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PODCAST

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),

science social sciences

All Episodes

6:11

Schopenhauer and knowledge

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/03

John Vespasian explains that, in his early years, Schopenhauer had declared allegiance to the epistemological doctrines of Immanuel Kant (1724-1804). I am referring to the theory of concept formation presented by Kant in his book “Critique of pure reason” (1781). In 1808, Schopenhauer published his PhD dissertation “On the fourfold root of the principle of sufficient reason,” stating his overall allegiance to Kant’s epistemology. However, there is one point where he had not endorsed Kant. On that

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6:57

Opposition to Schopenhauer’s theory of knowledge

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/03

John Vespasian explains that, when Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) began to question mainstream philosophical ideas, he expected heavy opposition and criticism. In this respect, he was not disappointed. Almost all twentieth-century thinkers have opposed Schopenhauer and his theory of the will. Hefty opposition was no surprise to Schopenhauer precisely because he had presented his ideas as improvements on those of Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), and other philosophers

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6:33

Schopenhauer on happiness

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/03

John Vespasian explains that the life and works of Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) are giving us crucial insights on how to achieve happiness. To this end, he devoted years to studying Western and Eastern thinkers and compiling their best recommendations. Then he put them into practice and recorded what works and what doesn’t. Schopenhauer regarded the achievement of happiness as a sequence of steps. The very first step consists of steering away from disaster. You absolutely want to avoid mistakes

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6:14

Analysis of Schopenhauer’s philosophy of happiness

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/03

While most nineteenth-century philosophers focused their efforts on epistemology and social ethics, Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) stands alone in his concern for individual well- being and happiness. John Vespasian explains that Schopenhauer rejected the trend set by Kant, Fichte and Hegel because he could not see any practical application. Those three thinkers are categorised in philosophy books as “idealistic,” but I think that it’s more accurate to call them “otherworldly.” Nobody can take

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5:45

The key difference between Schopenhauer and...

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/03

John Vespasian explains that Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) would have been amused to see philosophers like Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) theorise about anxiety and personal authenticity. Sartre didn’t regard as self-evident that individuals are aware of their freedom and the need to make constant choices. In contrast to Sartre and other existentialists, Schopenhauer considered self-evident that happiness is the purpose of life; he had taken that idea from Aristotle (384-322 BC) and viewed it as

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7:37

Aristotle’s views on the nature of reality

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle used a systematic method for drawing conclusions from empirical observations. His concept of reality revolves around the idea of “substance,” which actually means “entity” in the sense employed by Aristotle. Every entity, he taught, is composed of matter that takes a certain form, configuration, or shape. For Aristotle, it is the “form” what characterises each entity, what defines the nature of an entity, what makes it what it is. A material (“matter”) such as

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9:44

Aristotle’s perspective on the purpose of human life

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle placed purpose at the very centre of his view of ethics. Purpose is the magnet that enables polarisation. It is the force that keeps things aligned and harmonious. What’s the purpose of life according to Aristotle? To attain happiness (in Greek “eudaimonia”). He defined happiness as “thriving” or “flourishing,” a state of high, steady enjoyment. According to Aristotle, a proper human life shall aim at high achievement, self-actualisation, and happiness. It is

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6:06

Aristotle’s views on friendship

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle addressed friendship in his “Nicomachean Ethics.” He viewed friendship as indispensable for leading a happy life, but identified three types of friendships: those based on utility, those based on pleasure, and those based on shared values or virtues. The latter is by far the most valuable. Friendships of utility are based on mutual interest. People collaborate with each other for a myriad of reasons, which are not necessarily linked to business or making money

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8:21

Aristotle’s views on natural philosophy

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle’s views on the natural world established the basis of scientific thought and civilisation. Aristotle’s philosophy is relaying on experience, observation, and logical reasoning. His approach to natural philosophy consists of studying the cosmos and nature through careful observation and analysis. His three foundational works in this area are “Metaphysics,” “Physics” and “On the Heavens.” In “Metaphysics,” Aristotle introduced his theory of the four causes. This

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9:23

Aristotle’s views on politics and governance

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle presented his political philosophy in his works “Politics” and “Nicomachean Ethics.” He believed that humans are political by nature. By “political,” he meant that humans prefer living in communities to enhance the enjoyment of life. In his work “Politics,” Aristotle described different forms of government and compared their advantages and disadvantages. His classification of government forms is based on whether the rule is exercised for the common good or for

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9:59

Critics of Aristotle’s views on politics and governance

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle’s views on politics and governance can be summed up in a few sentences: depending on the number of rulers (one, a few, everybody), political systems for the common good can be classified into monarchies, aristocracies, and polities. When rulers abuse their power, those three systems shall be named tyranny, oligarchy, and democracy. In order to prevent abuse of power, Aristotle advised to distribute power amongst the monarch, the aristocracy, and the people. The

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7:12

The two keys in Aristotle’s views on politics and...

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle came up with the two key ideas of balanced governance, but history has done everything possible to wipe them out from people’s memory. Aristotle’s first principle of governance is that rulers should work for the common good. He didn’t exclude any government form (monarchy, aristocracy, polity) as long as the ruler (one, a few, every citizen) keeps the common good as top priority. This lesson seems easy and self-evident enough, so that it is never forgotten,

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6:37

Aristotle’s theory of justice

John Vespasian ·

2025/04/01

John Vespasian explains that Aristotle presented his theory of justice in “Nicomachean Ethics.” He distinguished between two types of justice. On the one hand, distributive justice, and on the other hand, reparation or rectification justice. Distributive justice deals with the distribution of tangible goods or jobs, and intangible honours. The purpose of this type of justice is to ensure that each person receives what he has earned (“what he deserves”). Aristotle was rather vague about the criteria

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6:01

Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that mainstream philosophers call Schopenhauer a pessimist and consider his work uninteresting. They argue that Schopenhauer had little concern for social issues and that, for that reason, his ideas are unsuited for today’s world. However, if you devote time to studying Schopenhauer, you will learn to appreciate the finesse and soundness of his analysis. His works provide insights that are not available elsewhere, and are intellectually stimulating. Besides, Schopenhauer was

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5:43

Analysis of Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

Although his lifestyle was unpretentious, modesty was not a characteristic of Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860). John Vespasian explains that Schopenhauer did not hide that he regarded himself as a genius. He considered other philosophers, with few exceptions, as misguided fools. Why did Schopenhauer consider himself a genius? Surely not because of his productivity. In terms of output, he was not extraordinarily prolific, especially if compared with Plato and Aristotle. Schopenhauer only wrote three

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6:16

Happiness and Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) had no problem to accept that he was an eccentric. In fact, he considered it a privilege to be categorised as an eccentric. He considered it a confirmation of the originality of his ideas. Schopenhauer’s key contribution to philosophy is the theory of the will, that is, the belief that the will (“life force”) exerts a strong influence on all living creatures. The will drives them at the same time towards survival, reproduction and

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6:01

An example of Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that history provides excellent examples of the philosophy put forward by Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860). For instance, Marcus Aurelius (121-180 AD), who had favoured living in accordance with nature. Aurelius’ recipe for happiness is understanding the order of the universe and aligning our actions with it. However, when he talked about “the order of the universe,” he was assuming that the world is rational and that humans can grasp its laws. In contrast, Schopenhauer

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6:00

Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life in daily practice

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that Epictetus, a philosopher from the 1st century AD, provides excellent guidance for the daily practice of the ideas of Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860). Schopenhauer was focused on the attainment of happiness, and Epictetus pursued tranquillity and virtue, but in practical terms, their ideas are very close. Epictetus emphasised the distinction between internal and external events. Internal events comprise our thoughts, desires, and actions. External events comprise other

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6:22

Effectiveness in Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that the art of getting things done effectively and inexpensively underlies the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860). His theory of the will (“life force”) warns us against the lethal consequences of giving way to our instincts without looking at the cost and at the long-term consequences. How do you protect yourself against the negative influence of the will? Schopenhauer advised parsimony, self-reliance and self-awareness. Those habits can help us counteract the

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6:35

Schopenhauer’s philosophy of life compared with Taoism

John Vespasian ·

2025/03/27

John Vespasian explains that Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) was deeply familiar with Eastern philosophy, in particular Buddhism and Hinduism. He held in high regard the Eastern approach to stress reduction by reducing one’s emotional engagement. In Schopenhauer’s books, you won’t find a call for “nirvana” and other Eastern philosophical concepts. Nonetheless, he put forward recommendations that are similar to “nirvana.” There’s no doubt that Schopenhauer deployed great efforts to draw the best

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