This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher Plato's dialogue, the Gorgias. This lecture focuses specifically on a set of points that Socrates makes in his conversation with Gorgias, outlining a common dynamic that tends to produce anger and even lead to abusive language between people who are discussing or exploring a subject matter together. When subject matters or topics are difficult to define, people will accuse each other of being unclear or incorrect in what they say....

This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher Plato's dialogue, the Gorgias. This lecture focuses specifically on a passage in the conversation between Socrates and the host of the evening's conversations, Callicles. After Callicles has told Socrates that philosophy is fine for children and young men, but that a mature man ought to leave it behind, Socrates ironically tells Callicles that he is certain to get a good assessment of his character from Callicles. Socrates claims...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the work of the 20th century novelist and short story writer, Franz Kafka, "On Parables" This lecture discusses the terminology used in the story, the distinction between the words of the wise which are parables and the needs and cares of our daily lives, and a metaparable that this short story ends on. Here is the story in its entirety: Many complain that the words of the wise are always merely parables and of no use in daily life, which is the only...

This lecture discusses the 20th century poet, novelist, and philosopher, Rainer Maria Rilke's work Letters to a Young Poet, and examines in particular advocation of trusting (halten) in what is difficult, and trusting in things. The range of "things" includes those of nature, even the smallest things, but also matters like love and death To support my ongoing work, go to my Patreon site - www.patreon.com/sadler If you'd like to make a direct contribution, you can do so here -...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher and biographer Plutarch's short work On Having Many Friends. This episode focuses specifically on the reasonings he provides for the impossibility or impracticability of having many friends (poluphilia) in any genuine sense of the term. Some of these stem from the difficulties involved in doing justice to all of our relationships. Others arise from the variance we are bound to encounter among the people we would like to call...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher and biographer Plutarch's short work On Having Many Friends. This episode focuses specifically on his advice that, if we want to have good friendships, we need to try and test people before becoming fully friends with them. This echoes advice given earlier by authors like Cicero, Aristotle, and Seneca. Unfortunately, Plutarch says, many people make friends first, and then come to regret their commitment to people whose characters...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the ancient philosopher and biographer Plutarch's short work On Having Many Friends. This episode focuses specifically on a number of features of true or genuine friendship that he discusses in the work. Some of these are his own later interpretation of earlier authors who discuss friendship, like Aristotle and Cicero. You can find the copy of the text I am using for this sequence on Plutarch's On Having Many Friends here - https://amzn.to/48LBGZ2 To...

This lecture discusses the 19th-20th century philosopher and psychologist, William James, and focuses on his essay, "The Will To Believe". Specifically it discusses the relationship between certitude or certainty and truth. James distinguishes two different orientations towards these, which he calls empiricism and absolutism. Absolutism holds that we can attain some absolute certainty, and that we can know with certainty that we know the truth. Empiricism about philosophy notes that there is...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Second Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How Is Pure Natural Science Possible? Specifically this bears upon Kant's distinction between pure or universal laws of nature, which can be known a priori and which are the conditions for the possibility of experience, and empirical laws of nature, which can be grasped...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the Appendix, specifically the relations and differences that Kant says metaphysics has with the other sciences (Wissenschaften) and branches of knowledge (Kentnisse), including Mathematics, Natural Science, Theology, Medicine, Jurisprudence, and Morality To support my ongoing work, go to my Patreon site - www.patreon.com/sadler If...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the "Appendix", specifically the discussion distinguishing Kant's own critical or transcendental idealism from other, earlier forms of idealism ranging from that of Parmenides all the way down to Berkeley. Kant asserts that on some matters concerning space, time, experience, the understanding, and reason his idealism is in fact the...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the "Solution of the General Problem of the Prolegomena", specifically his discussion of two common philosophical approaches that will not work for developing a genuine metaphysics, or even just producing one valid a priori synthetic proposition. One of these is appealing to probability (Wahrscheinlichkeit) or conjecture (Mutmaßung)....

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the "Solution of the General Problem of the Prolegomena", where Kant contrasts the kind of metaphysics that can be developed after the critique of pure reason (by itself) with what passes as metaphysics (dogmatic or "school" metaphysics), and discusses how critique can carry us beyond the skepticism the dialectic of reason inevitably...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on he conclusion of the third part, specifically his discussion of the boundaries (Grenzen) for reason. These limits take place where we go beyond the field of experience into the "empty space" that is the field of the noumena or things in themselves. Reason not only recognizes these limits but also imposes them upon itself and on the...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the conclusion of the third part, specifically what he calls the "natural ends of reason's uses of transcendent concepts." Kant notes that what he is engaging in is conjecture rather than deriving knowledge. He also clarifies whether or not this study fits into the domain of metaphysics proper. To support my ongoing work, go to my...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the conclusion of the third part, specifically his discussion of the distinction between deism and theism, and David Hume's critique of both standpoints for, among other things, engaging in "anthropomorphism". Kant argues that deism involves only a "symbolic anthropomorphism", and that it relies upon analogy properly defined and...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the conclusion of the third part, specifically on his discussion of how transcending the limits of possible experience, while problematic, is something that is a draw and desire for reason, because it seeks out not only the unrealizable completion of matters of experience in the psychological, cosmological, and theological ideas, but...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the conclusion of the third part, specifically the distinction that Kant makes between bounds or boundaries (Grenzen) and limits (Schranken). Pure mathematics and pure natural science have limits but not bounds, because they deal with what is homogenous (gleichartig), whereas the field of metaphysics has both bounds and limits To...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the conclusion of the third part, specifically Kant's discussion of how skepticism is bound to arise from the dialectic of pure reason, with critical philosophy, that is, a critical use of reason to examine itself, as the remedy for skepticism and the dogmatism it arises out of. To support my ongoing work, go to my Patreon site -...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on the section finishing the third part, before the conclusion, titled "General Remark on the Transcendental Ideas." Kant writes: "The objects, which are given us by experience, are in many respects incomprehensible, and many questions, to which the law of nature leads us, when carried beyond a certain point (though quite conformably to...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Third Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How is metaphysics in general possible? Specifically this bears upon what he calls the "theological idea". Kant writes: "The third transcendental Idea, which affords matter for the most important, but, if pursued only speculatively, transcendent and thereby dialectical...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Third Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How is metaphysics in general possible? Specifically this bears upon the third and fourth of the antinomies Kant discusses in that section, which he calls "dynamical" antinomies To support my ongoing work, go to my Patreon site - www.patreon.com/sadler If you'd like to...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Third Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How is metaphysics in general possible? Specifically this bears upon the two "mathematical" antinomies Kant examines in the section on the Cosmological Ideas. These are: First Antinomy. Thesis: The world has a temporal and spatial beginning or limit. Antithesis: The...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Third Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How is metaphysics in general possible? Specifically this bears upon his discussion of the cosmological ideas, which Kant frames in terms of antinomies of pure reason. Two of these are "mathematical" and concern limits of space and time, and simplicity or composition of...

This lecture discusses key ideas from the 18th century philosopher Immanuel Kant's work, The Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. Specifically it focuses on his discussion in the Third Part Of The Transcendental Problem: How is metaphysics in general possible? Specifically this bears upon what Kant terms the "psychological idea" or "ideas" of pure reason, which have to do primarily with the consciousness or soul of a human being, and the idea that it is a substance that has permanency....