
80 episodes

Why Theory Todd McGowan & Ryan Engley
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- TV & Film
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4.9 • 39 Ratings
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Why Theory brings continental philosophy and psychoanalytic theory together to examine cultural phenomena.
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Civilization and Its Discontents
In this episode, Ryan and Todd go through Freud's rich late text Civilization and Its Discontents. They discuss the oceanic feeling, Freud's critique of religion, the relationship between death drive and aggression, and other subjects that Freud engages.
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Jouissance
In this episode, Ryan and Todd chronicle the varied evolution of the concept of jouissance in the thought of Jacques Lacan and offer their idea of the best formulation of this concept. They touch on the key moments, from the association of jouissance with transgression in Seminar VII to the identification of jouissance with the failure of the sexual relationship in Seminar XX.
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Lacan's Seminar 2
In their continuing series on Jacques Lacan's seminars, Ryan and Todd devote this episode to Seminar 2, which focuses on the relationship between the imaginary and symbolic registers. They discuss Lacan's early conception of death drive, his reading of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Purloined Letter," and the game of odds and evens, as well as other aspects of the seminar.
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Domestic Terrorism
In this special episode, Ryan and Todd comment on the recent attempted coup in the United States. They address the significance of this act of domestic terrorism for the actuality of Right and Left on the political scene.
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Tenet
In this episode, Ryan and Todd analyze the new Christopher Nolan film Tenet. They discuss the film in terms of the concept of Nachtraglickeit or retroactivity, as well as exploring the conflicted politics that Nolan proposes in the film.
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Popular Music
In this episode, Ryan and Todd investigate the theoretical implications of popular music, focusing on groups such as the Replacements, the Talking Heads, and Roxy Music. They consider how the unconscious, drive, fantasy, and enjoyment manifest themselves in the works from these bands and others.
Customer Reviews
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Great!
So good
This is so good, guys.
As someone with a love of history and a long term curiosity about Hegel, I’ve been working my way through The Phenomenology of Spirit on my own. (I was told it would give me a better understanding of his thought than his work directly on history and it seems you guys agree.) It’s tough going and I almost gave up...
Then I stumbled across this pod and it’s given me the inspiration to push on. Makes Hegel relevant and reminds me why I am trying to understand him better.
Would love an episode on Hegel and history, though not necessarily his Philosophy of...
Often brilliant: sometimes terrifying
The treatment of theory is excellent: I learn so much. The application of the points made to real life are often terrifying, e.g. the sympathetic understanding of looting? Please, if the looters came to either presenters’ property, would they be so understanding? Academics should stick to theory.