PODCAST

Philosophy vs. Improv

Mark Linsenmayer

society & culture philosophy

All Episodes

1:04:06

PvI#38: The Bones of Tragedy with Jay O. Sanders

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/09/15

Jay Sanders, famed not only for his appearances on Law & Order: Criminal Intent and The Day After Tomorrow and many many other screens and stages, joins us to talk tragedy, how he's applied the lessons of improv to his scripted acting, and more. Jump into the improv maelstrom with us! In the post-game, which just this once, we're sharing with the general public, we more about Jay's projects and getting recognized on the street for things. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill

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56:17

PvI#37: Season One Final Round

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/08/27

It's all down to this. Which discipline, which host will prevail? All stakes are on the table, and if this thinking isn't critical enough, if these scenes aren't congruent enough, if we fail the big scan-tron test that is life, then it's all been for nothing. Tune in for this, the most exciting single podcast episode you've ever heard in your whole goddamned life. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at

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55:33

PvI#36: Authentic Authenticity w/ Skye Cleary

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/08/12

Skye teaches and Columbia and the City University of New York, and she recently published How to Be Authentic: Simone de Beauvoir and the Quest for Fulfillment (which is very good, and NOT snake oil). She joins Mark and Bill to talk about what authenticity might mean for an existentialist, how it relates to truth, responsibility, and picking a theme for your birthday party. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at

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55:57

PvI#35: Submarine Observations w/ Chris Rathjen

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/07/23

We talk about observations and how they relate to theories and other types of preconception. Is there such a thing as pure observation? We tour a submarine and plan a party. There is no Chumbawamba in either case. Improver Chris starred in the Improvised Star Trek podcast and has been a recurrent guest and now an editor on Hello From the Magic Tavern. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support

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49:30

PvI#34: Possible Diners w/ Barry Lam

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/07/10

Barry hosts Hi-Phi Nation, and his most recent season had a run on David Lewis, America's foremost philosopher of possible worlds. So we talk about that notion that Hollywood has had so much fun with lately, and then we have fun with it in a couple of variations on a classic diner scene. Cheese salad, anyone? Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast to get all our post-game

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59:03

PvI#33: Virtuous Garbage Director w/ Jack Newell

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/06/16

Bill is a sad but steadfast street sweeper. Mark has secret character traits. Filmmaker Jack C. Newell is our inaugural non-philosopher, non-improviser guest, and his film knowledge leads to us talking about ethics in terms of film tropes plus some meta-historical-reenactment. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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55:26

PvI#32: “On the Standard of [Bad] Taste” w/ Babette...

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/05/26

Babette teaches at Fordham and recently edited the collection "Reading David Hume's 'On The Standard of Taste,'" which Mark made use of for PEL#289. So, more philosophically beefy than our typical PvI episode, and yet also live and hence unpredictable. Taste it! Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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46:43

PvI#31: Signs, Signs, Ubiquitous Signs w/ Brooke Breit

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/05/05

Contemplate the difference between signs, symbols, and symptoms. Did our improv scene get Zoom-bombed, or is that just real life intruding? THINK OF THE CHILDREN (eating Doritos)! What flavor of chip is Bill trying to teach today? Why is Brooke sad? Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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45:26

PvI#30: In Historica Res

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/04/22

...which, as I was saying, is right in the middle of a sentence or scene! How should our personal and family histories shape our behavior, both in real life and in improv scenes? Do these histories, these stories we tell ourselves, nail us down as people? Are we all old before our time? Are those your real parents? Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game

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53:45

PvI#29: Personal Panpsychism w/ Jack Symes

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/04/05

Panpsycast host Jack brings his promiscuous philosophy of mind to the show, wherein mind is here, there, and everywhere. But what does that mean? Skits about renting a flat for nefarious purposes and designing software for Nozick's experience machine reveal all! But the question remains... So what? You have to care! Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game

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1:11:33

PvI#28: Enhanced Interrogation w/ Adal Rifai

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/03/11

Today's episode is about questioning: how one might question, what sets the parameters for a proper answer, and how to give those answers in an informative and/or dramatically effective way. Watch out for dream pigs! Also, how to get into the VIP room at Stuckey's. Perhaps a pair of paralegals can help. In the post-game, included JUST THIS ONCE for public enjoyment, we reflect on improv in the real world and some potential spin-off improv podcasts from our episode. Mark philosophizes at

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46:52

PvI#27: Normaliticitizationism w/ Andrew Lavin

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/02/26

We are joined by the young purveyor of the Reductio podcast, who wrote his dissertation on normality, which was such a normie thing to do. Can "abnormality" be morally neutral, or is that term cursed? You down with OTPs? How many towels do you need? Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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48:20

PvI#26: Monetize Your Syphilitic Storytelling w/...

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/02/12

Is money the root of all evil, or does it save us from needless cabaret bartering? What is money qua social construction? Should we retain the chocolate fountain? Are you ready to run? Did you bring your NFTs to trade for blue powder? Bill is master of the frustration scene. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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37:43

PvI#25: Questionable Causal Practices

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/01/30

Guest free, we discuss topics from hairballs to boogers to color vision among inanimate objects and rules for unicorn play. When the bad-ass, smelly, screaming white ball hits the 5 ball, how does the causality work? Is skepticism about physical forces just conspiracy theory? Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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1:11:58

PvI#24: Game Time w/ C. Thi Nguyen

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2022/01/17

The philosopher of games joins us for a frustration game. What is a game, anyway? We ask dumb questions on a museum tour. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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47:12

PvI#23: Things Mean Things w/ Tommy Maranges (aka...

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2021/12/31

Can we have an entertaining discussion inspired by Aristotle's most boring book? Bill leads Mark and our guest Tommy through some let's-describe-what's-in-an-imaginary-room exercises. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff. Sponsor: Learn about St. John's College at sjc.edu/improv.

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47:45

PvI#22: Punishment w/ Noah Gregoropoulos

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2021/12/22

There's trouble at the work site! There are secret shifts of emotion going on. Do they make sense? Later, a guy's car is blocking a driveway. Does he deserve the electric chair, or a beer? It depends on your theory of punishment. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff.

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54:13

PvI#21: Sentient Garage

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2021/12/15

The scene is its own entity. What else might be its own entity? Can a machine that passes the Turing test know what it's like to be a bat? We bring in emotions from irrelevant contexts, and we keep hearing them long after they're gone. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff. Sponsor: Learn about St. John's College at

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50:18

PvI#20: The “Other” Story w/ Jenny Hansen

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2021/12/02

What is "othering"? Why did Bill get such a bad grade? Is it because of his feather quill pen? Our first real philosophy professor guest joins us for some office hours and anti-vaxxer drama. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff. Sponsors: Visit betterhelp.com/improv to be matched with a licensed, professional therapist

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41:51

PvI#19: Broken Atomic Dogs

Philosophy vs. Improv ·

2021/11/24

Let's all lose our jobs and talk instead about fundamental ontology and social dynamics. Mark philosophizes at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Bill improvises (and teaches) at chicagoimprovstudio.com. Hear more Philosophy vs. Improv. Support the podcast to get all our post-game discussions and other bonus stuff. Sponsors: Visit betterhelp.com/improv to be matched with a licensed, professional therapist. Learn about St. John's College at sjc.edu/improv.

en-US

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Philosophy vs. Improv

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