Philosophy Bites

Latest Episodes:

Christian List on Free Will Feb 05, 2020

Show notes

What is free will? Do we have it? These are difficult questions. Neuroscience seems to point in the direction of determinism. But Christian List suggests that there might still be room for genuine free will.

Emily Thomas on Wildly Implausible Metaphysics Oct 21, 2019

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Some philosophers have drawn very strange conclusions about the nature of reality. Despite this Emily Thomas believes that their work may still be worth studying. They usually have had good reasons for what they concluded. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she discusses several wildly implausible metaphysical theories with Nigel Warburton.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our Patreon donors.

James Wilson on Real World Ethics Sep 21, 2019

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Are thought experiments the best way of doing practical ethics? Not according to James Wilson. He thinks we need the rich detail of real cases or complex imaginary cases not a simplified version of reality to make sense of the moral problems we face.

We are grateful for support for this episode from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our supporters on Patreon.

Kate Kirkpatrick on the life and work of Simone de Beauvoir Jul 08, 2019

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In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, Kate Kirkpatrick, author of a new biography of Beauvoir, Becoming Beauvoir, discusses the relationship between the life and work of Simone de Beauvoir. Beauvoir is often portrayed as applying Jean-Paul Sartre's existentialism to the condition of women. Is this a fair assessment?

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation.

Kathleen Stock on What is a Woman? May 21, 2019

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'What is a woman?' has become a contentious question with practical implications. The philosopher Kathleen Stock gives an account of the category 'woman' and how we should think about it. She gives a different answer to this question which Amia Srinivassan addressed in a previous Philosophy Bites interview on this topic.

Christian Miller on the Character Gap Feb 25, 2019

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Christian Miller believes that there is a character gap, a gap between what we think we are like morally and how we actually behave. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he explores the psychology of moral behaviour, and how we can become better people.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation.

Philip Pettit on the Birth of Ethics Feb 25, 2019

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Where did ethics come from? Philip Pettit tells an 'as if' story about the birth of ethics that is designed to illuminate what ethics is and why it evolved on this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from Patreon donors for this episode.

Helen Beebee on Possible Worlds Jan 14, 2019

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Philosophers often talk about possible worlds. Is this just a way of describing counterfactual situations? As Helen Beebee explains, some of them believe that possible worlds actually exist. This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast is supported by the Marc Sanders Foundation and by Patreon donations.

Paul Sagar on Scepticism about Philosophy Nov 27, 2018

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Throughout its history there have been challenges to the status of philosophy. Paul Sagar discusses some of these in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation in making this podcast, and for donations from Patreon patrons.

Katherine Hawley on Trustworthiness Oct 07, 2018

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Is it always good to be trustworthy? Can trustworthiness come into conflict with other values, such as generosity? Katherine Hawley discusses these and other questions about trustworthiness with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our Patreon subscribers for this episode.