Philosophy Bites

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Daisy Dixon on Depraved Art Oct 19, 2026

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Can a work of art be immoral? What does that mean? Daisy Dixon, author of Depraved: The Story of Dangerous Art discusses this question with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

Heather Widdows on the Beauty Ideal Oct 11, 2026

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Which physical characteristics does a woman have to have to be considered beautiful? Are there many different cultural variations on this? Heather Widdows, author of Perfect Me, thinks that today there is a single set of charactestics and that pressure to conform with these has pernicious effects.

Miranda Fricker on Blame Sep 21, 2026

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We blame people, and sometimes we blame institutions. Miranda Fricker investigates the nature of blame and its functions, draws some important distinctions, and considers the metaphysical implications of this practice.

Nilanjan Das on Buddhist Philosophy and Caste Sep 10, 2026

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There is a long tradition of caste in South Asia. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Nilanjan Das discusses a pre-modern philosophical critic of the whole system, and particularly of its underlying metaphysical assumptions.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

Lani Watson on the Power of Questions Aug 22, 2026

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What is a question? It seems obvious, but perhaps it isn't. Lani Watson has just published a book on the topic. She thinks that true questions can be identified by their function, not by their form. She explains what she means by this and why questions matter so much in philosophy and elsehwere.

Peter Singer on Ending Innocent Lives Jul 30, 2026

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The utilitarian philosopher Peter Singer has controversial views about when it is acceptable to end a human life. In conversation with David Edmonds he explains his approach, using examples from a range of areas, including infanticide. Some listeners may find some aspects of this discussion disturbing.

Jing Hu on Songzi on Insults and Shame Jul 21, 2026

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The Chinese philosopher Songzi (382 BCE – 305 BCE) maintained that the appropriate response to insults was indifference, not aggression. Jing Hu, a philosopher at Concordia University, Montreal puts his thinking about insults and about the related concept of shame in context, and explains his ideas about the ethics of interpersonal relations. This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

Rebecca Newberger Goldstein on Mattering Jun 05, 2026

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We are the kind of creature that cares whether or not we matter and how. What follows from this? Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Mattering, discuses this with David Edmonds.

Monima Chadha on Responsibility Without Selves May 18, 2026

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Buddhist philosophy rejects the idea of the self. How then can there be any moral responsibility? Monima Chadha, Professor of Indian Philosophy at Oxford University, explains.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

Carissa Veliz on Prophecy May 11, 2026

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Predictions aren't quite what they seem to be, according to Carissa Véliz, author of the book Prophecy. They often are intended to persuade you of the inevitability of a certain outcome, and may be self-fulfilling to some degree. Yet they look like simple factual claims about what is likely to happen. We need to be far more aware of the role of prediction in our everyday lives, according to Véliz.

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