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John Vespasian

JOHN VESPASIAN is the author of sixteen books, including “When everything fails, try this” (2009), “Rationality is the way to happiness” (2009), “The philosophy of builders” (2010), “The 10 principles of rational living” (2012), “Rational living, rational working” (2013), “Consistency: The key to permanent stress relief” (2014), “On becoming unbreakable” (2015), “Thriving in difficult times” (2016), “Causality: Aristotle’s life and ideas” (2024), “Foresight: Schopenhauer’s life and ideas” (2024),

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All Episodes

7:01

Analysis of Schopenhauer’s views on ethics

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

The uniqueness of the ethical system put forward by Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) becomes clear when we compare it with other philosophies. I regard it as particularly enlightening to compare Schopenhauer’s ethics with Taoism and Stoicism. Taoism was created in ancient China. It predicates harmony with nature, spontaneity, modesty, simplicity and steering away from violence. Lao-Tzu (6th century BC) preceded Plato by a century. After his death, his disciples put his teachings in writing. For

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7:11

Analysis of Schopenhauer’s views on solitude

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

Few philosophers agree with the positive views on solitude put forward by Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860). I am going to make comparisons, identify the differences, and look for the truth. Aristotle (384-322 BC) acknowledged the value of solitude for learning and self-awareness, but considered it impossible for humans to reach their full potential without social connections. By “social connections,” Aristotle did not mean only family and friends; his definition of “social connections” encompasses

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6:02

Schopenhauer and the philosophy of education

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

Like most great philosophers, Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) considered education as a lifetime activity. Schooling is only the first step, however necessary, and should build at the same time the student’s character, knowledge, and skills. Schopenhauer was very precise in defining the purpose of moral education; the principal purpose is to help students build their self-awareness and self-discipline. Self-awareness enables individuals to perceive the influence of the will (“life force”), identify

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7:33

Schopenhauer’s teachings drawn from Buddhism

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

The possibility of drawing teachings from Eastern religion didn’t occur immediately to Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860). It does not appear in his early work “About the fourfold root of the principle of sufficient reason” (1808) and only starts to take shape in “The world as will and representation” (1818). Schopenhauer grew acquainted with Buddha’s teachings in the years after 1815. Initially, he read extensively about the life of Siddhartha Gautama, the creator of Buddhism. The insights gained by

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6:34

Schopenhauer’s philosophy of art and beauty

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

Artistic contemplation plays a major role in the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860). Art conveys reality in an immediate manner, enabling humans to grasp crucial elements without need of complex explanations. According to Schopenhauer, artistic contemplation enables people to escape the dire influence of the will (“life force”) and increase their self-awareness. In his books “The world as will and representation” (1818) and “Parerga and Paralipomena” (1851), Schopenhauer shows how to

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9:16

Differences between Schopenhauer and Indian philosophy

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/09

When Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) studied Indian or Hindu philosophy, he didn’t restrict himself to the foundational texts. He read the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita but those lack the subtle interpretations made by Hindu thinkers across the centuries. Schopenhauer adopted early in his career some Hindu tenets and conveyed them, in his own words, in his book “The world as will and representation” first published in 1818. For instance, Schopenhauer wrote that the pursuit of short- term pleasure

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5:39

Practical examples of Michel de Montaigne’s thoughts

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) wrote extensively but the structure of his thoughts is sometimes disrupted. The reason is not difficult to fathom. He did not have a word processor and it was hard for him to edit his handwritten texts. In this respect, he was facing the same problem as any other author during the Renaissance. Nonetheless, his essays remain entertaining even when he goes into tangents. I have reread Montaigne through the years and red-marked my favourite essays. Despite the vast

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7:19

Michel de Montaigne’s thoughts on risk

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

In his pursuit of reason, effectiveness and happiness, Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) devoted extensive efforts to assess risks; he recorded his reflections and conclusions in essays like “On one saying of Caesar.” Montaigne refers to a saying from Caesar just to start his discussion about risk. He wants to establish the role played by reason and luck in human achievement and happiness. Here is the saying from Caesar that Montaigne is employing to start the discussion: “It is not for the well-born

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6:54

Michel de Montaigne and humanism

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) is the archetypical writer from the Renaissance, the archetypical example of Humanism. Nowadays, his ideas are almost forgotten. They are no longer taught in today’s education system; the study of classical Greek and Roman history, philosophy and literature are no longer a priority. What is Humanism? The concept is related to “humanity” in the sense of ethical values, but it possesses a larger meaning. When we talk about Humanism, we mean classical learning, that is,

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6:41

Examples of Michel de Montaigne and humanism

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

In his “Essays,” Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) often called for reason and tolerance. Those are distinctive features of humanism, together with critical thinking, a love of ancient history, and a strong preference for experience over theory. Montaigne was aware that sheer distance, whether temporal or geographical, can prompt people to suspicion. He wrote that “every person calls barbarous things that he is unaccustomed to.” Indeed, we tend to consider the opinions, customs, and prejudices of the

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6:45

Michel de Montaigne and the Renaissance

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

Critical thinking is the key characteristic of the writings of Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592), who symbolises the spirit of the Renaissance. Mind you, the social and political context at that time was very different from our century. Daring to say what you think was far from self-evident in the Renaissance. Montaigne exercised critical thinking in his “Essays,” which address dozens of different subjects. He writes about literature, history, theology, friendship, love relationships, and his own

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5:45

Practical examples of Michel de Montaigne’s thoughts

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/04

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) wrote extensively but the structure of his thoughts is sometimes disrupted. The reason is not difficult to fathom. He did not have a word processor and it was hard for him to edit his handwritten texts. In this respect, he was facing the same problem as any other author during the Renaissance. Nonetheless, his essays remain entertaining even when he goes into tangents. I have reread Montaigne through the years and red-marked my favourite essays. Despite the vast

en

7:23

Aristotle’s theory of rhetoric and persuasion

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

In his work “Rhetoric,” Aristotle (384-322 BC) presents the three principles of effective communication and persuasion. He names them “ethos,” “pathos,” and “logos.” “Ethos” refers to the persuasive appeal of the speaker’s own personality. If a speaker possesses credibility, trustworthiness, and charisma, he can influence the audience more easily. Aristotle called for speakers to cultivate their “ethos” day in and day out. A speaker can gain influence in his community if his actions demonstrate

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6:50

Aristotle’s philosophy of aesthetics

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

Aristotle (384-322 BC) presented his theory of aesthetics in his work “Poetics,” which is primarily devoted to literature and theatre. For defining art, Aristotle employed the Greek word “mimesis,” which means “imitation.” Every form of art involves an imitation of reality according to the artist’s standpoint. The artistic imitation of reality can be more or less accurate, but needs to be recognisable. A random shape on a canvas or a meaningless poem do not constitute art because they have nothing

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7:44

Aristotle’s theory of virtue and character development

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

In contrast to thinkers preaching altruism and self-sacrifice, the theory of virtue developed by Aristotle (384-322 BC) aims at the achievement of happiness. Similarly, Aristotle regarded character development as a tool for facilitating happiness. Aristotle wrote two treatises presenting his theory of virtue and character development, namely, the “Nicomachean Ethics” and the “Eudemian Ethics.” He wrote or dictated those two works in the years between 335 BC and 321 BC, while he was teaching at the

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7:23

Modern attacks against Aristotle’s thoughts on human...

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

It’s unfortunate that modern philosophers have devoted vast efforts to attacking the self-confident and optimistic views put forward by Aristotle (384-322 BC) on human nature and life’s purpose. Aristotle conveyed his main premise in his works “Politics,” “Eudemian Ethics” and “Nicomachean Ethics,” namely, that it is the essence of human beings to be rational. In contrast to all animals, we can think, assess facts, develop theories, draw our own conclusions, and test them against reality. While

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8:48

Examples of Aristotle’s theory of rhetoric and...

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

History provides compelling illustrations of the rhetoric and persuasion techniques identified by Aristotle (384-322 BC) in his work “Rhetoric.” Each example is using the Aristotelian ethos (speaker’s reputation), pathos (emotional tone) and logos (rational arguments) in various proportions. Demosthenes (384-322 BC), who was born in the same year as Aristotle and died roughly at the same age as Aristotle, gave inspiration for the Aristotelian principles of rhetoric. He made repeated speeches in

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5:47

Opponents to Aristotle’s views on education

John Vespasian ·

2025/12/02

After Aristotle’s death in 322 BC, it did not take long for the world to forget his contributions to educational theory. His idea that the purpose of life is happiness received attacks from all sides. His definition of virtues as “habits leading to happiness” fell into oblivion. His view of education as a process of teaching virtues became a minority opinion. In the Middle Ages, education became deeply dominated by religion. Its contents became anti-Aristotelian, even if the ideas put forward by

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6:04

History in Michel de Montaigne and the Renaissance

John Vespasian ·

2025/11/27

The approach to history adopted by Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) offers a sharp contrast to what his contemporaries were doing. They revered history and studied it assiduously; it gave them an ideal to emulate. In contrast, Montaigne regarded history as a source of practical wisdom, a source to be assessed and contested as necessary. Take for instance, Montaigne’s essay “On the arms of the Parthians.” Superficially, Montaigne is speaking about ancient battle strategies, weapons and armour. At the

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6:20

Risk taking in Montaigne and the Renaissance

John Vespasian ·

2025/11/27

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) lived in dangerous times, but he adopted suitable countermeasures. He protected himself and his family by steering away from honours and competition that could have easily turned sour. He assessed the risks, kept his eyes open, and did overall much better than his peers. The Renaissance was a period of open-mindedness coupled to intellectual progress. Montaigne favoured inquiry and wrote against prejudice, but did not fool himself about human nature. He knew how hard

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