What's Left of Philosophy Lillian Cicerchia, Owen Glyn-Williams, Gil Morejón, and William Paris
-
- 社会/文化
In What’s Left of Philosophy Gil Morejón (@gdmorejon), Lillian Cicerchia (@lilcicerch), Owen Glyn-Williams (@oglynwil), and William Paris (@williammparis) discuss philosophy’s radical histories and contemporary political theory. Philosophy isn't dead, but what's left? Support us at patreon.com/leftofphilosophy
-
85 TEASER | Giving an Account of Oneself: Judith Butler's Ethics of Opacity
In this episode we delve into Judith Butler’s Giving an Account of Oneself, an illuminating book from 2005 that examines subject-formation and the relationship between the self, other people, and the normative social order. We reconstruct Butler’s efforts to ground a philosophical ethics with positive claims in the insights of three theoretical traditions that have generally been understood to frustrate moral philosophy: post-structuralism, psychoanalysis, and critical theory. Our core focus is the question of whether Butler’s conceptions of the ‘relationality’ and ‘opacity’ of the human self can do the kind of ethical heavy lifting that they claim.
This is just a short clip from the full episode, which is available to our subscribers on Patreon:
patreon.com/leftofphilosophy
References:
Judith Butler, Giving an Account of Oneself (New York: Fordham University Press, 2005).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN -
84 | Sex in Philosophy w/ Dr. Manon Garcia
In this episode, we talk with Manon Garcia about the problem of women’s submissiveness in feminist philosophy. Then we discuss longstanding feminist criticisms of the concept of consent, what we want from consent in the first place, and what it could mean in the future. And we wonder if the reason it’s so hard to talk about sex in philosophy is that we don’t really think about it philosophically enough, which is too bad, since as it turns out, good sex is an integral part of the good life.
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil
References:
Manon Garcia, We Are Not Born Submissive: How Patriarchy Shapes Women’s Lives (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2021).
Manon Garcia, The Joy of Consent: A Philosophy of Good Sex (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2023).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN -
83 | What is Aesthetics? Part III: Ernst Bloch: In Search of the Red Sublime
In this episode, we return to the work of Ernst Bloch and his theory concerning “aesthetic genius” and the possibility of the red sublime. Bloch attempts to construct a Marxist account of art that can explain how it is possible for aesthetic objects to provoke experiences of beauty and sublimity long after the historical conditions of their genesis have passed. Bloch thinks certain artworks contain a utopian surplus that beckons for a not-yet existing classless society. In other words, Bloch thinks we can inherit the knowledge of the real possibility of communism from the history of class domination and catastrophe. Join us as we try to make sense of these claims, dunk on the idea of art as “resistance,” and even try (in vain) to get Gil to experience the sublime!
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil
References:
Ernst Bloch, “Ideas as Transformed Material in Human Minds, or Problems of an Ideological Superstructure (Cultural Heritage) (1972)” in The Utopian Function of Art and Literature, trans. Jack Zipes and Frank Mecklenburg (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 1988), 18-71.
Filippo Menozzi, "Inheriting Marx: Daniel Bensaïd, Ernst Bloch and the Discordance of Time” in Historical Materialism 28, 1 (2020): 147-182.
Stuart Hall, “Marx’s Notes on Method: A ‘Reading’ of the ‘1857 Introduction’ [1974]” in Selected Writings on Marxism, ed. Gregor McLennan (Durham: Duke University Press, 2021), 19-62.
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN -
82 | The State and Right: Kant's Metaphysics of Morals
In this episode, we dig into the Doctrine of Right in Kant’s Metaphysics of Morals to see what he has to say about the state. Turns out he’s a fan, because the state is what guarantees the possibility of justice and perpetual peace. Nice! But he also thinks that the state should be authorized to kill you. And that you don’t have the right to rebel even if the sovereign is abusing their power. And that you shouldn’t think too hard about the origin of the state. And that human beings are transcendentally disposed to malevolent violence toward each other? So let’s call this a mixed bag, maybe.
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil
References:
Immanuel Kant, The Metaphysics of Morals, trans. Mary Gregor (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN -
81 TEASER | David Harvey: Capitalist Urbanization and the Right to the City
In this episode, we talk about David Harvey’s analysis of the urbanization process as a form of accumulated surplus capital expenditure and consider the built environment as a crucial site of class struggle. The physical constitution of the built environment in which we live mediates our forms of sociality and political dispositions, not to mention how important it is for making mass action and organization possible. So it sure sucks that the shape of its development has been determined by the needs of capital rather than those of human flourishing for a few hundred years now! Oh, and we’re really mean to the suburbs, too.
This is just a short clip from the full episode, which is available to our subscribers on Patreon:
patreon.com/leftofphilosophy
References:
David Harvey, “The urban process under capitalism: a framework for analysis.” In Urbanization and Urban Planning in Capitalist Society, eds. Michael Dear and Allen Scott (London: Routledge, 1981).
David Harvey, “The Right to the City.” New Left Review 53 (Sept/Oct 2008). https://newleftreview.org/issues/ii53/articles/david-harvey-the-right-to-the-city
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN -
80 | Grab Bag Special Episode with Michael Peterson! Utilitarian Harems, Nietzschean Ciphers, and Cowardly Chatbots
In this nonstandard episode, Gil and Owen are joined by Michael Peterson to talk about how dreadful utilitarianism is, consider some of the offers that folks have made to come guest on the show, and reflect on how deeply unimpressive LLMs are when it comes to actually taking a position. Just having some fun with it! Video of the recording is available to our supporters on Patreon.
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil
References:
National Council on Disability, Response to Singer
https://ncd.gov/newsroom/04232015
münecat, "Sovereign Citizens: Pseudolaw & Disorder":
https://youtu.be/KcxZFmKrxR8?si=s3Xu_nH7dS6NkrWd
music:
Vintage Memories by Schematist | https//schematist.bandcamp.com
Connect by Astrale | https://go-stream.link/sp-astrale
START OVER by HYMN | https://get.slip.stream/g3FFTJ
My Space by Overu | https://go-stream.link/sp-overu