The Wisdom Of

Mircea Eliade was a Romanian historian of religion. In this episode, we talk about his book The Sacred and the Profane,  which is about how archaic and religious people experience the sacred and how it is we modern nonreligious people don’t! 

According to the psychologist Rollo May, anxiety and despair isn't as bad as we might think. Facing up to these emotions can be vitalizing and the beginning of genuine freedom! 

Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher, born 470 BC, who’s often seen as the founder of western philosophy. In this episode, we discuss how it is Socrates is still relevant or topical today!  

Erich Fromm was a German psychologist. Among other great works, he wrote The Art of Loving , published in 1956. The central message: love is active not passive! 

Happiness isn't about pleasure, says Nietzsche, it's about meaning and overcoming resistance! 

Mary Wollstonecraft was a British philosopher and writer. She’s maybe most famous for her seminal work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman , which was published in 1792, and is one of the earliest works of feminist philosophy. In this episode, we discuss how it is she understands independence and what she thinks education should be about! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on what genuine morality requires. It requires, not that we maintain a pure conscience, but that we accept getting our hands dirty!  

Carl Jung, born 1875, was a Swiss psychoanalyst whose work has been enormously influential. In this episode, we discuss why it is he thinks there's a crisis of meaning today and what we can do to fix it! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on the Copernican Revolution and its influence on us! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on Plato's view of education! 

Candide is a satirical novel written by Voltaire, a French writer and philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. In this episode, we discuss Voltaire's criticism of Leibniz's optimistic theodicy and also what he meant by his famous ending, that "one must cultivate one's garden".  

In this brief episode, I talk about Nietzsche and Camus' views on hope! 

In this episode, we discuss the history of rationalism and irrationalism within philosophy. We also talk about the perils of being overly rational! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on Tolstoy's short story How Much Land Does a Man Need?  It's pretty topical or relevant for us today! 

In this episode, we discuss the Stoic philosopher Epictetus' quote, "What upsets people is not things themselves, but their judgements about these things", and the French philosopher Camus' quote, "I do not believe in God and I am not an atheist". 

Fathers and Sons is a novel written by the Russian writer Ivan Turgenev. It was published in 1862. The story centres around Bazarov—a self-proclaimed nihilist. In this episode, we discuss some of the perils of being a nihilist! 

In this brief episode, I discuss Nietzsche's Three Metamorphoses of the Spirit as described in his masterpiece Thus Spoke Zarathustra!

Siddhartha is a novel by the German writer Hermann Hesse.  The story deals with the spiritual journey of a man named Siddhartha and it takes place during the time of the Buddha. In this episode, we discuss how it is Hesse, through Siddhartha, seems to present a more world-loving Buddhist view than that of traditional Buddhism. 

In this brief episode, I share some thoughts on the 2008 Pixar film, Wall-E! 

Simone de Beauvoir was a French existentialist philosopher. In this episode, we take a look at her important work The Ethics of Ambiguity. We talk about how it is she thinks we both evade and misuse our freedom! 

In this brief episode, I talk about the philosopher John Stuart Mill's view on pleasure! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on the morality of tipping!

In this brief episode, I try to say something about Heidegger's view of the typewriter and of technology in general. 

In this episode, we discuss Sartre's quote "Hell is other people" and Nietzsche's quote "Without music, life would be a mistake"! 

In this brief episode, I reflect a bit on Dante's view on sin and vice!