The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast
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The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast
The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don't have to know any philosophy, or even to have...
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754 episode
Ep. 377: Emil Cioran's Pessimism (Part Two)
Continuing on "Directions for Decomposition" from A Short History of Decay (1949). What is it that humans are inevitably trying to avoid that seems so...
PEL Presents NEM#239: Adrian Sherwood's Dub Productions
Adrian has applied his distinctive, spacey dub mixing techniques to numerous recordings since 1978 including Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Lee "Scratch"...
Ep. 377: Emil Cioran's Pessimism (Part One)
On A Short History of Decay (1949), a pessimist/existentialist somewhat text from the most famous Romanian philosopher.
Cioran's short essays to...
PEL Presents PvI#102: Pit of Despair w/ Seth Paskin
Mark's Partially Examined Life co-host Seth joins us (i.e. Mark and Mary) to introduce Seth to improv and continue introducing philosophy to Mary.
Ep. 376: Plato's "Laws" (Part Two)
Continuing on selections from this late Platonic dialogue. Starting in Book 4, Plato's characters are discussing how to create a new state ("Magnesia"...
PEL Presents PMP#206: Abbott Elementary w/o Emmys
For our Emmys/back-to-school episode, we cover the pinnacle of the current network sitcom landscape: The six-time 2025 Emmy nominated 4-year-old sitco...
PEL Presents NEM#238: Eric Andersen Endures
Eric was a major figure in the 1960s NYC folk scene, and his early tunes have been covered by Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, and many others. He's released...
Ep. 376: Plato's "Laws" (Part One)
On this later dialogue presenting Plato's ideas about the character of laws in a just state. They should all be aimed at making people virtuous, and s...
PREMIUM-PEL Back-to-School Nightcap 2025
Mark, Seth, and Dylan add some more detail and thought to our recent episodes, including more about Steven Pinker and re-litigation of the utility of...
PEL Presents PvI#101: Co-Hostery: Season Five Premiere with Mark and Mary
It is a new era! Merry Mary Hynes is now Mark's co-host, and we do some improv related to that and feel our the degree to which Mary has not studied p...
Ep. 375: Luce Irigaray's Feminism (Part Two)
Continuing on "Women on the Market" from The Sex Which Is Not One (1977) and other selections.
Irigaray gives a Marxist analysis of the commodif...
PEL Presents PMP#205: Fantastical Foursome
What do we expect out of a superhero film? Does it need overqualified dramatic actors? Does it even need a real budget?
Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn...
Ep. 375: Luce Irigaray's Feminism (Part One)
On The Sex Which Is Not One (1977) and other Irigaray selections from the French Feminism Reader (2000), featuring guest Jenny Hansen (who wrote the i...
PEL Presents PvI#100: Maximizing Turtle Revenue w/ Tim Sniffen and Anthony LeBlanc
It's our season finale, and the end of Bill's regular participation on the show. You may wish to weep, but let your tears be of joy as well as reminis...
Ep. 374: Discussing Liberalism (Lincoln, et al) with Walter Sterling (Part Two)
Continuing our discussion of the dangers to and weak points of liberal democracy, including consideration of Patrick Deneen's Why Liberalism Failed (2...
PEL Presents PMP#204: Naked Gun Rapid Firing
What is the state of the stream-of-gags formula that used to stand tall in the films of the Zucker Brothers (mainly Airplane) and Mel Brooks? A new ge...
PEL Presents NEM#237: Maia Sharp's Homey Subversion
Maia has released ten lush, Americana-influenced singer-songwriter albums since 1997 and has collaborated with artists like Art Garfunkel, Bonnie Rait...
Ep. 374: Discussing Liberalism (Lincoln, et al) with Walter Sterling (Part One)
What's the crisis of liberal democracy? Dylan, Wes and Seth are joined by St. John's College President J. Walter Sterling to discuss Abraham Lincoln's...
PEL Presents PvI#99: Philosophy of Humor w/ Nessa Voss
Nessa teaches philosophy at Lone Star Community College and writes on the philosophy of humor. We thought we should get this topic out before we wrap...
PEL Presents Closereads: Peter Railton's "Moral Realism" (Wrap Up)
We are concluding our treatment of Peter Railton's "Moral Realism" (1984), and given that you likely haven't listened to the seven preceding parts, th...
Ep. 373: Michael Walzer on Just Wars (Part Two)
Continuing on on Just and Unjust Wars (1977), ch. 5-6. When might it be morally permissible to strike first? When is it permissible (or obligatory?) t...
PEL Presents PMP#203: What Superman?
In light of the new James Gunn film Superman, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al talk about the character, his stories, and past films and shows.
...
PEL Presents NEM #236: Tee Templeton's Psychedelic Ending
...OK, maybe not his ending, but it's a late career boost into overdrive: This 66-year-old has been making music since the '80s, but you're only going...
Ep. 373: Michael Walzer on Just Wars (Part One)
On Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument With Illustrations (1977), ch. 4-6 on "jus ad bellum," which refers to moral justifications for going to war...
PEL Presents Philosophy vs. Improv #98: Ragnarocking
Recorded back in June, posting now as we near the end of our season and Bill's tenure on the show, this episode now bleeds with dramatic irony. Mark a...
PEL Presents PMP#202: 50-Year-Old Jaws Busts Our Block
Purported the first summer blockbuster, Jaws has now hit 50 years, and so we discuss this wonderful early Spielberg film, its ill-conceived sequels, s...
Ep. 372: Kant's Ethics Lectures (Part Two)
Continuing on the 1785 course lecture notes by Georg Ludwig Collins. We cover duties to oneself, which are actually the most important ones. There are...
PEL Presents NEM#235: Willie Nile's Poetic Rock Anthems
New York singer-songwriter Willie has released sixteen albums since 1980. He has opened for The Who and Bruce Springsteen, among others, but rejected...
Ep. 372: Kant's Ethics Lectures (Part One)
We discuss lecture notes from Kant's 1785 ethics course, which provide more examples and an emphasis on the practical than his more famous works.
PEL Presents PvI#97: Peep Dome Pets w/ Merry Mary Hynes
LA Second City improv instructor Mary joins us to act out a pet sitting job interview, talk about sharing our public spaces with animals, and finally...
PEL Presents PMP#201: John Wick Minus Wick
In light of the new film Ballerina, we discuss the John Wick franchise that kicked off in 2014 with four films plus a (bad) Peacock TV show. We also w...
Ep. 371: Christine Korsgaard on Normativity (Part Two)
Concluding our treatment of The Sources of Normativity. We give Korsgaard's tweaks to Kant, including her distinction between the categorical imperati...
Ep. 371: Christine Korsgaard on Normativity (Part One)
On lectures 3 and 4 of The Sources of Normativity (1996), where we get Korsgaard's positive view on how morality becomes obligatory for an individual,...
Ep. 370: Christine Korsgaard on the History of Ethics (Part Two)
We dive further into the text of lectures 1 and 2 of The Sources of Normativity (1996).
We give Korsgaard's account of the idea of reflective en...
Ep. 370: Christine Korsgaard on the History of Ethics (Part One)
On The Sources of Normativity (1996), lectures 1 and 2.
How are facts related to obligations? We don't want to merely explain our moral impulses...
Ep. 369: Philippa Foot's Naturalistic Ethics (Part Two)
Continuing on Natural Goodness, getting more into concrete cases of moral reasoning. How and why do we decide to keep promises, even in cases where vi...
Ep. 369: Philippa Foot's Naturalistic Ethics (Part One)
On Natural Goodness (2001). Can we base ethics on the model of biology? Foot argues that just as we understand what a healthy specimen of a plant or a...
Ep. 368: Hume on Reason in Ethics (Part Two)
We conclude our discussion of A Treatise of Human Nature (1739): Book III, "Of Morals," plus a bit more discussion of An Enquiry Concerning the Princi...
Ep. 368: Hume on Reason in Ethics (Part One)
We talk a bit more about David Hume's An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751), and add some parts of A Treatise of Human Nature (1739):...
Ep. 367: Hume on the Foundations of Ethics (Part Two)
Continuing on An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals (1751), talking about justice (i.e. property laws), why utility is pleasing and what all...