Then & Now: Philosophy, History & Politics

Explore the fascinating concept of 'habitus' and its profound impact on human behavior and societal dynamics. Discover how ingrained patterns and social structures shape individual choices, affecting everything from social mobility to health inequalities. Reflect on the interplay of personal experiences with larger forces in society and gain insights into breaking free from limiting patterns for personal growth. Delve into the debates surrounding structuralism, existentialism, and postmodernism through the lens of Bourdieu's transformative ideas.

Dive into the fascinating world of Baudrillard, exploring how his thoughts evolved from Marxist roots to ideas about the hyperreal. Discover the concept of sign-value, which critiques material reality in favor of simulations. Unpack how modern culture, driven by reality TV and entertainment, distorts perceptions of authenticity. The podcast also addresses the impact of media on our understanding of history, urging a reclamation of genuine creativity in a world dominated by hyperreality.

Dive into the intriguing world of Gilles Deleuze as this discussion unpacks his seminal work, exploring the profound ideas of difference and repetition. Discover how Deleuze's philosophy intersects with Spinoza and Kant, challenging traditional notions of stability and creativity. The concept of the virtual and multiplicity emerges as key themes, revealing connections to contemporary issues. Plus, get a taste of how his theories set the stage for later thinkers like Foucault and Derrida, making complex ideas accessible and engaging.

In this introduction to Foucault I look at the poststructuralist philosopher’s influences and context (Nietzsche, Levi-Strauss & Sartre, among others), and summarise his position through his three most influential works, The Order of Things, Discipline and Punish, and The History of Sexuality. Foucault’s thought takes two approaches that are loosely related – the archaeological and the genealogical. The most important concept is that power and knowledge are intimately linked.For Foucault, different time periods – what he calls epistemes – have different underlying assumptions, codes, and rules, mostly unconscious or at least structural, about how to think about things in the world.Foucault analyses the way we're discipline by power in the same way. In her introduction to Discipline and Punish, Lisa Downing puts like this: Foucault analyses the ‘means by which the body is made to conform to the utilitarian ends of social regimes thanks to the operations of disciplinary power.’Finally, the central question outlined in vol. 1 is that of the ‘repressive hypothesis'. The narrative dominant in the 70s argued that where Westerners were once sexually oppressed, we have become slowly more liberated, more liberal. Is it really that simple? Like the rest of his work, Foucault questions this progressive, teleological narrative. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this video, I take an introductory look at the philosophy of Jacques Derrida and Deconstruction. I look at the basic tenets of Derrida's thought, and his relationship with Ferdinand de Saussure and Jean-Jacques Rosseau in Of Grammatology. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An introduction to John Stuart Mill's Utilitarianism Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An introduction to John Stuart Mill's important and influential, On Liberty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.