Theory & Philosophy
David Guignion
Welcome! My name’s David Guignion and I distill complicated philosophical and theoretical ideas for wide audiences. While ideas are important to help us understand the world, it is even more important to put ideas into action. Some of this channel’s key theoretical and pragmatic influences include, but are not limited to, Marxism, Decolonialization, Feminism, Gender and Queer theory, and Critical Race Theory.
This channel’s content is recorded on the in Tiohtiá:ke/Montreal, the traditional territory of the Kanien’kehà:ka, comprised of
the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Huron/Wendat, Abenaki, and Anishinaabeg.
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIq2xNjGAof0cCUaKbco6HQ
This channel’s content is recorded on the in Tiohtiá:ke/Montreal, the traditional territory of the Kanien’kehà:ka, comprised of
the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Huron/Wendat, Abenaki, and Anishinaabeg.
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIq2xNjGAof0cCUaKbco6HQ
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 8, 2020 • 1h 8min
G.W.F. Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit" (Part 3/4)
Become a Patron (and make me happy): https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy Instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I present the chapter titled "Spirit." It is here that Hegel turns his gaze to society, paying specific attention to the dynamic interaction between individuals vying for their own livelihood and the community in which these individuals exist. It traverses through three phases denoted by three sub-chapters: "The True Spirit. The Ethical Order" (7:00), "Self-Alienated Spirit. Culture" (22:12), and "Spirit that is Certain of Itself. Morality (55:27).
Feb 1, 2020 • 1h 12min
G.W.F. Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit" (Part 2/4)
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, we continue our dissection of Phenomenology of Spirit. This episode first looks at the chapter "Self-Consciousness" (2:18) including its sub-chapters, "Independence and Dependence of Self-Consciousness: Lordship and Bondage" (6:55) (This is where he talks about the 'master/slave' dialectic) and "Freedom of Self-Consciousness" (14:05). It then presents the chapter titled "Reason" (24:26) and the sub-chapters "Observing Reason" (27:56), "Actualization of Rational Self-Consciousness through its own Activity" (46:55), and "Individuality which takes Itself to be Real in and for-itself" (60:05).
Jan 25, 2020 • 1h 8min
G.W.F. Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit" (Part 1/4)
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
In the first episode of this four part series, I turn my attention to G.W.F. Hegel's "Phenomenology of Spirit," a text as necessary to read as it is difficult to read. This episode specifically tackles the chapters: "Preface" (beginning); "Introduction" (34:50); and "Consciousness" comprised of the sub-chapters "Sense-Certainty" (38:45), "Perception" (49:50), and "Understanding" (57:10). In these chapters, he begins by outlining what he hopes his project to accomplish, and then moves into delineating exactly how human consciousness moves through various phases on the way to Absolute Spirit.
Jan 18, 2020 • 40min
Jacques Derrida's "Structure, Sign, and Play"
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I turn my attention to Derrida's groundbreaking essay, "Structure, Sign, and Play." It is here that he lays the foundation of what would become deconstruction, the destabilization of the assumed univocality of either term in a binary. He does this by undoing the oft-assumed belief that structures do not move, and that they are fundamentally opposed to "play."
Jan 11, 2020 • 35min
Walter Benjamin's "The Work of Art in the Age of Its Mechanical Reproducibility"
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Instagram: theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I turn to Walter Benjamin's seminal text, "The Work of Art in the Age of Its Mechanical Reproducibility." Contrary to what some might think, I try to present the way that Benjamin applauds the 'death' of the aura in the age of mechanical reproducibility and the political ramifications of this moment.
Jan 4, 2020 • 42min
John Durham Peters' "Speaking into the Air"
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Follow me on instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I turn my attention to an important text in the field of communication and media studies. Here Peters tries to imagine communication as a meeting of souls by presenting a number of thinkers from Socrates to Jesus to Saint Augustine to Locke to Heidegger.
Timestamps: Ch. 1: Beginning Ch. 2: 12:45 Ch. 3: 18:50 Ch. 4: 25:14 Ch. 5: 31:30 Ch.6: 35:50
6 snips
Dec 28, 2019 • 28min
Audre Lorde's "The Master's Tools will never Dismantle the Master's House"
Dive into the critical examination of feminism through Audre Lorde's insightful essay. Discover the necessity of amplifying marginalized voices and redefining feminist discourse for inclusivity. Explore intersectionality as it relates to systemic oppression and the unique challenges faced by black women. The discussion highlights the need for unity and mutual support among diverse communities to effectively combat oppression.
Dec 21, 2019 • 1h 10min
Michel Foucault's "Discipline & Punish" (Part 2/2)
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Follow me on instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I present the second half of "Discipline & Punish" to expoun upon his key concepts of docile bodies, the panopticon, and the carceral system.
Timestamps:
Docile Bodies (Beginning)
The Means of Correct Training: 27:50
Panopticism: 39:31
Complete and Austere Institutions: 52:40
Illegalities and Delinquency: 56:50
The Carceral: 1:05:10
Dec 14, 2019 • 57min
Michel Foucault's "Discipline & Punish" (Part 1/2)
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
Follow me on instagram: @theory_and_philosophy
In this episode, I present the first half of Foucault's seminal Discipline & Punish. In this half he sketches a firm distinction between a model of juridical punishment that mobilizes torture as a deterrent to criminality and a model predicated on surveillance as a deterrent to criminality.
Dec 7, 2019 • 31min
Nick Land's "Kant, Capital, and the Prohibition of Incest"
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theoryandphilosophy
In this episode I take on Land's first essay from "Fanged Noumena," "Kant, Capital, and the Prohibition of Incest" that presents his characterization of the present stake that racism has in the maintenance of global capitalistic exploitation.
