Philosophy Talk Starters

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James Baldwin and Social Justice Aug 04, 2025

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More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/james-baldwin-and-social-justice. Sometimes, 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 that telling the truth about ourselves is not only difficult but can also be dangerous? How can truth deeply unsettle our assumptions about ourselves and our relations to others? And why did Baldwin think that this abstract concept of truth could play a concrete role in social justice? The Philosophers seek their own truth with Christopher Freeburg from the University of Illinois, author of Counterlife: Slavery after Resistance and Social Death.

572: Weird Wants Jul 27, 2025

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More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/weird-wants. Philosophers from Aquinas to Anscombe have claimed that wanting something means seeing the good in it. Even if what you want is bad overall, like procrastinating on important work, you can still desire it for its positive qualities. But don’t we sometimes want things because of their badness, not in spite of it? Isn’t there joy in doing something totally pointless, or even in breaking the rules? And is it really impossible, logically speaking, to want to be bad? Josh and Ray unravel our weird wants with Paul Bloom from the University of Toronto, author of The Sweet Spot: The Pleasures of Suffering and the Search for Meaning.

607: The 2025 Dionysus Awards Jul 20, 2025

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More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/2025-dionysus-awards. What movies of the past year challenged your assumptions and made you think about things in new ways? Josh and guest co-host Jeremy Sabol present the annual Dionysus Awards for the most thought-provoking movies of the last twelve months, including:

Best Movie About Religious People Who Aren't Entirely What They Seem
Deepest Exploration of Women's Friendships
Best Film in Which Character Change Is Not All It's Cracked Up To Be

Schopenhauer—Living Your Worst Life Jul 13, 2025

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More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/schopenhauer-living-your-worst-life. Arthur 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, presents a pessimistic view of a world filled with endless strife and suffering, where happiness can only be but fleeting. So, how did Schopenhauer think we ought to live with one another in such a world? Did he believe there was ultimately a way to overcome the pain of the human condition? Or are we all doomed to live frustration-filled lives? Josh and Ray keep a sunny disposition with David Bather Woods from the University of Warwick, author of Arthur Schopenhauer: The Life and Thought of Philosophy’s Greatest Pessimist (forthcoming).

571: Making a Better World Jul 07, 2025

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More at https://philosophytalk.org/shows/making-better-world. Some philosophers think that morality boils down to one idea: we should make the world better for everyone. But who counts in "everyone"—babies, animals, future people? How can we tell what makes the world better for others? And in an uncertain world, how can anyone gauge the effects of their actions? Josh and Ray try to save the world with acclaimed Princeton philosopher Peter Singer, author of Ethics in the Real World: 90 Essays on Things That Matter.

613: Private Lives Jun 25, 2025

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More at https://www.philosophytalk.org/shows/private-lives. Cultural attitudes towards privacy seem to be in conflict. On the one hand, we are concerned about corporations getting their hands on or selling our personal data. On the other, many people like to broadcast every little bit of their daily lives. But what exactly is privacy, and is it something we should care about? Is there a difference between having a private life and having a secret life? And does the rise of reality TV and social media mean the realm of privacy is shrinking inexorably? Josh and Ray look through the peephole with Lowry Pressly from Stanford University, author of "The Right to Oblivion: Privacy and the Good Life."

569: Mexican Philosophy Jun 22, 2025

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More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/mexican-philosophy. From early feminist Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz to existentialist Emilio Uranga, from Indigenous thought to theorists of aesthetic utopia, Mexican philosophy is full of fascinating figures with brilliant insights. What can we learn from them today about belief, desire, freedom, morality, and education? And do Mexican philosophers speak with one voice or in a complicated harmony, stretching across the centuries? Josh and Ray travel through space and time with Manuel Vargas from UC San Diego, author of "Building Better Beings: A Theory of Moral Responsibility."

612: Philippa Foot Jun 12, 2025

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More at https://www.philosophytalk.org/shows/philippa-foot. Philippa Foot invented the thought experiment that famously became known as the Trolley Problem. Despite the vast industry of “trolleyology” it inspired, Foot’s goal to illuminate debates on abortion and euthanasia often gets lost in the mix. So, how did Foot use this thought experiment to distinguish between doing versus allowing? What did she mean by the "Doctrine of Double Effect"? Why did she think that cultivating classic virtues—justice, courage, prudence, and temperance—was in our own rational self-interest? And what made her later change her mind? Josh and Ray explore her life and thought with John Hacker-Wright from the University of Guelph, author of "Philippa Foot's Moral Thought."

567: What Is Gender? Jun 08, 2025

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More at https://www.philosophytalk.org/shows/what-gender. Gender 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 respect it or resist it? Should it even be a thing? Josh and guest-host Blakey Vermeule question gender with regular co-host Ray Briggs, co-author of "What Even Is Gender?"

566: Can Art Save Us? Jun 01, 2025

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More at https://www.philosophytalk.org/shows/can-art-save-us. The world is facing an unprecedented environmental crisis, and we urgently need good ways to address it. Courageous politicians would help, of course, as might scientific innovations. But how much of the problem is a failure of imagination? Could the arts help us see our way out of the problem? How can literature, painting, and movies redraw the landscape in our minds? Josh and Ray imagine a conversation with Harriet Hawkins, Professor of Human Geography and Co-Director of the Centre for GeoHumanities at Royal Holloway, University of London.

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