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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

53:36

PEL Presents PvI#111: God Smites Elijah Dann

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2026/02/08

Vancouver philosophy prof Elijah was an evangelical Christian who turned liberal and then atheistic, and his latest book, "Unbelieving God: A Skeptics Guide," considers and debunks the various arguments for the existence of God. Mark and Mary chat with him about his journey and about the degree to which we should care about others' beliefs in this area so as to engage them in debate. In the course of this, as you'd expect, God makes a personal appearance (with Mary), and there's an aborted sketch

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55:50

Ep. 383: Freud on Love and the Primal Horde (Part Two)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2026/01/19

Finishing up Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego, finally now turning to Freud's anthropological account of group membership. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Get a $1/month e-commerce trial at shopify.com/pel.

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01:08:00

NEM#245: Darren Michael Boyd's Guitar Instrumentals...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2026/01/17

Ontario guitarist Darren has released six albums of concise instrumentals since 2019, often using metal guitar tones and tropes, but with a great range of tones and often catchy melodies. We discuss "The Day Beneath Yesterday" (and listen at the end to "Dangerous Curves") from Perpetual Night (2025), "Broken Glass and Disappointment" from Thoughts and Scares (2022), and "The Earth is B Flat" from Lifting the Curse (2019). Intro: The title track from Wonders of the Invisible World (2020). More at

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52:47

PEL Presents PMP#213: Stranger Things Grown Familiar

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2026/01/15

The Netflix sci-fi/horror/teen series by the Duffer Brothers that started in 2016 has now finished with its sixth season, attempting to be both epic and sentimental. Who is this show actually aimed at? We talk about the initial appeal through various uneven seasons through the execution of the finale. Has the thing gone on so long that we can't make sense out of the continuity. Featuring, as usual, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al. Get more at prettymuchpop.com. Get an ad-free experience, plus bonus

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48:46

PEL Presents PvI#109: Choose Your Own Failure w/ Rich...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2026/01/10

Rich runs the Dare to Fail improv school and is author of Improv Made Easier. He joins Mark and Mary to discuss contexts of failure, failing to meet your goals vs. "objective failure," how to react in an improv scene to some topic that's too offensive for you, graveyard humor vs. reverence. Featuring Steaks You Deserve, Robo-Carson, cancer torture, interactive cemetery, Sounds of Failure, and open-sourced MST3K. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast and listen ad-free at

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48:42

Ep. 382: Freud on Group Psychology (Part Two)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/12/29

Continuing on the first half of Sigmund Freud's Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego, now getting really into Freud's own type of explanation, whereby he explains how libidinal ties bind group members, typically via their shared love of a leader or leading idea. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Make a tax deductible donation at GiveWell.org; pick "podcast" and enter "The Partially

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51:22

PEL Presents PvI#108: Guess Who's Coming to Christmas...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/12/26

Philosopher/writer/critic/podcaster Lawrence Ware returns to the show to meet Mary and talk about how Mark is his own personal Leroy Jesus. We act out and/or discuss orphan greeting cards, face-to-face instruction vs. writing books, imaginary friends, laugh trumpets, black ice, and is aesthetic judgment (especially of yourself) a mistake? Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast and listen ad-free at philosophyimprov.com/support. Sponsor: Get the holiday deal (up to 50% off!) at

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10:41

PREMIUM-Ep. 381: Aquinas on Ethical Psychology (Part...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/12/18

We discuss the first six questions from the "Moral Action" section in the Summa Theologica (1268), which we read in Thomas Aquinas: Selected Philosophical Writings (1993). If you're not hearing the full version of this part of the discussion, sign up via one of the options described at partiallyexaminedlife.com/support.

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49:42

PEL Presents PvI#107: Mary and Mark Argue About Arguing

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/12/13

Is argumentation essential to philosophy? Should you always be open to arguments challenging your beliefs? We act out a few symbiotic scenarios and reflect back on our last couple of episodes. Plus animal facts, complaining to your significant other about exes, astrology prejudice, sexual harassment videos, and on-stage self-pleasure. Hear more at philosophyimprov.com. Support the podcast and listen ad-free at philosophyimprov.com/support. Sponsor: Get the holiday deal (up to 50% off!) at

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44:28

PEL Presents PvI#106: Heart Tchochkes w/ Seth Stephon...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/30

Seth is an improviser and aspiring professional "muse," which is a type of life coach that hangs out with you to see where you could be more in touch with your humanity so that you can then work out a coherent plan for your adult life. He discusses with Mary and Mark the conflict between authentic individual humans and a social structure filled with oppressive systems. Should we "deprogram" ourselves from our standardized upbringing? Is there actually an authentic core we would uncover if we do so,

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54:34

PEL Presents PMP#210: One Paul Thomas Anderson Film...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/26

In light of One Battle After Another, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al walk through the range of his films from his 1996 crime film Hard Eight through his much lauded Magnolia, Boogie Nights, Punch-Drunk Love, and There Will Be Blood and his more controversial recent ones like Licorice Pizza, The Master, The Phantom Thread, and Inherent Vice. Get more at prettymuchpop.com. Get an ad-free experience, plus bonus talking for nearly every episode at patreon.com/prettymuchpop for only the tiniest

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43:41

Ep. 380: Josiah Royce on Community (Part One for...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/22

http://partiallyexaminedlife.com

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01:06:54

PEL Presents NEM#242: Marshall Crenshaw Subtracts

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/20

Marshall began creating his catchy, harmonically thick rock tunes in the early '80s with six major label albums, but went indie in the '90s to record four more as well as several EPs and live collections. We discuss "Stranger and Stranger," newly reworked for From the Hellhole (2025), "Right On Time" from Jaggedland (2009), "Fantastic Planet of Love" from Life's Too Short (1991), and we conclude by listening to Our Town" from Field Day (1983). Intro: "Someday, Someway" from Marshall Crenshaw (1982)

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43:54

Ep. 379: Egyptian Philosophy with Chike Jeffers (Part...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/10

The co-author of the African run of the History of Philosophy Podcast (and new book) joins us to go over philosophical works from 2200-1400 BCE: "The Instruction of Ptahhotep," "The Instruction Addressed to King Merikare," "The Great Hymn to the Aten," "The Dispute Between a Man and His Ba," and "The Eloquent Peasant." Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Visit functionhealth.com/PEL to get the

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01:01:09

PEL Presents NEM#241: Humor in Music Discussion

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/09

Mark is joined by returning NEM guest Don Rauf (from Life In a Blender), singer/songwriter/cartoonist David Heatley), and writer/musician Dave "Diggy" Dawson aka Dave Philpott. Is funny music necessarily less sincerely emotional, and so a failure at what music is supposed to do? We discuss rock star personas, ironic use of genre, humor in musical gesture, Zappa, Spinal Tap, and more. Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic

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08:51

PREMIUM-Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Four)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/08

We complete our Aquinas treatment for the moment by considering emotions: categorizing them, asking whether they have opposites, and making them coherent given Aquinas' Aristotelian conception of soul. If you're not hearing the full version of this part of the discussion, sign up via one of the options described at partiallyexaminedlife.com/support.

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49:38

Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Three)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/11/03

We're now moving on to the "mind" portion of our discussion, covering how reason motivates us, how free will is possible, and the degree to which the mind is passive or active. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Visit functionhealth.com/PEL to get the data you need to take action for your health.

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54:45

PEL Presents PvI#104: The Hippie Code w/ Vickie...

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/10/31

Mark and Mary are joined by improvisor-comedian-actress-filmmaker-host Vickie to talk about code switching and authenticity. Can you be authentic and still work a day job? Can Problem Solvers, Inc. solve the office restroom schedule? Are authentic hippies really beatniks? Also, displaying comic America on Korean talk shows, ethical pornography, commerce vs. art, granola in your hair, and more. Vickie sticks around for a bit of post-game (usually restricted to supporters but shared with you this

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48:51

Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Two)

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/10/27

Continuing on bits of Thomas Aquinas: Selected Philosophical Writings, completing our analysis of his arguments for the existence of God and then turning to eternity and the possibility of actually talking about God, given our finitude. Get more at partiallyexaminedlife.com. Visit partiallyexaminedlife.com/support to get ad-free episodes and tons of bonus discussion. Sponsor: Visit functionhealth.com/PEL to get the data you need to take action for your health.

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55:48

PEL Presents PMP#208: An Ed Gein Halloween

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast ·

2025/10/26

It's a special two-hander where Mark and Lawrence reflect on the appeal of horror and how the new Monster: Ed Gein Netflix show has to contribute, given that it is not merely a (very loose) presentation of real events, and itself a horror drama, but also a commentary on the Hollywood properties influenced by the Ed Gein murders, including Psycho, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Silence of the Lambs. We bring this up to date by including discussion of the Terrifier films as well as the work of Rob

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554 results

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