About this podcast
"The program that questions everything—except your intelligence." Philosophy Talk began as a weekly one-hour radio series and has been on the air for more than two decades.
The host-professors bring clarity, depth, and humor to everyday topics that are lofty (Truth, Beauty, Justice), arresting (Terrorism, Intelligent Design, Suicide), and engaging (Baseball, Love, Happiness). This is not a lecture or a college course; it's philosophy in action!
From timeless philosophical questions about the ultimate nature of things to contemporary social and political issues, as well as our most fundamental beliefs about science, morality, and the human condition, Philosophy Talk invites you to challenge your assumptions and think about things in new ways.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 674 episodes
- Frege and the Language of Reason · 50 min · Episode 533At the end of the 19th Century, the German philosopher Gottlob Frege invented a new language, based on mathematics, designed to help people reason more logically. His ideas have…
- Democracy By Numbers · 50 min · Episode 517Despite adhering to the principle of “one person, one vote,” elections in the United State are often highly contentious: presidents can be elected after losing the popular vote…
- Nachman of Breslov and the Obligation to be Happy · 50 min · Episode 633Nachman of Breslov was an 18th-century spiritual rabbinic leader, mystic, and storyteller, known particularly for his creative parables. His religious philosophy involved…
- Michel Foucault and Power · 51 min · Episode 470Michel Foucault was a 20th century philosopher known for his work concerning power and knowledge. Foucault is often cited for his theory of knowledge and power, which are…
- Liberty and Justice for Who? · 51 min · Episode 554Many democracies are founded on the ideals of 18th- and 19th-Century British Liberalism: the idea that human beings deserve the right to self-government because we are born free…
- Wise Woman: Judith Jarvis Thomson · 51 min · Episode 608Judith Jarvis Thomson is best known for arguing that abortion is morally permissible, even granting the fetus the status of person. Her colorful thought experiments illustrate…
- Islamic Philosophy · 50 min · Episode 144Some of the many topics discussed in Islamic philosophy are the Qur’an, knowledge, dreams, justice, poetry, reality, prophethood, peace, and the State. How has Islamic philosophy…
- Hildegard of Bingen · 51 min · Episode 595Hildegard von Bingen was a 12th century mystic, polymath, and composer whose work spanned visionary theology, philosophy, cosmology, medicine, botany, and music. Her…
- Maimonides and the Goodness of the World · 51 min · Episode 632Moses Maimonides (also known as the Rambam) was a 12th century rabbi and scholar, most famous as the author of The Guide for the Perplexed. He thought that understanding the…
- (End of) Summer Readig List · 52 min · Episode 628The Philosophers talk to the authors of recent and forthcoming books that speak to our dangerous times: Christopher Star from Middlebury College, editor of How to Face the End…
- Why Be Reasonable? · 51 min · Episode 631“You’re being unreasonable.” “Reasonable doubt.” The “reasonable person” standard. Talk of reasonableness is everywhere we turn, but what does it actually come to? What makes…
- The Philosophical Worlds of Borges · 51 min · Episode 606Argentinian writer Jorge Luís Borges wrote some of the world’s most brilliant, mind-bending, and philosophical stories. Drawing on sources from Europe, India, China, and Persia…
- What Is Game Theory? · 51 minGame theory is a set of mathematical techniques for thinking about how people should choose when their choices interact. But real people aren’t exactly rational actors. Can a…
- Wise Woman: Simone Weil · 52 min · Episode 599French philosopher and mystic Simone Weil was also an activist whose goal was to elevate the lower classes. But she was opposed to the kind of revolution where the oppressed…
- James Baldwin and Social Justice · 49 min · Episode 449Sometimes, we struggle to tell the truth—especially when it's the truth about ourselves. Why did James Baldwin, a prominent Civil Rights-era intellectual and novelist, believe…
- The 2026 Dionysus Awards · 52 min · Episode 625What movies of the past year challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways? Josh and guest co-host Jorah Danenberg present our annual Dionysus Awards for…
- How Do We Learn? · 51 min · Episode 629We’re all learning about the world all the time—not just as small children but all the way into old age. But how do we learn how to learn? How much depends on the circumstances…
- Crisis and Creativity in Mayan Mythology · 51 min · Episode 602The Popol Vuh, written in 1702, was based on a Mayan oral tradition encompassing creation myths, history, and cosmology. These stories were written in a time of crisis: European…
- Wise Woman: Emma Goldman · 51 min · Episode 600Activist and anarchist philosopher Emma Goldman fought for human liberation in every realm of life. While she opposed the women’s suffrage movement, she was a staunch advocate…
- Summer Reading List 2026 · 52 min · Episode 628The Philosophers talk to the authors of recent and forthcoming books that speak to our dangerous times: Christopher Star from Middlebury College, editor of How to Face the End…
- Jean-Paul Sartre · 50 min · Episode 396Jean-Paul Sartre was one of the first global public intellectuals, famous for his popular existentialist philosophy, his works of fiction, and his rivalry with Albert Camus. His…
- What Is Gender? · 51 min · Episode 567Gender is a controversial topic these days, but people can’t seem to agree about what gender is. Is it an inner identity, a biological fact, or an oppressive system? Should we…
- Merleau-Ponty and Perception · 51 min · Episode 627For French philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty, everything we perceive takes the form of a shape. You don’t just see green and splotches: you see a tree. Even before your rational…
- What's So Special About Humans? · 51 min · Episode 601Human beings share the planet with many different organisms with vastly diverse ways of life. We like to think we’re a higher form of intelligence. But are we really that unique?…
- The Scandalous Truth about Memoir · 50 min · Episode 546A memoir is a personal narrative written about a pivotal time in the author’s life. While the story is told from a particular perspective, the events recounted are supposed to be…
- Dostoevsky and Doubting Faith · 51 min · Episode 626Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky was a practicing Christian, and his writings often feature characters who have or find faith. But many of the most fascinating and charismatic…
- Wise Woman: Elizabeth Anscombe · 51 min · Episode 604Elizabeth Anscombe made hugely influential contributions to contemporary action theory, moral theory, and philosophy of mind. She also famously protested Truman’s decision to…
- Marx and Morality · 51 min · Episode 597Karl Marx famously attempted to explain our social, political, and economic systems in terms of class conflict. While he never explicitly states that capitalism is unjust, some…
- Marcus Aurelius · 51 min · Episode 539Marcus Aurelius was a 2nd century Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher. He is most famous for his Meditations, which was written as a private guide to himself on how to live a…
- Daniel Dennett Retrospective · 51 min · Episode 592In April 2024, we lost one of the greatest American philosophers of our time—Daniel Dennett. Known for his brilliant mind and controversial views, his contributions to philosophy…
- The 2026 Dionysus Awards · 52 min · Episode 625With the Oscars dust settled, it’s time to think about what movies of the past year challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways. Josh and guest co-host…
- Hobbes and the Ideal Citizen · 51 min · Episode 491Seventeenth century philosopher Thomas Hobbes believed that without government to control our worst impulses, life would be ‘solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.’…
- How to Do Things With Your Mind · 51 min · Episode 596We all engage in mental actions of various kinds, whether it’s planning the coming week, trying to remember the lyrics of a song, or imagining what we’d look like with a…
- Wise Woman: Nísia Floresta · 51 min · Episode 593Nísia Floresta was a 19th-century writer and translator known as “the Brazilian Mary Wollstonecraft.” She published the first book on women’s rights in South America, when Brazil…
- What Is Addiction? · 51 min · Episode 624People who are addicted to substances display a puzzling behavior: they keep using even when it causes harm and distress to them and the people in their lives. Why would someone…
- Who Speaks For You? · 51 min · Episode 594More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/who-speaks-you. People often speak on behalf of others, like the concerned citizen who stands up for their neighbors at a city council…
- Wise Woman: Mary Wollstonecraft · 51 min · Episode 589Mary Wollstonecraft is often labeled as a “liberal feminist” because of her concern for women’s rights and conceptions of freedom. But that label narrows her work, which was…
- Schopenhauer: Living Your Worst Life · 51 min · Episode 614Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) is considered one of the great European philosophers of the nineteenth century. His most famous work, The World as Will and Representation…
- Can Money Buy Well-being? · 50 min · Episode 623Governments and central banks set economic policies that affect us all. But how do those policies influence our quality of life? And how can that quality even be measured? Gross…
- Logic For Everyone · 51 min · Episode 590Logic may seem like a dry, abstract discipline that only the nerdiest of philosophers study. After all, logic textbooks are full of weird symbols and proofs about abstruse…
- Wise Woman: Anna Julia Cooper · 51 min · Episode 598Born into slavery in the nineteenth century, Anna Julia Cooper received a classical education, attended the Sorbonne, and became the fourth African American in history to be…
- Diogenes and the Honest Life · 51 min · Episode 622Diogenes of Sinope was a famous—or infamous—4th-century BCE Greek philosopher. Reportedly, he lived in a jar, performed many bodily functions in public, and wandered public…
- Civil Disobedience · 50 min · Episode 183Thoreau, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King all engaged in civil disobedience, and are widely admired for doing so. But how can democratic society function if each person’s…
- William James · 1 min · Episode 176More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/william-james. William James is one of the great American philosophers, historically important as a philosopher (pragmatism and radical…
- Why Is the World So Weird? · 51 min · Episode 588More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/why-world-so-weird. Quantum mechanics, mathematics, human consciousness…. whichever way you slice it, the universe is weird. How can our…
- The Examined Year: 2025 · 52 min · Episode 621More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/the-examined-year-2025. What happened over the past year that challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways?…
- Mind Sharing · 51 min · Episode 586More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/mind-sharing. Mind reading might sound like the stuff of science fiction. But in philosophy and psychology, mind reading is something…
- Shakespeare's Outsiders · 51 min · Episode 587More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/shakespeares-outsiders. Over 400 years after his death, Shakespeare is still widely regarded as the greatest dramatist of all time. His…
- Wise Woman: Im Yunjidang · 50 min · Episode 583More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/im-yunjidang. 18th-century Korean philosopher Im Yunjidang was the first Confucian to argue for women’s equality in matters of morality…
- Gilbert Ryle and the Map of the Mind · 50 minGilbert Ryle (1900-1976) was a British philosopher of mind and language best known for his book The Concept of Mind. He developed a novel argument against Cartesian dualism…
