Overthink

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  • PHILOSOPHY
  • EVERY TWO WEEKS

The best of all possible podcasts, Leibniz would say. Putting big ideas in dialogue with the everyday, Overthink offers accessible and fresh takes on philosophy from enthusiastic experts. Hosted by professors Ellie Anderson (Pomona College) and David M. Peña-Guzmán (San Francisco State University).

  1. 17 HR AGO

    Manipulation

    Should we be sympathetic towards manipulators? In episode 157 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about manipulation. They discuss what makes up a manipulative personality, why manipulators see social interaction as inherently combative, and what you can do when you find yourself entangled with a manipulator. They also explore what Niccolo Machiavelli tell us about the role of manipulation in politics. Should political leaders always be kind? Or, as Machiavelli says, do they need to learn to “be bad”? And what can we say about manipulation outside of politics? Does manipulative behavior require awareness and intention? Are all forms of manipulation inherently bad? And where do we draw the line between manipulation and other types of social influence? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts discuss how manipulators perform on the ultimatum game and whether philosophy is the only form of non-manipulative discourse. Works discussed: Anne Barnhill, “How philosophy might contribute to the practical ethics of online manipulation” Robert Greene, 48 Laws of Power Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince George Simon, In Sheep’s Clothing: Understanding and Dealing with Manipulative People Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    58 min
  2. You Might Also Like: The Run-Through with Vogue

    17 HR AGO · BONUS

    You Might Also Like: The Run-Through with Vogue

    Introducing Rebecca Hall Talks The Beauty, Entering Her Villain Era, and Bette Davis from The Run-Through with Vogue. Follow the show: The Run-Through with Vogue For someone who’s done a lot of horror movies, Rebecca Hall admits she’s a bit squeamish. That, however, didn’t stop her from taking on a role in the newest body horror series, The Beauty, which is set to premiere January 21st on FX. Rebecca first learned of the series when she grabbed breakfast at Buvette in the West Village with Ryan Murphy (who created the show Matthew Hodgson) who enticed her with three things: a fun premise (an STD that makes you so hot that you explode, sign Rebecca up!), great clothes (The Row to be specific, and who could say no to that?) plus a list of fabulous filming locations: Rome, Paris, and Venice all making the list. “He [Ryan] was very open to me. One of the joys for me of this job was that not many people asked me to just be myself for a character.” Rebecca told Senior Features Editor Marley Marius and Fashion Writer Hannah Jackson on Wednesday afternoon.  This openness and collaborative spirit Ryan gives to his actors is what enticed Rebecca about working with him again on his series Monster, where she will play Lizzie Borden in which she called “entering her villain era” which was a lot of fun for her. When Rebecca is not on the job, she finds great joy in painting (many of her works have been either sold or exhibited), watching The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City (for which her husband is getting around to understanding), and dressing up in “crazy outfits” in her day-to-day quiet upstate life. Earlier in the episode, Chioma fills Chloe in about the behind-the-scenes of the new fabulous British Vogue cover with Jessie Buckley. They also chat what they are looking forward to about awards season and give a farewell to Will Welch who announced he is departing from GQ earlier this week. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices DISCLAIMER: Please note, this is an independent podcast episode not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in conjunction with the host podcast feed or any of its media entities. The views and opinions expressed in this episode are solely those of the creators and guests. For any concerns, please reach out to team@podroll.fm.

  3. 13 JAN

    Closer Look: Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man

    How do new forms of social control under capitalism foreclose the possibility of social critique? In episode 156 of Overthink, Ellie and David take a deep dive into Herbert Marcuse’s 1964 classic, One-Dimensional Man. Marcuse analyzes how 1950s conformism narrows the private space of human thinking, turning us into one-dimensional beings. Your hosts talk about Marcuse’s diagnosis of life under capitalism, and his assessment of how analytic philosophy’s obsession with formal logic encourages conservatism and prevents us from subversive thought. In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts discuss what freedom looks like for Marcuse and how critical Marcuse would be of Overthink.Works Discussed: Herbert Marcuse, One-Dimensional Man Stephen Whitfield, “Refusing Marcuse: 50 Years After One-Dimensional Man” Paul Mattick, "One Dimensional Man In Class Society" Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    59 min

  4. 6 JAN

    Treason

    Do we ever have a duty to commit treason? In episode 155 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about “the crime of crimes.” They look at the emergence of this legal concept and its evolution over time, and discuss some of the most important historical cases involving treason: Benedict Arnold, Aaron Burr, and John Brown. Can we say that treason is always bad when America's founding itself depended on an act of treason? Who is capable of committing a treasonous act? And is treason ever morally permissible? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts discuss how treason is seen in Hobbes’ political philosophy and whether we need to recover insurrection as a political possibility. Works Discussed: Neil Cartlidge, “Treason,” The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Law and Literature Cécile Fabre, “The Morality of Treason” George P. Fletcher, “The Case for Treason” Michel Foucault, Discipline and Punish Phyllis Greenacre, “Treason and the Traitor” Leonard Harris, “Honor and Insurrection or A Short Story about why John Brown (with David Walker’s Spirit) was Right and Frederick Douglass (with Benjamin Banneker’s Spirit) was Wrong” Lee McBride, “Insurrectionary Ethics and Racism” Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    59 min

  5. 30/12/2025

    Living With Men with Manon Garcia

    Content warning: this episode extensively discusses rape, sexual violence, and incest. In episode 154 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk to philosopher Manon Garcia about her book, Living with Men: Reflections on the Pelicot Trial. They discuss the rape case of Gisèle Pelicot and how the subsequent trial of her husband and fifty additional men sheds light on the normalization and acceptance of sexual violence in what is known as 'rape culture.' In what ways is the current understanding of consent as ‘permission giving’ harmful? How is heterosexual love often tied to objectification? Why does the ‘boys will be boys’ mentality make it difficult for us to rely on the criminal justice system? And how do we live with men knowing that cases such as these are incredibly common? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts discuss the politics of language and the risk of eroticization in recounting stories of sexual violence, and they think through where we should go from here in terms of sexual and romantic attachments to men. Works Discussed: Manon Garcia, Living with Men: Reflections on the Pelicot Trial Simone de Beauvoir and Gisèle Halimi, Djamila Boupacha Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    55 min

  6. 23/12/2025

    Cuteness

    What do Labubus, Beanie Babies, Hello Kitty, and Furbies have in common? They’re all cute! In episode 153 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss cuteness. From the idea of cuteness as a logic of contagion to the evolutionary explanation for why we find babies so adorable, this episode has it all. How is the increasing demand for shortform content a symptom of cuteification? What are the harms of categorizing certain animals as cute? In what ways is cuteness tied to consumption? And is society heading towards a future of cuteness? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts talk about the emergence of cuteness in Kawaii culture and what is so cute about Paddington bear.   Works Discussed: Amy Ireland and Maya B. Kronic, Cute Accelerationism Sianne Ngai, Our Aesthetic Categories: Zany, Cute, and Interesting Sianne Ngai, The Cute Dylan Wittkower, “On The Origins of the Cute as a Dominant Aesthetic Category in Digital Culture” Sarah Wolfensohn, “Too Cute to Kill? The Need for Objective Measurements of Quality of Life” Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    56 min

  7. 16/12/2025

    Closer Look: Foucault, History of Sexuality Vol. 1

    It’s time for something new! In episode 152 of Overthink, Ellie and David take a deep dive into Michel Foucault’s The History of Sexuality, Volume 1. From the repressive hypothesis to the role of confession in producing the truth of sex, your hosts get into all of the juicy content of this seminal book. They also talk about the difference between “ars erotica” and “scientia sexualis,” two key concepts in Foucault’s treatment of sexuality.Why does Foucault reject the view that sexuality has been repressed? What is the function of power in sexuality? How does the desire for truth about oneself produce various discourses of sexuality? And, when all is said and done, are Foucault’s reflections on power in this work too homogenous? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts discuss the pedagogization of children’s sexuality and Foucault’s problematic treatment of a historical case involving the sexual abuse of a minor. Works Discussed: Michel Foucault, The History of Sexuality Volume 1 Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    59 min

  8. 09/12/2025

    Meritocracy

    We've all been sold the ideal of meritocracy. The American dream, our education system, and our politics are all based on it. But what if meritocracy is actually impossible--and based on a misunderstanding of how society works? In episode 151 of Overthink, Ellie and David put meritocracy in the spotlight. They think through the inherent inequality of meritocracy, its tendency to skew toward conservatism, and what Trump’s attacks on DEI reveal about how society favors merit. How does meritocracy create vertical social distance between those in power and the working class? And is meritocracy even a worthwhile ideal? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts get into the role that merit plays in Christian theology and the promise of heaven.   Works Discussed: Christopher Hayes, Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy Judith Lichtenberg and David Luban, “The Merits of Merit” Michael Young, The Rise of the Meritocracy Enjoy our work? Support Overthink via tax-deductible donation: https://www.givecampus.com/fj0w3v Join our Substack for ad-free versions of both audio and video episodes, extended episodes, exclusive live chats, and more: https://overthinkpod.substack.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    57 min
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About

The best of all possible podcasts, Leibniz would say. Putting big ideas in dialogue with the everyday, Overthink offers accessible and fresh takes on philosophy from enthusiastic experts. Hosted by professors Ellie Anderson (Pomona College) and David M. Peña-Guzmán (San Francisco State University).

Information

  • Channel
    Podcast Nation
  • Creator
    Ellie Anderson, Ph.D. and David Peña-Guzmán, Ph.D.
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    158
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © © 2025 Overthink 149604
  • Show Website
    Overthink

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