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PODCAST

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast

Mark Linsenmayer, Wes Alwan, Seth Paskin, Dylan Casey

The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don"t have to know any philosophy, or even to have read the text we"re talking about to (mostly) follow and (hopefully) enjoy the discussion. For links to the texts we discuss and other info, check out www.partiallyexaminedlife.com. We also feature

society & culture philosophy

All Episodes

55:12

PEL Presents PMP#193: Severance: Mystery Box in Progress

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/04/03

Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al here discuss the sci-fi/office dramedy in light of its second season. We might normally wait until the end of the show, but given that season 1 was 2022, and it took three years to get us season 2, who knows it it'll actually finish? And who knows if it will not be massively disappointing at that point? We strike while the show is culturally relevant! But did even this season measure up to its phenomenal premise and first season? There are so many juicy plot and

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46:57

Ep. 364: Max Scheler on Sympathy (Part One)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/31

On The Nature of Sympathy (1913, expanded 1922), Part I: "Fellow Feeling," Ch. 1-4. What is it to feel sympathy (aka "fellow feeling") for another person? It is NOT to "identify" with that person; ethics requires that the person be irreducibly Other, not part of my (extended) ego. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Check out the History of the Germans podcast at historyofthegermans.com.

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01:18:30

PEL Presents NEM#229: Peter Holsapple (dB's,...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/30

Peter recorded with Chris Stamey as early as 1972, and they reconvened as The dB's in the '80s. Peter has released six albums as the dB's, three more as a duo with Chris, four co-fronting the Continental Drifters, and three solo albums. He has also been a supporting/touring member in several bands including REM, Hootie and the Blowfish, and currently The Paranoid Style. We discuss "Larger Than Life" from his new solo album The Face of 68), "Don’t Mention the War" from Game Day (2018), and "She Won’t

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01:02:21

PEL Presents Closereads: Husserl on Perceiving Minds

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/28

On Edmund Husserl's Ideas, Vol. 2 (1928), Section 3, "The Constitution of the Spiritual World," Ch. 1, "Opposition Between the Naturalistic and Personalistic Worlds." Given Husserl's method of "reduction" whereby he sets aside the metaphysical status of objects in the natural world (are they mind-independent or merely ideas?), we wanted to see how he accounts for our ability to directly perceive other people's minds. We don't just perceive their bodies and our own bodies and deduce that others

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48:45

Ep. 363: Franz Brentano's Moral Epistemology (Part One)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/17

On "The Origin of the Knowledge of Right and Wrong" (1889). What justifies basic moral facts? Brentano claims that right there in our experience, we can rationally sense with complete certainty that certain kinds of preferences are good ones, and others are not. This take on intuitionism is a response to Kant that (like Kant) cuts between the traditional epistemic categories of rationalism and empiricism, and Brentano's descriptive psychology kicked off the whole project of phenomenology. Get more

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01:00:22

PEL Presents PMP #192: Exhibitionist Reality TV

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/16

We acknowledge this hugely popular form of "entertainment" recently embodied by The Baldwins, but popularized by shows like The Osbournes and The Kardashians, wherein some celebrity and/or family just shows off their life, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al are joined by returning guest Kayla Dryesse to talk about why this kind of show exists, its variations, and its redeeming value (if any). Is The Baldwins basically just a lengthy Instagram post? For more, visit prettymuchpop.com. Hear this ad-free

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51:12

Ep. 362: Ecclesiastes: Biblical Existentialism? (Part...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/10

Continuing on Ecclesiastes with guest Jesse Peterson, getting into some more close reading of particular sections. We make some connection from the author's observations to ancient Greek Skepticism, Epicureanism, and Stoicism. How is the world "absurd" according to this book? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsors: Learn about St. John's College at sjc.edu/pel. Get a $1/month e-commerce trial at

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44:41

Ep. 362: Ecclesiastes: Biblical Existentialism? (Part...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/03

Ecclesiastes is often cited as one of the most philosophical books of the Bible, so we approached it in that spirit with the help of Jesse M. Peterson, whose soon-to-be-published book is called Qoheleth and the Philosophy of Value. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Check out the History of the Germans podcast at historyofthegermans.com.

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01:12:06

PEL Presents NEM#228: John "JR" Robinson: Omnipresent...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/03/02

JR has drummed on over 200 US Billboard Hot 100 songs and 50 Grammy winning tunes. He was in Rufus w/ Chaka Khan in the late 70s/early 80s, has released two solo albums, written for soundtracks, produced other artists, and has led various combos over the years. He is currently promoting his auto-biography King of the Groove. We discuss "Gonna Be Alright" from The Bronx, USA soundtrack (2020), "Flight 81" from his first solo album, Funkshui (2004), and "You're Really Out of Line" by Rufus from Seal

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49:14

Ep. 359: Karl Marx's Project (Part One)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/01/20

On the intro to Marx's Grundrisse (1857) and "Theses on Feuerbach" (1845). Why economics, and why do it the way Marx does? We see Marx argues that Feuerbach's materialism was not materialistic enough, start looking at production, consumption, distribution, and exchange as moments within a single process, and talk about why anyone would want to read a historical economic text. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus

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54:09

Pretty Much Pop #188: Vampire Appreciation

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/01/18

In light of Robert Eggers' film Nosferatu and the end of What We Do in Shadows, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al discuss the many vampire shows and films all the way back to Bram Stoker's 1897 novel. For more, visit prettymuchpop.com. Hear this ad-free with bonus content at patreon.com/prettymuchpop or by subscribing via Apple Podcasts to the Mark Lintertainment Channel. Sponsors: Get 10% off your first month of online therapy at BetterHelp.com/pretty. Learn about LGBT stereotypes at

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48:42

Ep. 358: Max Stirner's Egoism (Part One)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/01/06

On The Ego and its Own (1844), another big influence on Karl Marx and a precursor of Nietzsche, or perhaps an early Ayn Rand. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Have up to a $100 donation to effective charities matched at GiveWell.org.

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04:39

Announcement: Mark's "Core Texts in Philosophy" Fall...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/01/01

Read more about Mark's online class that starts later this month at partiallyexaminedlife.com/class, and sign up at partiallyexaminedlife.com/enroll.

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01:08:03

PEL '24-'25 Transition Nightcap

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/30

Mark, Wes, Seth, and Dylan reflect on our past year of PEL recording, catch you up on our habits and interests, and talk about what might come next. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to this and every recording ad-free, plus numerous Nightcaps and many hours of other bonus content. Learn about Mark's spring Core Texts in philosophy class at partiallyexaminedlife.com/class.

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53:19

Ep. 357: Feuerbach on the Evolution of Philosophy...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/23

We finally discuss Feuerbach's proposed post-Hegelian, materialist approach to philosophy in his "Principles of the Philosophy of the Future" (1843). How can a materialist framework support phenomena central to F's account like our immediate, indubitable recognition of our selves, each other, and love itself? Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion, including a supporter-exclusive part three to this

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54:36

PEL Presents PMP#187: Taking Down Santa Claus

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/22

For our annual holiday episode, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al talk about Santa qua mythical and cultural figure, getting into the history of the character, his film appearances, and how the emphasis on kids' belief compares to religious belief. Plus, grading Xmas movies on a curve and Black Santa! For more, visit prettymuchpop.com. Hear this ad-free with bonus content at patreon.com/prettymuchpop or by subscribing via Apple Podcasts to the Mark Lintertainment Channel. Learn about Mark's Core

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59:19

PEL Presents PvI#87: Mystic Toaster with Simon Critchley

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/21

Simon is a professor at New York's New School for Social Research and moderates the New York Times' philosophy offering, The Stone. He joins Mark and Bill to discuss his new book, On Mysticism: The Experience of Ecstasy, and we used the occasion to explore how art and mysticism might be connected, including engaging in improv rituals. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the and hear this ad-free at podcast at philosophyimprov.com/support. Check out other Evergreen Podcast offerings.

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49:14

Ep. 357: Feuerbach on the Evolution of Philosophy...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/16

Mark, Wes, and Dylan continue to look at Ludwig Feuerbach's "Principles of the Philosophy of the Future" (1843), recounting his story about how increasingly mature notions of God should lead philosophy eventually to a materialism where the sensual is the real. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsors: Have up to a $100 donation to effective charities matched at GiveWell.org. Check out the Constant

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47:52

PEL Presents Subtext: The Sublime Mundane in Conrad...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/14

Where the repetitions of ordinary life threaten to overwhelm any sense of the sublime, the poet Conrad Aiken seems to suggest that they can be transformed into a way of being connected to it. The mundane order is, after all, just a part of the cosmic. When we get ready to go to work, it is on a “swiftly tilting planet” that “bathes in a flame of space.” The sun is “far off in a shell of silence,” but its light decorates the walls of our homes. We might wonder, in light of modernity’s crisis of

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54:44

PEL Presents PMP#186: From Oz Books to Wicked Film

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2024/12/12

We're coming up on the 125th anniversary of L. Frank Baum's children's book, The Wizard of Oz, and the film version of (the first half of) the musical Wicked has been released. Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al talk about the landmark 1939 film musical, the 1978 film The Wiz, Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked, the stage musical, the other Oz books by Baum, Maguire, et al, and other films like 1985's Return to Oz and 2013's Oz the Great and Powerful. How does this film stack up to other recent

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