143 episodes
The New Thinkery The New Thinkery
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- Society & Culture
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4.9 • 171 Ratings
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The New Thinkery is a podcast devoted to political philosophy and its history, along with its many guises in literature, film, and human experience generally. Named after Socrates’ infamous “Thinkery” in Aristophanes’ Clouds, The New Thinkery strikes a balance between the seriousness of academia and the playfulness of casual conversation among friends.
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Jacob Klein's The Problem of Freedom
With the gang back together this week, the guys jump into a short essay on a punchy topic, the problem of freedom, using Jacob Klein's essay by the same name as a starting point. They discuss the framing of freedom, its types, and to what extent freedom itself is a good or bad thing. Plus: an announcement toward the end of the show!
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Machiavelli's The Prince, Chapter 7
This week, David is away, which means Alex and Greg are getting right to the point. They discuss chapter seven of The Prince, which focuses primarily on Cesare Borgia and his political career. Machiavelli seems to put ample praise on Borgia while also noting the stumbling block he would succumb to. Plus: a quick analysis of where the famous line, "the ends justifies the means" comes from.
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Interview: Spencer Klavan on Diogenes Laërtius' The Life of Zeno
This week, the guys are joined by Dr. Spencer Klavan, David's coworker and author of multiple books on philosophy and saving the West. The group take a quick look at stoicism and ancient life before diving into an insightful and funny analysis of The Life of Zeno.
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Interview: Dr. Michael P. Zuckert on Lincoln's Views of Discoveries and Inventions
This week the guys are joined for the fourth time by Dr. Michael P. Zuckert, the Nancy R. Dreux Professor of Political Science, Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame. The group convene early this week in observation of President's Day and discuss some of Lincoln's speeches, other writings, and thoughts surrounding dicoveries and inventions, and their purpose in the young republic. Plus: the guys discuss a little bit of fun presidential trivia.
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Valentine's Day Love Poems
Happy Valentine's Day from The New Thinkery! On this special episode, the guys each selcted poems that they found particularly worth reading and thinking about on Valentine's Day. From Plato, to Machiavelli, to Shakespeare, and even Christopher Wallace, the guys have you covered with a reading and discussion of a wide swath of poetic content to help you get into the Valentine's Day mindset.
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Winston Churchill's Painting as a Pastime
This week, the guys take a break from philosophy, and instead disucss Churchill's short work on how best to spend leisure time and retaining mental acuity with age, Painting as a Pastime. The guys discuss the merits of painting and why Churchill points to it as a great way to stay sharp. Plus: Alex makes David and Greg play a guessing game.
Customer Reviews
A Philosophy Podcast That Won’t Bore You to Death…
…only to tears.
5/5 stars.
Best enjoyed alongside an alcoholic drink or, better yet, some of Willie Nelson’s finest weed. Or cheese from Grampa’s Cheese Barn. Or all of the above.
Is Pious pious ‘cause God loves pious?
Socrates asks whose bias y’all seek.
All for Plato, screech!
I’m out here ballin’, I know y’all hear my sneaks.
A masterclass
Alex and Greg are incredibly knowledgeable, and they bring on exceptional guests to discuss the authors, works, and themes. David asks questions that are a great help with works I haven’t been familiar with, and he adds a lot of levity to the sometimes heady conversations.
I wish each podcast was longer or multipart. Each episode strikes a great balance between accessibility and depth of inquiry, but there have been a couple topics where it feels like they get into the real juicy stuff right at the end.
More medievalists would also be good. A bridge from ancient to modern.
Best Political Philosophy Podcast by far
Be nice to Greg!