Philosophy Talk Starters

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/willing-suspension-disbelief Why don't we run out of the movie theatre when a monster shows on the screen? What kind of mental state is the willing suspension of disbelief? Why do fiction and drama affect our emotions even when we know they are not real? John and Ken examine the role of suspension of disbelief in the enjoyment of theatre, movies, video games, and what this trait reveals about the human mind in general.

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/reconciliation Justice, truth, and identity; race, society, and law—these all come into dramatic play as South Africa makes the tumultuous transition to a post-apartheid democracy. How has the new South Africa constructed its concepts of reconciliation? How has its historical emergence meant a rethinking, reimaging, re-experiencing, relabeling, and repoliticizing of race? John and Ken discuss reconciliation with Daniel Herwitz, a philosopher who has spent much time in South Africa.

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/strange-world-quantum-reality Quantum mechanics is an astoundly successful, mathematically elegant, explanatorily deep, even beautiful scientific theory. Yet it reveals a truly puzzling world of micro-entities: entities that can be at two places at once, that can "travel" from here to the other side of Alpha Centauri in an instant without traversing the space in between, that behave like waves when unobserve but like particles when observed. John and Ken ask Jenann Ismael from the University of Arizona to help try to make philosophical sense of the strange world of quantum reality.

More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/ethics-war. After World War II the Nurenberg trials and the conventions that arose out of them codified the idea that there are right and wrong ways to wage war. That prisoners of war have definite rights, and that non-combatants should be treated differently that soldiers. Some think the idea of a morality of warfare makes no sense, and that the distinction between soldiers and non-combatants is meaningless in the setting of modern warfare. John and Ken discuss these issues in the light of philosophical theories of right and wrong.

More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/language-politics. Politics, especially American politics, puts pressure on words like "liberal", "conservative" and "values" as they are used more as weapons than as tools for communication. John and Ken discuss this process and the philosophical shifts that often accompany changes in meaning with famed San Francisco linguist Geoff Nunberg, a regular on NPR's "Fresh Air."

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/saints-heroes-and-well-lived-lives. Some actions are right, and some are wrong. But aren't some even better than right---the kinds of things that heroes and saints do? Yet some philosophers think that such "supererogatory" acts make no sense; we should always do the best thing open to us, and there is no room for better than best. John and Ken discuss the philosophy and psychology of saints and heroes with Susan Wolf from UNC Chapel Hill.

More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/descartes The 17th Century philosopher Rene Descartes is often considered the father of modern philosophy. His Meditations are a staple in introductory philosophy courses, and his views on the relation of mind and body have dominated philosophical discussion of this issue for three hundred years. John and Ken discuss the life, times, and philosophy of this fascinating French philosopher with Ron Rubin from Pitzer College.

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/indispensible-emotions Where would we be without emotions? Many philosophers throughout history have thought the emotions serve only to cloud our judgments and actions. Phrases like "He's just acting emotionally" or "Her judgment is clouded by emotion" are phrases of condemnation, not of praise. Still, some philosophers have argued the emotions have an intelligence of their own and that the emotions are indispensable for our ethical lives. Join John and Ken and their guest Martha Nussbaum as they explore the role of emotions in well lived lives and well-order societies.

More at www.philosophytalk.org/shows/moral-dilemmas-and-moral-ambiguity It would be nice if we always knew the morally right thing to do, if our choices and commitments were painted in stark black and white. Unfortunately life is full of gray areas, including situations in which all the choices that confront us seem morally problematic, in which all the people who surround us seem composed of equal parts good and evil. John and Ken explore the extent to which reality confronts us with moral dilemmas and moral ambiguity with Walter Sinnott-Armstrong from Dartmouth College.

More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/zen. What is the sound of one hand clapping? Does Zen Buddhism provide a unique perspective on the world that transcends the wisdom in Western Philosophy? Is there a special kind of Zen logic? Or is it just one more religion? John and Ken welcome Robert Scharf from UC Berkeley.