The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast Partially Examined Life
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- Society & Culture
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The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don't have to know any philosophy, or even to have read the text we're talking about to (mostly) follow and (hopefully) enjoy the discussion. For links to the texts we discuss and other info, check out www.partiallyexaminedlife.com.
We also feature episodes from other podcasts by our hosts to round out your partially examined life, including Pretty Much Pop (prettymuchpop.com, covering all media), Nakedly Examined Music (nakedlyexaminedmusic.com, deconstructing songs), Philosophy vs. Improv (philosophyimprov.com, fun with performance skills and philosophical ideas), and (sub)Text (subtextpodcast.com, looking deeply at lit and film). Learn about more network podcasts at partiallyexaminedlife.com.
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Ep. 340: Brian Ellis on the Implications of Essentialism (Part One)
Continuing on The Philosophy of Nature: A Guide to the New Essentialism.
Ellis' essentialism about physics and chemistry says that, for example, atoms of various elements are truly and unambiguously different and behave in ways that make them what they are. What does this entail?
Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion.
Learn about our new book at partiallyexaminedlife.com/book. -
PEL Presents PMP#172: Curb Larry David's Shtick
The incredible post-Seinfeld improvised sit-com Curb Your Enthusiasm has had its finale, and so Mark, Lawrence, Sarah and Al reflect on its format, its characters, its way of exploring puzzles of modern manners, its treatment of race and gender, and more. Was it too repetitive? Did it get too contrived?
For more, visit prettymuchpop.com. Hear bonus content at patreon.com/prettymuchpop or by subscribing via Apple Podcasts to the Mark Lintertainment Channel.
Sponsor: Get 50% off your first box of ready-to-eat meals at FactorMeals.com/pretty50 (use code pretty50). -
PEL 15th Anniversary and Book Release
Your four hosts plus book editor Chris Sunami reflect on doing the podcast for 15 years and making the new book, which you should order on April 25.
Plus, the three rules, future ambitions, and more.
Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion.
Sponsor: Get a $1/month e-commerce trial at shopify.com/pel.
Learn more about the book at partiallyexaminedlife.com/book. -
Ep. 339: Brian Ellis on the Metaphysics of Science (Part Two)
Continuing on The Philosophy of Nature: A Guide to the New Essentialism (2002) with guest Chris Heath.
We get further into the text about metaphysical realism, criteria for a natural kind, properties vs. predicates, and much more.
Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion.
Learn about the new PEL book at partiallyexaminedlife.com/book. Make a note on your calendar to purchase it on Thursday, April 25. -
PEL Presents NEM/PMP: Head vs. Gut Songwriting w/ Roger Joseph Manning Jr., David Christian, Rachel Taylor Brown
When we write, how much is planned vs. improvised? How much is inspirational vs. double-or-triple checked? How does this factor weigh into how much music we release, how eclectic our sound is, and how well we improvise with others?
This discussion features three returning guests:
Roger Joseph Manning Jr. was the keyboardist/singer for Jellyfish and Imperial Drag, and more recently as a solo artist and with the Likerish Quartet. Hear his solo episode. The end song on this episode "I'm Startin' a Band" from his Radio Daze EP (2023). David Christian is the singer/guitarist for Britain's Comet Gain. Hear his solo episode. The intro music to this discussion is "Love and Hate on the Radio" from Radio Sessions 1996-2011. Portland-based Rachel Taylor Brown has released 10 solo albums. Hear her solo episode. Her song choice relevant to this discussion was "Stagg Field." Sponsor: Get 50% off your first box of ready-to-eat meals at FactorMeals.com/pretty50 (use code pretty50).
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PEL Presents PvI#74: A Psychedelic Embrace with David Peña-Guzmán (Overthink)
David is co-host of the excellent Overthink podcast, popular among the young people today, and so we have him monologue to children as an anti (?) drug speaker. How can drugs change us, our sense of self, and the ways we see the world? Can some drugs be considered "natural"? Also, legally defensible drug use at work, and Nancy Reagan the Heel.
Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com.
Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions, a video version of the podcast, and other bonus stuff.
Customer Reviews
Hands down - the best philosophy podcast
Best topics, debate and insight.
Consistently great
have listened to every episode. These guys are amazing - they manage to take even the most obscure philosophical topics and break them down without dumbing them down. What elevates the podcast is the rapport and humour between the guys and their willingness to joke around and also seriously discuss stuff in just the right amounts. The only criticisms I have is that the speakers seem to have become a little drier and less personal as the series has progressed - in the earlier episodes they seemed more willing to offer personal opinions, interpretations and honest feelings about the significance of the texts for their own lives, which made the podcast a lot more interesting and unique. Also some episodes lack structure - the best episodes have the speakers explain the rationale for how and why the different talking points have been ordered and allocated talking time. Nonetheless this podcast is consistently great. The philosophy of mind (21), Why do philosophy (73) feminism (p42) and the episodes on Hegel and Heidegger are some of the best.
Wes is my favourite. Also Mark's music is really good.
food for thought
Walter Kaufmann once said that philosophers now write only for the fellow philosophers; Partially Examined Life is bridging this gap by bringing the philosophy to everyone and they are making it fun to discuss and understand too.