The Wisdom Of

In this brief episode, I reflect on the sun and some of its associations throughout history. I touch on Christianity, Nietzsche, and Camus. 

Peter Singer is an Australian philosopher, who works at Princeton University. Outside of academic circles, he’s probably best known for his book Animal Liberation . In this episode, we discuss his view on the importance of the capacity for suffering, and his view on animals for food. 

In this brief episode, I discuss the Spanish philosopher Miguel Unamuno's concern with human consciousness. 

Simone Weil was a French philosopher who was born in 1909 and who died in 1943.  In this episode, we discuss her poem on Homer's Iliad , called  The Poem of Force , and we also talk about her view on attention and compassion. 

In this brief episode, I discuss some of the views of the existentialists as it relates to the notions of freedom and responsibility.  

Ecclesiastes is known as one of the wisdom books of the Old Testament, alongside the Book of Job, Song of Songs and Proverbs. It was written sometime between 450 and 200 BC and its author is unknown. In this episode, we discuss God's apparent lack of justice and His distance from us. Then we talk about some similarities between Ecclesiastes and Albert Camus' perspective.

In this brief episode, I discuss the connection Socrates makes between shared dialogue and the state of our soul. 

The Unbearable Lightness of Being was written by the Czech Milan Kundera, and it was published in 1984. It tells the story of a young woman in love with a man torn between his love for her and his habitual womanizing. In this episode, we discuss living lightly versus living with weight, and Nietzsche's idea of the eternal return.  

In this brief episode, I discuss the ancient idea of negative visualization and the connection it has to gratitude. 

In this brief episode, I discuss how it is Buddhists and Stoics understand anger. 

Molloy is a novel written by the Irish writer Samuel Beckett, published in 1951. It’s the first of a trilogy of novels, the other two being Malone Dies and The Unnamable . In this episode, we discuss the idea of being stuck inside your own mind, and the idea of the mid-life crisis. 

In this brief episode, I discuss the nature and the problem of our human-centered outlook. 

Zorba the Greek is a novel written by the Cretan author Nikos Kazantzakis and it was first published in 1946. The story is about a young English writer who meets Alexis Zorba, an older Greek man with a passion for life.  As their friendship develops, the young writer is gradually transformed. In this episode, we discuss the contemplative life versus the life of action, and the importance of laught...

In this brief episode, I talk a little about the nature of narcissism through looking at the Greek myth of Narcissus and Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray.  

Plato is considered to be one of the greatest philosophers in history. In this episode, we take a look at his great dialogue the Republic and discuss the important connection he makes between being a good person and happiness.  

In this brief episode, I discuss what Buber calls the  I-Thou and I-It attitudes to life. 

A Doll’s House is a play written by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered in 1879. The play has as it central theme something like the fate of being a married woman in a male dominated world. In this episode, we explore Ibsen's feminism and the importance he places on self-realization. 

In this brief episode, I discuss Sartre and his view in Existentialism is a Humanism that values don't come from God but rather that they're created by us. 

Journey to the East is a novel written by the German author Herman Hesse, published in 1932.  J ourney to the East is about a man who becomes a member of  what’s known as The League, a branch of which goes on a pilgrimage to "the East" in search of the ultimate Truth. In this episode, we discuss St. Francis of Assisi, Servant Leadership, and what going East really means. 

In this brief episode, I discuss the meaning of the tightrope walker in Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra. 

Lao Tzu was an ancient Chinese philosopher, born sometime in the 6th century BC. He’s supposedly the founder of Taoism. Taoism emphasizes living in harmony with what’s called the Tao or the way, which is taken to be the underlying natural order of the universe. In this episode, we discuss Lao Tzu's view on language and his notion of inaction. 

In this brief episode, I talk about how it actually personally benefits us to not shy away from false or disagreeable ideas.  

The Death of Ivan Ilyich was written by the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, and it was published in 1886. The story’s about Ivan, an inauthentic, upper class individual, who learns that he’s dying from a terminal disease. In this episode, we discuss the theme of insincerity and of death. 

In this brief episode, I talk about the importance of some discomfort and pain in life. 

The Fragility of Goodness was written by Martha Nussbaum, published in 1986.  Nussbaum is an American philosopher who works at the University of Chicago. In this episode, we reflect on the question of how immune and how safe it is we should make ourselves, or conversely, how open we should be to life, in order to live in such a way that’s best and most valuable for a human being.