History of Philosophy Audio Archive

114 Episodes

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Hemlock #5 - Greek Tragedy and the Net of Aeschylus

2024-09-2501:02:24

This is a personal post, I hope you enjoy. "Our joy today is equal to the pain that made it" -Aeschylus, Agamemnon. Come to my Patreon for more. https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#113 - Inverted Totalitarianism and the Corporate State: Chris Hedges Interviews Princeton Professor Sheldon Wolin

2024-09-2203:02:31

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon In this episode, Chris Hedges interview Princeton political scientist Sheldon Wolin, exploring his work in books like Democracy Incorporated and Politics and Vision. Recorded October 2014. Professor Wolin passed away in October 2015. -//- Original video https://youtu.be/YjfKosDBOzQ The Real News Network https://www.youtube.com/@therealnews Sheldon Wolin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheldon_Wolin --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#112 - Dreams and Genocide: Iraq: Roy Casagranda on Petroluem Conflicts, International Sanctions, and the War on Terror

2024-09-1301:55:25

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon In this Professor Roy presentation we get to hear about how international sanctions killed half a million Iraqi children, how Saddam Hussein was first backed, then baited, and then finally killed off by US foreign policy, and the true reasons we invaded Iraq in 2003 and kicked off what Chris Hedges called “the greatest strategic blunder in the nation's history” and what Noam Chomsky calls “the greatest crime of the 21st century”. -//- Original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8BGpohOupQ Posted December 2018 --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#111 - Guest Interview with Environmental Philosopher Guillermo Zapata: Reading Indigenous Philosophers on Confronting the Sixth Mass Extinction, Building Community, and Overcoming Corporate Power

2024-09-1102:04:23

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon In this conversation with environmental ethicist Guillermo Zapata we discuss the role of indigenous philosophy in shaping our approach to environmental problems, the most pressing threats emerging from climate change, and how we can resist the encroachment of corporate and political interests that are contrary to rational and urgent action of climate change and the Sixth Mass Extinction. -//- Citations Indigenous philosophy and Rousseau/Enlightenment: The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56269264-the-dawn-of-everything French philosopher who conceived technology as an organism: Jacques Ellul https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Ellul#On_technique Dutch microplastics study: https://phys.org/news/2022-03-scientists-microplastics-blood.html All rainwater is poison: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-62391069 The Green Scare 1990s: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Scare Sheldon Wolin concept “Inverted Totalitarianism” is developed in his book “Democracy Incorporated." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheldon_Wolin#Fate_of_democracy Guest Reading Recommendations: Braiding Sweetgrass - Robin Wall Kimmerer: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17465709-braiding-sweetgrass Right Story, Wrong Story - Tyson Yunkaporta: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/199122606-right-story-wrong-story Sand Talk - Tyson Yunkaporta: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45449501-sand-talk How to Do Nothing - Jenny Odell https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42771901-how-to-do-nothing Indigenizing Philosophy through Land - Brian Burkhart: https://msupress.org/9781611863307/indigenizing-philosophy-through-the-land/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#110 - Why Did Someone Think This Was a Good Destination? Roy Casagranda on Modernity, Drug Dealer Empires, Neocolonialism, and the Cold War (4/4 Part Series)

2024-09-0907:29:19

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Don't forget the real business of war is buying and selling. The murdering and violence are self-policing, and can be entrusted to non-professionals. The mass nature of wartime death is useful in many ways. It serves as spectacle, as diversion from the real movements of the War. It provides raw material to be recorded into History, so that children may be taught History as sequences of violence, battle after battle, and be more prepared for the adult world. -Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow 00:00:00 Intro 00:00:51 Part 1: The Grand Wealth Redistribution Scheme 01:57:01 Part 2: From Poland to Reagan 03:54:18 Part 3: The Promotion of Unfettered Greed 05:38:33 Part 4: Radiation and Madness -//- Original YouTube Page - https://www.youtube.com/@TheAustinSchool Original YouTube Video (Part 1) -https://youtu.be/8Dnp7lOObjU?si=ju8L-KH9Vzu7Bcwg --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#109 - Love and the Search for God: Thomas Merton on Rilke, Monastic versus Lay Living, and Finding God

2024-09-0759:20

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Indeed, the truth that many people never understand, until it is too late, is that the more you try to avoid suffering, the more you suffer, because smaller and more insignificant things begin to torture you, in proportion to your fear of being hurt. The one who does most to avoid suffering is, in the end, the one who suffers the most: and his suffering comes to him from things so little and so trivial that one can say that it is no longer objective at all. It is his own existence, his own being, that is at once the subject and the source of his pain, and his very existence and consciousness is his greatest torture. This is another of the great perversions by which the devil uses our philosophies to turn our whole nature inside out, and eviscerate all our capacities for good, turning them against ourselves. -Thomas Merton, The Seven Storey Mountain, 1948 The Rainer Maria Rilke text that Merton references is Letter Seven from "Letters to a Young Poet" https://genius.com/Rainer-maria-rilke-letter-seven-annotated Later Merton cites Rilke's "Book of Hours" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Book_of_Hours -//- Original Reference (Titled “Rilke and his search for God”) - https://merton.bellarmine.edu/s/Merton/page/AVnovices Publication Date - February 2nd, 1966 Thomas Merton - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Merton --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#108 - The Philosophy of Simone Weil: Sister Ann Astell on Loving Attention, Interfaith Dialogue, Vatican 2, and Christian Mysticism

2024-09-0647:34

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon When we are the victims of illusion, we do not feel it to be an illusion but a reality. It is the same perhaps with evil. Evil when we are in its power is not felt as evil but as a necessity, or even a duty…. Imaginary evil is romantic and varied; real evil is gloomy, monotonous, barren, boring. Imaginary good is boring; real good is always new, marvelous, intoxicating. -Simone Weil, Gravity and Grace, 1947 Presented by Sr. Ann Astell at the University of Notre Dame's de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture. -//- Original Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X3vuOiFYKc Publication Date - August 25th, 2014 Notre Dame's de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture - https://www.youtube.com/@ndethics Simone Weil - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simone_Weil --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#107 - A Medicine More Fit for Humanity: Iain McGilchrist on Anti-Materialism, the Divided Brain, and How Art and Literature Can Improve Medicine

2024-09-0652:29

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon According to Max Planck, ‘Anybody who has been seriously engaged in scientific work of any kind realizes that over the entrance to the gates of the temple of science are written the words: Ye must have faith. It is a quality which the scientist cannot dispense with.’ And he continued: ‘Science cannot solve the ultimate mystery of nature. And that is because, in the last analysis, we ourselves are part of nature and therefore part of the mystery that we are trying to solve. -Iain McGilchrist, The Master and His Emissary -//- The Master and His Emissary - https://a.co/d/2gDbuCW The Matter with Things - https://a.co/d/2jJVXZg Original Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REB7GOxX5Mk Dr. McGilchrist's YouTube Page - https://www.youtube.com/@DrIainMcGilchrist --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#106 (LABOR DAY SPECIAL) - Why I Am Still A Communist: Slavoj Zizek on Stalin's Terror, the Consequences of Neoliberalism, and the Refugee Crisis

2024-09-0202:14:29

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Think about the strangeness of today's situation. Thirty, forty years ago, we were still debating about what the future will be: communist, fascist, capitalist, whatever. Today, nobody even debates these issues. We all silently accept global capitalism is here to stay. On the other hand, we are obsessed with cosmic catastrophes: the whole life on earth disintegrating, because of some virus, because of an asteroid hitting the earth, and so on. So the paradox is, that it's much easier to imagine the end of all life on earth than a much more modest radical change in capitalism. -Slavoj Zizek, 2005 citing Frederic Jameson. Happy Labor Day, you disgusting proles (I love you) -Will -//- Original YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgPqk8-HPGQ&t=1380s Pervert's Guide to Cinema: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYuI4SFw4g0 Frederic Jameson: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredric_Jameson Slavoj Zizek: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavoj_%C5%BDi%C5%BEe --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#105 - The Philosophy of Baruch Spinoza: J. Thomas Cook on Pantheism, the Geometric Method, and Life as a Jewish Heretic

2024-09-0202:36:30

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon A Portuguese Jew living in Holland, Spinoza was excommunicated because of the unorthodox view he took of God. Spinoza wrote in the rationalist style of a geometric proof to develop his idea of God as the infinite, indwelling cause of all things, a unified causal system that is virtually synonymous with nature. In this system, there is no free will, for all things are necessary and inevitable, and all objects, including humans, are part of God's active self-expression. Our minds can participate in the eternity of God by focusing on natural laws and the way all things follow from God or nature. Human fulfillment is possible, he believed, only by rejecting our finite, flawed selves and identifying with the eternal within us. Spinoza believed that by doing so we can love God with an immediate devotion without asking anything in return. Script authored by Spinoza scholar J. Thomas Cook. Enjoy. -//- https://philpeople.org/profiles/j-thomas-cook https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baruch_Spinoza https://archive.org/details/thegiantsofphilosophy --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#104 - The Philosophy of Soren Kierkegaard: George Connell on Infinite Resignation, the Knight of Faith, and the Path to the Spiritual Life

2024-09-0102:44:26

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon The tyrant dies and his rule is over; the martyr dies and his rule begins. -Soren Kierkegaard, 1848 For Kierkegaard, truth is a subjective reality which we must live, not simply something to consider and discuss. His self-consciousness and self-examination highlight the practical demands of existence, and he opposes the speculative thinking of philosophical idealists (especially Hegel). Kierkegaard urges the reader to commit to make choices about how to live. In Either/or, he concentrates on sensual indulgence versus duty, the avant garde versus tradition. Fear & trembling dramatically distinguishes between ethical and religious existence, based on the biblical story of Abraham. We must choose to be a "knight of infinite resignation" (giving up hope for this life). Kierkegaard says much of life's meaning depends not on external conditions, but on our internal choices about relating to them. -George Connell, author of the script. Enjoy. -//- https://www.researchgate.net/profile/George-Connell https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%B8ren_Kierkegaar https://archive.org/details/thegiantsofphilosophy --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#103 - The Philosophy of Thomas Aquinas: Kenneth L. Schmitz on Scholasticism, the Proof of God's Existence, and the Beatific Vision

2024-08-3002:34:09

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Thomas Aquinas is the smartest man who ever lived - with the sole exception of Jesus Christ. -Peter Kreeft, Professor of Philosophy at Boston College St. Thomas Aquinas is known for producing history’s most complete system of Christian philosophy. In the late thirteenth century, this quiet, reflective Dominican scholar combined the work of Aristotle with Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and pagan thought to reconcile reason and faith. He believed we can know that God exists but not what God is like. Thomas concluded that mortal happiness is uncertain but immortal happiness is the ultimate end of life; beatitude is to pass beyond death to "see the face of God." His thought continues to exert a powerful influence on Catholic philosophy today. -Kenneth L. Schmitz, author of this recording's script. (1922-2017) Enjoy. -//- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_L._Schmitz https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Kreeft https://archive.org/details/thegiantsofphilosophy --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#102 - The Philosophy of David Hume: Nicholas Capaldi on the Fact/Value Distinction, the Problem of Induction, and Natural Religion

2024-08-2302:16:39

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon David Hume (1711-1776) has been called "the greatest philosophical mind in the English language" by Cornel West, and is one of the most influential philosophers of the Enlightenment era. In this lively and fully-acted performance, Hollywood actor Charlton Heston narrates an overview of Hume's life, philosophy, and influence as described by noted Hume scholar Nicholas Capaldi, current professor emeritus of Loyola University. This recording is remastered from a set of cassette recordings called "The Giants of Philosophy" first published in 1990 and available now on Internet Archive. Enjoy -//- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Hume https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Capaldi https://archive.org/details/thegiantsofphilosophy --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#101 - Apartheid South Africa: Roy Casagranda on Dutch and British Colonialism, the African National Congress, and Turning Point of the Freedom Struggle

2024-08-2002:04:37

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon How did South Africa come under the control of the Dutch and the British? When and how was racial apartheid implemented and justified? Professor Roy breaks it down for us. Enjoy! -//- --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#100 - A Complete Guide to Plato's Dialogues: Michael Sugrue on Plato's Literary Style, the Visibility of Reason, and the Emergence of Justice and Wisdom

2024-08-2011:59:58

We did it - 100 episodes! Celebrate with 12 hours of Plato! My Patreon page: https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon (00:00:00) - Intro (00:00:51) - The Domain of the Dialogues (01:31:20) - The Examined Life (02:16:42) - Tragedy in the Philosophic Age of the Greeks (03:00:16) - Republic I (03:46:46) - Republic II (04:30:45) - Republic III (05:16:40) - The Laws and Cephalus (06:01:33) - Protagoras: The Many and the One (06:46:51) - Gorgias: The Temptation to Speak (07:32:24) - Parmenides: The Most True (08:07:10) - Sophist and Statesman (09:01:35) - Phaedrus: Hymn to Love (09:46:23) - Symposium: Pride of Love (10:33:03) - Platonic Achievement (11:17:59) - Living Voice Enjoy! -//- --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#99 - Power and Ideology at the New School: Noam Chomsky on Internationalism, Media Bias, and US Global Aggression

2024-08-1901:09:17

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon World-renowned professor of linguistics and lifelong political dissident Noam Chomsky addressed The New School in September 2015 about the threats facing the civilized world as we neared the third decade of the 21st century. His predictions and analyses are more prescient now than they were even then. Enjoy. -//- Original video (The New School): https://youtu.be/w_X5czMVKT8?si=AiN_Vbu1hgJ_HRAn&t=433 --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#98 - Nonviolent Communication: Marshall Rosenberg on Resolving Conflict, Negotiating Compassionately, and Creating Peace

2024-08-1855:04

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon In order to do philosophy at all we have to find ways to discuss difficult topics in a way that allows other people to approach and understand us. Conversation is an infinite game - how can we establish ground rules for communication that allow players to keep coming back and keep the ball of dialogue in the air? Marshall Rosenberg is the author of the book Nonviolent Communication and served for many years as a diplomat, negotiator, and peacemaker in dangerous international contexts. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#97 - The Sword & the Dollar, The US Role in Central America: Michael Parenti on Banana Republics, Anti-Hispanic Racism, and Liberation Theology

2024-08-1501:11:49

Note: This episode contains a graphic description of torture. Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon In this 1993 talk Michael Parenti explores the techniques that imperial powers such as the United States use in order to reduce "Third World" countries like Mexico, Guatemala, Iran, and so forth to dependency and economic vulnerability. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#96 - Hegel, the Phenomenology of Spirit, and the Meaning of History: Michael Sugrue

2024-08-1401:28:48

Come join my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon (00:00:00) Intro (00:00:52) Phenomenology of Spirit (00:45:36) Hegel & the Meaning of History Enjoy -//- --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

#95 - Activism in the US, Past, Present, and Future: Roy Casagranda on Occupy Wall Street, the Arab Spring, and Civil Disobedience

2024-08-1202:19:16

Check out my Patreon! https://patreon.com/HemlockPatreon Where did the Occupy movement come from? What was it like to be on the ground in Zuccotti Park in New York when the police charged through the encampment? What prospects for resistance exist as we move closer and closer to a new form of fascist power in the United States? Tune in to Professor Roy (originally aired August 2018) and find out. Original Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXQWJpI_6lw --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/william-engels/support

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