Socrates was a famous opponent of the Sophists, the teachers of rhetoric instead of truth - and yet, in his legal defense, he employs the techniques of rhetoric and displays a mastery of oratory. In a society that distrusted irony and regarded it as a form of dishonesty, Socrates uses the art of persuasion in a manner that is anti-persuasive: a brilliant iro ... Show More
Jun 9
Untimely Reflections #46: Stuart Kendall - On Georges Bataille
Today, I'm speaking with independent scholar, translator, and lecturer, Stuart Kendall. Stuart is responsible for helping to bring new translations of Georges Bataille's work into English, and he joined me for a conversation about Georges Bataille and his influence from Friedrich ... Show More
1h 20m
Jun 2
142: Commands, Symbols & Games - Nietzsche, Cassirer & Wittgenstein on Language
In this episode we're going to explore three very different thinkers who nonetheless converge on their theories of language. We're going to see if we can't extract an intelligible whole out of the ideas generated by this trio: the Nietzschean theory of language as command, the vi ... Show More
1h 37m
May 26
141: Ernst Cassirer - Language & Myth
In this episode, we're venturing into the life and thought of Ernst Cassirer, the last humanist of the Enlightenment tradition. Cassirer is widely known today for his debate with Heidegger at Davos, in which Cassirer appeared as the old style philosopher against the new world sig ... Show More
1h 40m
Dec 2019
Episode 70, Plato's Euthyphro: Socrates Accused (Part I - The Dialogue)
<p class="">Did you hear the news of Socrates? He's finally to answer for his sophistry! At last, the great lampooning, moral gadfly is to stand before the Court of Athens and answer for his crimes. To think, one could have the audacity to trade in talentless talk and lies, to le ... Show More
57m 13s
Dec 2019
Episode 70, Plato's Euthyphro: Socrates Accused (Part II - Further Analysis and Discussion)
<p class="">Did you hear the news of Socrates? He's finally to answer for his sophistry! At last, the great lampooning, moral gadfly is to stand before the Court of Athens and answer for his crimes. To think, one could have the audacity to trade in talentless talk and lies, to le ... Show More
45m 9s
Dec 2019
Episode 71, Plato's Apology: Socrates on Trial (Part I - The Dialogue)
<p class="">Gentleman of our most prestigious Court of Athens, may I praise your patience and diligence in the presentation of the prosecution. I, Meletus stand before you unequivocally convinced that the criminal is guilty as charged. The hideous, snub-nosed Socrates is charged ... Show More
58m 7s
Oct 2025
Massimo Pigliucci: What is Stoicism?
What is the history of Stoicism and how does one practice it today? Socrates in the City host Eric Metaxas sits down with professor and philosopher Massimo Pigliucci, author of the popular How to be a Stoic and Beyond Stoicism, to discuss the history and development of Stoicism, ... Show More
1 h
Dec 2019
Episode 71, Plato's Apology: Socrates on Trial (Part II - Further Analysis and Discussion)
<p class="">Gentleman of our most prestigious Court of Athens, may I praise your patience and diligence in the presentation of the prosecution. I, Meletus stand before you unequivocally convinced that the criminal is guilty as charged. The hideous, snub-nosed Socrates is charged ... Show More
37m 29s
Feb 2025
How Did Socrates Become So Wise?
Where did Socrates' wisdom actually come from? It was not raw intellect alone. In this conversation, Donald Robertson and I look at the daily habits, the charisma, and the genuine love of people that made Socrates the figure everyone after him kept arguing with.Donald reaches for ... Show More
4m 17s
Nov 2024
Donald Robertson on Socrates, Philosophy, and Modern Self-Help
I sat down with Donald Robertson, author and psychotherapist, for a proper conversation about Socrates: his life, his methods, and why a man who wrote nothing down still shapes how we think two and a half thousand years later.Donald blends cognitive behavioural therapy with ancie ... Show More
2h 58m