Philosophize This! Podcast

Philosophize This!

Stephen West
Beginner friendly if listened to in order! For anyone interested in an educational podcast about philosophy where you don't need to be a graduate-level philosopher to understand it. In chronological order, the thinkers and ideas that forged the world we live in are broken down and explained.
Episode #246 ... The Myth of the Self-Made Person - Alasdair Macintyre
Today we talk about Macintyre's book Dependent Rational Animals. Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Saily: https://www.saily.com/philothis Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 26
32 min
Episode #245 ... The Rival Moral Approaches of the Modern World - Alasdair Macintyre
Today we talk about the book Three Rival Versions of Moral Enquiry by Alasdair Macintyre. We talk about each of the different sets of assumptions people bring to moral debates that often contain the true location of the disagreement. Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Incogni: https://www.Incogni.com/philothis Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 12
32 min
Episode #244 ... After Virtue - Alasdair MacIntyre (why moral conversations feel unsatisfying)
Today we talk about the book After Virtue by Alasdair MacIntyre. We talk about his genealogy of moral discourse. The teleologies of Aristotle. The failure of the Enlightenment moral project. Our modern culture of Emotivism and the sorts of characters that thrive in it. Shared practices and community as a way to revitalize moral conversation. Hope you love it! :) Sponsors: Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Feb 11
36 min
Episode #243 ... Hamlet - William Shakespeare
Today we talk about the play Hamlet written by William Shakespeare. We compare more traditional takes on the themes of the play to a more modern, philosophical analysis of the play done by Simon Critchley and Jamieson Webster. We talk about Hamlet and his inability to take action. Surveillance in 16th century England. Ophelia as the tragic hero of the play. How ultimately Hamlet may best be described as a play about "nothing". Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: Nord VPN: ⁠https://nordvpn.com/philothis ⁠ Better Help: ⁠https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS⁠ Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website:⁠ https://www.philosophizethis.org/⁠ Patreon:⁠ https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis⁠  Social: Instagram:⁠ https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast⁠ X:⁠ https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest⁠ Facebook:⁠ https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 27, 2025
30 min
Episode #242 ... Romeo and Juliet - William Shakespeare
Today we talk about the philosophy behind the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. We talk about how ineffective violence and honor codes are as ways of maintaining the stability of a society. How catastrophe may be a deterrent to violence. The tension presented by Shakespeare between a Christian view of love, marriage and salvation and an alternative religion of love from his time. How in the kinds of love we most admire there is sometimes an element of irrationality that makes it possible. Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO Quince: https://www.QUINCE.com/pt Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 29, 2025
31 min
Episode #241 ... The Tragedy of Julius Caesar - William Shakespeare
Today we talk about the philosophical themes of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. We talk about the hypocrisy and false nostalgia of political violence. The ironies of living by a moral ideal like honor. Rhetoric as a site of where political power is won and lost in a republic. And Brutus as a unique kind of tragic hero somewhere between Stoicism and Christianity. Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: The Perfect Jean: https://theperfectjean.nyc Code: PT15  ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 16, 2025
29 min
Episode #240 ... Varieties of Religion Today (Charles Taylor)
Today we talk more about the work of Charles Taylor and his book The Varieties of Religion Today. We look at different answers to a classic question around religious belief. The sociological and structural role that religion plays at any given point in history. Paleo, Neo and Post Durkheim versions of religious society. What religion becomes in the age of authenticity we live in. We paint a picture of the very unique spiritual predicament the modern person has to navigate. Hope you love it. :) Sponsors: Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 8, 2025
29 min
Episode #239 ... Authenticity and the history of the self.  (Charles Taylor)
Today we talk about the work of the philosopher Charles Taylor. First, we trace the historical origins of how he views the modern self. From the Greeks to the Reformation. From Descartes to Rousseau. The modern self to him is something "irreconcilably multileveled". Then we talk about our modern focus on authenticity as a moral ideal and why Taylor thinks many people misunderstand what it requires. Hope you love it! :) Sponsors: The Perfect Jean: https://theperfectjean.nyc Code: PT15  Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 17, 2025
34 min
Episode #238 ... Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Today we talk about the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. We talk about the mix of Romantic and Enlightenment attitudes and how it leads to problems without the proper oversight. We talk about technology and the responsibility that comes with creation. We talk about how ostracized people often learn to resent the world they live in. Hope you love it and have a great week! :) Sponsors: Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/PHILTHIS Nord VPN: https://nordvpn.com/philothis  Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 8, 2025
29 min
Episode #237 ... The Stoics Are Wrong - Nietzsche, Schopenhauer
Today we talk about two famous critiques of Stoicism. One by Friedrich Nietzsche who thought the Stoics weren’t life affirming enough and so rob themselves of some of the best parts of life. The other by Arthur Schopenhauer who thought the Stoics were too life-affirming of worldly things to ever reach a deep understanding of things. Hope you love it! :) Sponsors: ZocDoc: https://www.ZocDoc.com/PHILO Quince: https://www.QUINCE.com/pt Thank you so much for listening! Could never do this without your help.  Website: https://www.philosophizethis.org/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/philosophizethis  Social: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/philosophizethispodcast X: https://twitter.com/iamstephenwest Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/philosophizethisshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sep 30, 2025
28 min
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