The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast
A Philosophy Podcast and Philosophy Blog
More on the novel with guest Corey Mohler, considering Dostoyevsky qua existentialist in terms of his analysis of the crisis of meaning and his consequent views on religion.
Listen to part 1 first, or get the unbroken, ad-free Citizen Edition. Get a Dostoyevsky T-shirt!
End song: “Don Quixote” by Nik Kershaw, as interviewed on Nakedly Examined Music #37.
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Steve released six studio albums with Genesis between 1971 and 1977 and twenty-five solo albums that feature his virtuosic guitar and the spirit of ’70s prog rock. He now works with producer/keyboardist Roger King to create dense, cinematic soundscapes.
We discuss “In the Skeleton Gallery” (and listen to “Anything but Love”) from The Night Siren (2017), “Love Song to a Vampire” from Wolflight (2014), and “Omega Metallicus” from Darktown (1999). Opening/closing music: Steve’s solo from “Firth of Fifth” from Genesis’s Selling England by the Pound (1973). More at hackettsongs.com.
The coming-of-age story at the heart of the award-winning film Moonlight gets a lot of its power from the way it upends the prevailing inner-city narrative. This rejection of expectation helps illustrate the relationship between storytelling and identity formation described by Kwame Anthony Appiah.
On Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s philosophical novel from 1869. Could a morally perfect person survive in the modern world? Is all this “modernity,” which so efficiently computes our desires and provides mechanisms to fulfill them, actually suited to achieve human flourishing? Dostoyevsky’s Russian existentialism says no!
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Continuing our interview about Natural Kinds and Genesis: The Classification of Material Entities.
Buy Stewart’s book at www.rowman.com and use the code LEX30AUTH17 to get 30% off.
Lys is a Connecticut singer/guitarist with an eccentric country twang who’s put out two albums, plus EPs and other stuff since 2003. We discuss “M.K.” from the I’m a Boy EP and also get to hear “Nothing to It” and a bit of the title track from that EP. We also address “Silver” from Winged Victory (2013), and “When I Was a Tiger Lily” from Three Songs (2006). Opening music: “Little Wren” from Lys Guillorn (2003). More at lysguillorn.com.
On Natural Kinds and Genesis: The Classification of Material Entities (2016). Are general terms like “water” or “dog” just things that we made up to order the world? Aristotle thought that some universals constitute natural kinds, with a nature that explains their behavior. “Kinds” were replaced with “laws,” but Stewart wants us to reconsider, and bring back “natural philosophy” in the process.
Starting with the Dream Syndicate in the early ’80s in L.A. and then going solo in 1990, Steve has released over 35 albums of lyrically driven rock.
We discuss “Resolution” from Northern Aggression (2010), “Punching Holes in the Sky” from Crossing Dragon Bridge (2008), and “There Will Come a Day” from Here Come the Miracles (2001). We wrap up with “I’m Not Listening,” a 2007 recording released on Sketches in Spain (2013). Opening music: “Tell Me When It’s Over” by Dream Syndicate from The Days of Wine and Roses (1982). Learn more at stevewynn.net.
On the short stories “This Morning, This Evening, So Soon” (1960) and “Sonny’s Blues” (1957).
Mark joins the Phi Fic crew (go subscribe at phificpodcast.com!) to supplement PEL ep. 162 by delving into Baldwin’s fiction, which is actually pretty similar to his biographical essays.
Karla has put out four albums since 2006 with the Corner Laughers, a Bay Area band that has been categorized as “twee” given Karla’s ukulele, sparkly Brit-pop ornamentation, and similarly colorful lyrics.
We discuss “Queen of the Meadow” from Matilda Effect (2015), the Nov. 2016 single “Don’t Hush, Darling,” and “Grasshopper Clock” from Poppy Seeds (2012). We also listen to “Fairytale Tourist” from Matilda Effect, and the opening/closing music is from that album’s “Midsommar.” Learn more at cornerlaughers.com.
For this month’s reading we chose two short stories by James Baldwin: “This Morning, This Evening, So Soon” and “Sonny’s Blues.” Both stories are included in the collection Going to meet the Man (1965). Unfortunately, Daniel had to be absent this time, but we did get Mark Linsenmayer to join us!
Hear more Phi Fic discussions at PhiFicPodcast.com.
Continuing on I Am Not Your Negro, “Notes of a Native Son” (1955), and The Fire Next Time (1963).
We (and Law Ware) discuss Baldwin’s critique of the American dream, how to oppose the inhumanity of others without becoming inhuman yourself, and Baldwin’s take on religion. Plus, was the the documentary actually good as a film?
Glenn’s albums with the Feelies since 1980 have a unique sound, due to his insistence that production is part of the composing process.
We discuss “Been Replaced” and “Gone Gone Gone,” from The Feelies’ new album Here Before, then “Larmaie” from Glenn’s instrumental solo album Incidental Hum (2015). We conclude by listening to “Should Be Gone” by the Feelies from Here Before (2011). Intro music: “The High Road” by the Feelies from The Good Earth (1986). Outro music: “Like Yesterday” by Wake Ooloo from Stop the Ride (1996). Learn more at thefeeliesweb.com.
On the film I Am Not Your Negro and the essays “Notes of a Native Son” (1955) and The Fire Next Time (1963). With guest Law Ware.
Baldwin diagnoses our racism-related psycho-social maladies, but how can we best translate his observations into generally applicable philosophical theory?
A new song from Mark, featuring The Posies’ Ken Stringfellow, and how it was inspired by the Nakedly Examined Music interview with Ken about Alex Chilton and the whole Big Star phenomenon.
The classic SNL sketch uncovers the truth about white privilege!
Continuing with guest Law Ware on the philosophical underpinnings of the rhetoric of white privilege, with readings as listed in part 1.
Clive is the guy who dreamt up the melodies and initial motifs for “The Promise” and other songs for When in Rome in the late ’80s, and after leaving the business for a while, the continued use of that one big song (most notably for the Napoleon Dynamite closing sequence) enabled his return to touring and recording.
We discuss two songs from his solo album Independence (2013), “Fall” and “Just Another Love Song,” and then look back to the 1988 self-titled When in Rome album for “Something Goin’ On.” We close by listening to a 2016 single performed with his fellow WIR frontman Andrew Mann, “Lost (Driving All Night).” The intro/outro music is of course “The Promise.” Hear more Clive at soundcloud.com/clive-farrington1.
Is the rhetoric of “White Privilege” just the modern way of acknowledging historical and systemic truths of racism, or does it point to a novel way for acknowledging injustice, or does it on the contrary obscure these insights by involving confused claims about group responsibility and guilt?
Readings include articles by Peggy McIntosh, Charles W. Mills, George Yancy, Tim Wise, Lewis R. Gordon, Lawrence Blum, and John McWhorter. With guest Law Ware.
Continuing with 1984. How does the book relate to real-world politics? Is this something that we should actually be afraid our society will turn into? Was he predicting history, or was it satire, or what? We discuss the the realms of intimacy vs. surveillance, how a state might “contain” a mind that it controls, and “doublethink.”
