Philosophy For Our Times

Should narratives reflect or escape reality? Our panellists discuss.Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesFrom fairy tales to Harry Potter, from Avatar to James Bond, we love fantasy and expect our books and films to take us there. Yet at the same time we want our poems and plays, novels and movies, to reflect life and reality.Should our narratives be seeking to uncover reality or be seeking escape from it? Or are both goals impossible? Are we on the one hand unable to create a narrative that tells it how it is, and on the other incapable of making a fantasy that does not reflect our current circumstances? And if so, why?Director and producer of The Pervert's Guide to Cinema Sophie Fiennes, leading figure in contemporary philosophy of art Noël Carroll and myths expert Betty Sue Flowers explore whether narratives should reflect reality, or escape it. Mark Salter hosts.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=fantasy-and-realitySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are humans beyond nature?Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesHumans are unlike anything else in the universe. We're the only part of existence that can observe and reflect on being itself, that can choose to destroy or repair our own habitat. Or so Raymond Tallis argues in this deep dive interview into what it means to be human. Watch to find out how we came to be so unique, what it means for our relationship to nature, and what Parmenides has to do with all this.Physician, philosopher, poet and novelist Raymond Tallis is ‘one of the world’s greatest living polymaths’ (Intelligent Life). He is the author of such wide-ranging books as The Enduring Significance of Parmenides, The Kingdom of Infinite Space and Aping Mankind.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=humanity-beyond-natureSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are we all hypocrites?Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesMost of us want to be good and be seen to be good. But aren't these goals contradictory? Isn't the desire to be seen to good a means of placing ourselves higher than others and wishing to gain status and position as a result?Should we conclude that the attempt to be seen to be good is immoral and call it out as hypocritical, including philanthropist donation, explicit piety on the part of the religious, and virtue signalling be it on campus or on social media? Or is being seen to be good vital to cement socially positive behaviour? And explicit public demonstration of morality the only morality worth having?World-leading cultural theorist Kwame Anthony Appiah, Professor of sociology and African Studies and international authority on race, Crystal Fleming, and founder of Prospect Magazine David Goodhart probe the moral maze of public morality. Mark Linsenmayer hosts.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=the-case-for-virtuous-virtue-signallingSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Might consciousness operate in an entirely different sphere, outside of the world of space and time? Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesWe imagine ourselves as existing within time and space. Yet, we only ever experience the present moment. It is all we have. And within the present moment there is no direct experience of past or future. Nor is the present moment located anywhere, since it is everything for us. In short, there is no map reference for being or consciousness. No time zone or hour.Renowned multiverse theorist Laura Mersini-Houghton, legendary physicist, writer and broadcaster Paul Davies, post postmodern philosopher and Closure theorist Hilary Lawson and philosopher of science Craig Callender lock horns over the arrows of time. Sara Walker hosts. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=beyond-space-and-timeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sci-fi dream or reality? Listen to find out!Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesThe practice of putting electrodes in the pleasure centres of the brain - otherwise known as 'wireheading' - has been a sci-fi dream for decades. Oxford professor and transhumanist Anders Sandberg, explores the history and modern impact of the idea. Anders takes us on a journey from Rosseau’s critique of civilisation via Victorian parasitologists to weird 70s science and all the way to cutting edge AI research today.Anders Sandberg is a research fellow at the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford, where his research concerns the societal and ethical issues surrounding human enhancement and new technologies. He is also research associate to the Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics and the Oxford Centre for Neuroethics. There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=can-wireheading-cause-real-pleasureSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What would you feel if you found out you are bad? Why?Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesIn our largely secular world, most think there is no afterlife, no reward or punishment in the hereafter. Yet most still wish to act morally and even ascetically, delaying or refusing gratification in favour of some higher ideal. Even though, without God or an afterlife, there is no-one watching and judging us, and 'right and wrong' are seen as merely human creations.Are we living in the long shadow of a dead God, as Nietzsche suggested, and would we be better to break free? Is moral constraint a means of maintaining social order essential to the smooth running of society? Or can a merely human morality also be transcendent and ultimate?Turkish journalist, author and activist Ece Temelkuran, Anglican priest and scholar Alison Milbank and philosopher of mind Peter Sjöstedt-H debate the existence of a secular morality. Mark Salter hosts.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=why-do-we-want-to-be-goodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Sounds impossible? Listen to find out!Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesAre the laws of nature nothing more than habits that natural systems have learned to repeat over time? While it might sound impossible, Rupert Sheldrake will be explaining the phenomenon in this episode. Rupert Sheldrake is a scientist, author, and parapsychology researcher. Best known for his 2012 book The Science Delusion and the controversial, viral TED talk he gave which was banned by the organisation.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=how-the-universe-learns-rupert-sheldrakeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Can we hold multiple truths at once? Listen to find out!Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesMany still remain convinced that their own views and opinions are not just culturally relative but are true and accurate accounts of the way things are.Should we conclude that all forms of relativism are a mistake and insist on the importance and need to identify the true version of events, and the correctness of our own outlook? Alternatively, are some beliefs, such as morality and politics, contextual, while science remains objective? Or are all views essentially perspectival and we have no alternative to give up on the very possibility that we can be ultimately right about anything? There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=necessary-lies See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Don't look up? Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesIn this interview, philosopher Santiago Zabala details why the greatest emergency is the absence of emergency itself, the problem with freedom and our perception of postmodernism, and why we need to take warnings of emergencies far more seriously.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=philosophy-for-emergencies-santiago-zambalaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Are we cheating ourselves?Looking for a link we mentioned? It's here: https://linktr.ee/philosophyforourtimesIn our post truth age it seems that we can collect beliefs on a whim or a tribal fashion. And many are happy to hold contradictory views to suit their temporary desires.Is this a dangerous approach that threatens not only the coherence of our own outlook but the stability and success of culture and society as whole? Do we need to apply reason to sort wild opinion from truth, eradicate our hypocrisies and build a better society? Or is the era of enlightenment reason over, and time to see its assertions as the prejudiced theories of a privileged class who used logic to promote a particular world view.Distinguished philosophy professor Graham Harman, author of Oughts and Thoughts Anandi Hattiangadi and post-post-realist Hilary Lawson explore the difference between opinion and truth. Hannah Dawson hosts.There are thousands of big ideas to discover at IAI.tv – videos, articles, and courses waiting for you to explore. Find out more: https://iai.tv/podcast-offers?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_campaign=the-infidelity-of-beliefsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.