named Liza. This episode covers a lot of ground on both Dostoevs...

In this episode, Daniel and Aaron have a free-wheeling discussion on the first half of the "Proposition of Wet Snow" which is the second part of Notes From Underground. They discuss the main plot points and talk about drunkenness, homeless people, cringe humor, high school, and the desire to no longer be self-conscious. We hope you enjoy the looser format. Please feel free to follow us @academy_po...

In this episode we cover a broad definition of existentialism, the philosophy of Søren Kierkegaard, and how they both relate (and don't relate) to the thoughts of Dostoevsky and the Underground Man. We give a more precise treatment to all of the interplay between these thoughts swirling around in the book in order to provide some precise definitions and much needed philosophical context. Also, Dan...

Welcome in! In this episode we begin our discussion covering the first half of Notes From Underground by Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky. We go over his arguments against rational egoism, thoughts on existentialism, and the desire for choice present within the human spirit. Nietzsche and Camus are also brought up to lend even more thought on the spitefulness and inertia found within the undergr...

Welcome to our series on Notes From Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky, the first fictional work we are covering. Jumping right into modern philosophy, we give a brief biography on Dostoevsky, go over the influences and context of the novel, and have a discussion on existentialism, rational egoism, and nihilism. 

Welcome back. In this episode we finish off our series on Epicurus with a more free form discussion on some more interesting yet specific points of Epicureanism. We finally bid a kind farewell to Mr. Atoms, you will be missed. 

With Daniel coming on as a brand new co-host, this latest episode seeks to cover Epicurean ethics and his unique brand of hedonism. Listen to Daniel constantly disrupt the conversation in his first episode as we explore the difference between kinetic and catestematic pleasure, natural and unnatural pleasures, and the is-ought problem. We hope you enjoy this episode, please leave a positive review...

In this episode of the Academy Podcast, Aaron does a solo episode to cover the Epicurean conception of the soul, the gods, and how it pertains to his ethics. Surprise! They are made of ATOMS!

In this solo episode we go over some important changes coming to the podcast in the near future as well as talk about our intentions going forward. We hope you have enjoyed our discussions so far and will continue to enjoy the rest of the series as it comes out. Please feel free to reach out to us over twitter, instagram, or email us at theacademypodcast@outlook.com.