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August 29:
Self-Deception
Self-deception sounds like a contradiction: intentionally convincing
yourself of something you know to be untrue. But it is a
pervasive aspect of human nature. What is the nature of
self-deception, and what are its main patterns? Does it serve any
purpose? Ken and John confront the truths of self-deception with
Neil Van Leeuwen from the University of Johannesburg.
September 5:
Philosophy for the Young: Corrupting or Empowering?
Socrates was executed for corrupting the youth. In America, youth
below college age are usually not exposed to philosophy in the
classroom. Is philosophy all that dangerous? Should it be
taught to teenagers? Or would this lead to a generation of
self-absorbed and skeptical young people, shirking their duties in
order to worry about the meaning of life? Ken and John are joined
by Jack Bowen, author of The Dream Weaver and If You Can Read This: The Philosophy of
Bumper Stickers, for a program recorded with a live audience
of young philosophers at Palo Alto High School.
September 12:
Meaning and the Revolution
The American Revolution was saturated with meaning and ambiguity, from
the words of the Declaration of Independence, to the beliefs of the
founding fathers, to the vagueness, hedges, and contradictions of the
Constitution on which the possibility of union between slave and free
states rested. Ken and John examine the personalities,
philosophies, and documents of the American Revolution with Pulitzer
Prize winning Stanford historian Jack Rakove, author of Revolutionaries: A New History of the
Invention of America.
September
19: Dualism
What is the relationship between the mind and the brain? Monists
believe that there is only one substance or property in the Universe,
be it physical (Materialists) or mental (Idealists). But
Dualists, like the 17th Century French philosopher Rene Descartes, hold
that mental stuff exists side by side with physical stuff. Can
this view be defended, in light of modern science? John and Ken
probe the mind-body with David Rosenthal from City University of New
York, author of Consciousness and Mind.
(First broadcast 8/10/2008).
September
26: Gandhi
Gandhi is famous as the leader of the movement for Indian independence,
which he based on his philosophy of non-violence, an important
influence on Martin Luther King Jr. Gandhi's ideas and the effects of
his leadership continue to influence the world and its leaders.
What was the philosophical foundation of these ideas? Is
non-violence a strategy for a certain purpose, or the basis for a way
of life? Ken and John welcome Akeel Bilgrami, Director of the
Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University and author of "Gandhi,
the Philosopher." (First broadcast 11/16/2008).
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