The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast

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 . Hear more at philosophyimprov.com . Support the podcast at philosophyimprov.com...

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 ma...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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? The post Ep. 352: Thomas Reid on Smelling and Knowledge (Part Two) first appeared on The Partially...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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 w...

Subscribe to get Part 3 of this episode in its entirety, along with tons of other supporter-exclusive content. You can alternately choose to make a one-time purchase at patreon.com/partiallyexaminedlife . The post PREVIEW-Ep. 351: Sophie Grace Chappell on Transgender (Part Two) first appeared on The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast .

Subscribe to get this interview ad-free, plus tons of bonus content, including a supporter-exclusive part two by Mark, Seth, and Dylan . Mark, Seth, and Dylan interview this British philosophy prof about her new book, Trans Figured, and philosophy's role in discussing the phenomena of transgender (which, yes, can be used as a noun, according to Sophie). Sponsors: Apply for convenient term life ins...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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...

Chicago's iO Theater was graced on August 21 by Mark, Bill, and special guest theater educator James Whittington , who spoke about embodiment (see Maurice Merleau-Ponty ), the possible disconnect between meaning and tone, and being in the physical presence of greatness. They acted out scenes (while still sitting!) about an unsuccessful party and Experiences-R-Us.  Hear more at philosophyimprov.com...

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 abou...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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...

Known for casting mythical heroes in human proportions, Eurpides has his hands full with Medea—homocidal sorcerous, granddaughter of the sun, and a woman who does not take betrayal lightly. Nevertheless, the poet is able to capture the agony of someone who has given up everything for love—family, home, and homeland—only to find her passion disregarded, and her sacrifices unappreciated, by a man wh...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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 m...

Our long lost episode. Consider it a mystery box. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com . Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com .  Hear more at philosophyimprov.com . Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions, a video version of the podcast, and other bonus stuff. The post Philosophy vs. Improv #81: Unshelved, Untitled first appeared on The Partially Exa...

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 . Hear bonus content at patreon.com/prettymuchpop or by subscribing via Apple Podcasts to the Mark Lintertainment Channe...

Wes & Erin continue their discussion of two of Marie de France’s most famous lais—”Laustic” and “Guigemar”—and how their narratives marry the “flesh” of text, art, and symbology, to the “spirit” of the spoken word (via dialogue, oaths and covenants, and authorial commentary), in order, perhaps, to communicate something of the mysterious and dangerous union that is romantic love. The post SUBT...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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 t...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content, including a new, supporter-exclusive, PEL Nightcap. 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...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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...

Internationally best-selling author David  wrote a book  (and made a film ) called How We Got Here , which traces the gradual path in the history of ideas from the ancients through various forms of perspectivism, relativism, and post-modernism to the post-truth discourse that authoritarians and wanna-be authoritarians engage in. Some improv scenes are inserted awkwardly into the discussion. Mark p...

The lai, a short narrative poem from the Middle Ages that treats themes of courtly love, was originally accompanied by music and sung by minstrels. But in the 1170s, poet Marie de France translated a series of Breton lais into French and, in so doing, converted an oral tradition into text. It’s no wonder, then, that her lais’ narratives are so often preoccupied with methods of communication: both...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content, including a supporter-exclusive, part three to this episode. Listen to a preview. . 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 arg...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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 meetfabric.com/PEL . Get a $1/month e-commerce trial at shopify.com/pel ....

Danny was in a sketch troupe called Maximum Party Zone with your improv host Bill, and they've now revived that trio to create the MPZ Listening Party podcast , which workshops sketch ideas in real time as a fun form of conversation. So we try out their shtick, combining two properties ( The Apprentice and Argyle ) and brainstorming about serial killer branding. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexam...

Subscribe to get parts 1 and 2 of this now, ad-free, plus tons of bonus content. 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 em...

Jef Costello is a hit-man with airtight alibis, impeccable style, and a strict code of honor. Add to this a masterful ability to evade his pursuers, mobsters and authorities alike, and a simple but effective home alarm system in the form of a bird. But what he cannot orchestrate, control, or evade is the improvisational nature of a genuine encounter with another person, which he unexpectedly finds...