Episode 94: Schopenhauer on Reading, Wri...

Mark's Partially Examined Life co-host Seth joins us (i.e. Mark and Mary) to introduce Seth to improv and continue introducing philosophy to Mary. We discuss Seth's attraction to depressing texts, act out couples' therapy and monster beauty parlor, and open up a few philosophical ... Show More

On A Short History of Decay (1949), a pessimist/existentialist somewhat text from the most famous Romanian philosopher. Cioran's short essays touch on art, humor, God, salvation, time, nostalgia, mourning, death, disease, suicide, revolt, freedom, Buddhism, Daoism, and the role o ... Show More

For our Emmys/back-to-school episode, we cover the pinnacle of the current network sitcom landscape: The six-time 2025 Emmy nominated 4-year-old sitcom Abbott Elementary. Yes, it lost this year but has won in the past. Mark, Lawrence, Al and West-Philly-resident Sarahlyn discuss ... Show More

Arthur Schopenhauer was a German Philosopher born in 1788 known for his dark pessimistic philosophical reflections. For Schopenhauer, the underlying force of reality is the Will (also called will to live or will to life), which is the essence of existence. It is an unconscious an ... Show More

What is the nature of reality? Why can music be so profound? Are we doomed to suffer or is extended happiness possible? Should we choose a life of asceticism? These are some of the questions that Arthur Schopenhauer addressed in The World as Will and Idea. In this episode of Phil ... Show More

Arthur Schopenhauer is best known for the deep pessimism of his book The World as Will and Representation. Here we focus on a slightly less pessimistic aspect of his philosophy: his views on compassion. Very unusually for an early nineteenth century thinker, he was influenced her ... Show More

  ORIGINALLY RELEASED Feb 3, 2022 In this episode, Alyson and Breht introduce, teach, and discuss the philosphy of two giants in western philosophy: Arthur Schopenhaur and Friedrich Nietzsche.  They discuss their respective philosophies, how they relate, how they differ, the subs ... Show More

Sigmund Freud once said of the philosopher and cultural critic Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) that "he had a more penetrating knowledge of himself than any man who ever lived or was likely to live.” Well known for his iconoclastic views and intoxicating prose style, Nietzsche we ... Show More

Howard Bloom, the author of Global Brain and the Lucifer Principle, joins the show for a conversation about the 60’s and the journey of self-discovery. 

Melvyn Bragg and guests AC Grayling, Beatrice Han-Pile and Christopher Janaway discuss the dark, pessimistic philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer.As a radical young thinker in Germany in the early 19th century, Schopenhauer railed against the dominant ideas of the day. He dismissed ... Show More

  William Irwin Thompson fue un filósofo social, crítico cultural y poeta estadounidense. Recibió el premio del Festival Internacionalde Poesía de Oslo en 1986. Describió su estilo de escritura y habla como "jazz mental sobre textos antiguos". Fue el fundador de la Asociación Lin ... Show More

Sean Illing talks with author and professor Robert Zaretsky about the French philosopher, novelist, and journalist Albert Camus (1913–1960). Though Camus might be best known for his novel The Stranger, Sean and Prof. Zaretsky explore the ideas contained in his philosophical essay ... Show More

Author Jo Phelan discusses the article, "Impostorization in Academia, Psychological Distress, and Class Reproduction," published in the March 2024 issue of Society and Mental Health.