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partially examined life

Lytton Strachey referred to the art of biography as “the most delicate and humane of all the branches of the art of writing,” adding that “it is perhaps as difficult to write a good life as to live one.” This third CCA of the 2015–2016 academic year will consider biography in general and specific recent biographies through the eyes of their authors.

Watch the CCA lectures at cca.hillsdale.edu/
Learn more about Hillsdale College at www.hillsdale.edu/

Hillsdale CollegeBiographyHillsdaleCCAImprimis


"Billy Graham: The Relationship of Life and Times" - Grant Wacker

"What Do We Learn from the Lives of Poets?" - Paul Mariani

Continuing on Achieving Our Country: Leftist Thought in 20th Century America (1998).

We talk more about Rorty's description of the conflict between the "reformist left" and the "cultural left." Do political-comedy shows serve a a positive political purpose? Can an enlightened political viewpoint really be a mass movement at all? Is it better to pursue specific political campaigns (e.g., pass law X) or be part of a "movement?" Can Rorty's diagnosis cure Seth's malaise?

Listen to part 1 first, though you should probably just get the ad-free, unbroken Citizen Edition.

End song: "Wake Up, Sleepyhead," newly composed in reaction to the election by Jill Sobule. Listen to her interviewed on Nakedly Examined Music #11. Check out her My Song Is My Weapon page.

The Partially Examined Life

Wake Up, Sleepyhead

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Richard Rorty on Politics for the Left (Part Two)

The right must decide who is a real friend, the left manipulates for a Republican split with Trump, and Trump pursues some well-crafted policy!

Ep. 258 - Is The Enemy Of Our Enemy Our Friend?

Protesters storm Republican town hall events, Trump rolls back Obama's transgender bathroom policy, and Democrats debate who should lead them -- plus, the mailbag!

Ep. 259 - Do You Get Extra Credit For Experiencing Tragedy?

On the Analects, compiled after Confucius's (aka Master Kong's) death in 479 BCE.

How should we act? What's the relation between ethics and politics? Can a bunch of aphorisms written in the distant past for an unapologetically hierarchical culture emphasizing traditional rituals actually give us relevant, welcome advice on these matters? Are we even in a position to determine the meaning of these sayings?

Mark, Seth, and Wes are joined by Tzuchien Tho, who studies Leibniz but grew up in a household where Confucian texts were revered, to do the best we can in figuring out Confucius's fundamental ethical concepts, trying to make notions like "ritual propriety" and "filial piety" relevant given today's mores, and what to do with all your wisdom given a corrupt political climate.

This episode should be understandable to anyone, but we do refer a bit given Confucius's emphasis on tradition to our recent episode on Burke, and compare Confucius to Socrates. You may recall we've ventured once previously into Chinese philosophy with Taoist Chuang Tzu.

We used the Ames/Rosemont The Analects of Confucius: A Philosophical Translation. Here's an "online teaching translation" by Robert Eno. Another commonly used translation is by D.C. Lau.

Some of us watched Robert André LaFleur's lecture series "Books That Matter: The Analects of Confucius," part of which is available on YouTube. The Confucius entry in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy is also helpful.

Confucius picture by Solomon Grundy.

Confucius on Virtuous Conduct (Part One)

The key to producing good intelligence lies in asking the right question, rather than in just poring over what’s been randomly collected in hopes that somewhere in the pile of reports and intercepts on your desk you’ll spot something important.

Herbert E. Meyer, founder and president of Storm King Press, served during the Reagan Administration as Special Assistant to the Director of Central Intelligence and Vice Chairman of the CIA’s National Intelligence Council. A recipient of the U.S. National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal, his articles and essays on intelligence have been published in several major newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal. He is the author of several books, including Real-World Intelligence and Hard Thinking; two eBooks, How to Analyze Information and The Cure for Poverty; and a recent booklet, Why is the World So Dangerous.

Imprimis is the free monthly speech digest of Hillsdale College and is dedicated to educating citizens and promoting civil and religious liberty by covering cultural, economic, political, and educational issues. The content of Imprimis is drawn from speeches delivered to Hillsdale College-hosted events. First published in 1972, Imprimis is one of the most widely circulated opinion publications in the nation with over 3.5 million subscribers.

Read this issue of Imprimis at https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/how-intelligence-works-when-it-does/

Every issue of Imprimis published by Hillsdale College is available at imprimis.hillsdale.edu/

"How Intelligence Works (When it Does)" by Herbert E. Meyer

A dreamer is born - the exhilarating prequel to the ground-breaking, extraordinary Bone Season series.

In the perilous heart of Scion London, a dangerous and valuable poltergeist is on the loose - and it must be caught before chaos erupts on the streets of the capital. Here, the clairvoyant underworld plays by its own rules, and rival gangs will stop at nothing to win such a magnificent prize.

Sixteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working for Jaxon Hall, the most notorious mime-lord in the city. He thinks she is hiding a powerful gift, but it refuses to surface. Maybe this is the opportunity she needs to secure her position in his gang, the Seven Seals....


The Pale Dreamer by Samantha Shannon on Audible:
http://www.audible.com/pd?asin=B01LYU8E6Q&source_code=SCLGB905XWS072613

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Buy on Audible

The Pale Dreamer by Samantha Shannon, Narrated by Alana Kerr Collins

Most of you know I'm not known for my short stories; apparently I'm much too long-winded. But on occasion there are some things I just need to pull from my head and put out there. I hope you enjoy this small glimpse into the things that keep me up at night.

Mark's Merry Mayhem by Mark Tufo on Audible:
[new paragraph] (insert buy link in this format: http://www.audible.com/pd?asin=B01N6BQKFD&source_code=SCLGB908MWS110813

Get this audiobook for free when you try Audible:
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Mark's Merry Mayhem by Mark Tufo, Narrated by Sean Runnette

Continuing on the Analects, now without our guest. We cover every single one of the 500 aphorisms, of course, in great depth, getting at the unambiguous meaning of each and completely reorienting our philosophical viewpoint in consequence.

OK, so the interpretive task is a bit more difficult than that, but Mark, Seth, and Wes do our best to figure out Master Kong's words about glibness (his "petty people" are pretty much like the Sophists!), using names properly (is it just a matter of not putting on airs?), putting your heart into ritual (not his words), filial conduct (do you turn your criminal relatives in?), remonstrance (what do you do if your good advice to authority is ignored?), and more. Would Confucius want you to join the Trump administration to improve it, or run to the hills until it collapses?

End song: "Please Allow Me to Look at You Again," from The Edge of Heaven (2013) by Gary Lucas, as interviewed on Nakedly Examined Music ep. 7.

Please Allow Me to Look at You Again

Confucius on Virtuous Conduct (Part Two)

Rage

Rage might be an aggressive Hunter by nature, but the gorgeous male has never had a problem charming the females. All except Lucie Gaudet. Of course the lovely Geek is a born troublemaker, and it was no surprise to Rage when she was kicked out of the Wildlands. But now the Pantera need a first-class hacker to stop the potential destruction of their people. And it's up to Rage to convince Lucie to help. Can the two forget the past - and their sizzling attraction - to save the Pantera?

Killian

Gorgeous, brutal, aggressive, and human, Killian O'Roarke wants only two things: to get rid of the Pantera DNA he's been infected with and get back to the field. But the decorated Army Ranger never bargained on meeting the woman - the female - of his dreams on his mission to the Wildlands. Rosalie lost her mate to a human, and now the Hunter despises them all. In fact she thinks they're good for only one thing: barbeque. But this one she's guarding is testing her beliefs. He is proud and kind and knows the pain of loss. But in a time of war between their species, isn't any chance of love destined for destruction?

Rage/Killian by Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright on Audible:
http://www.audible.com/pd?asin=B019JEJZ7Q&source_code=AUDORWS0128169G6Z

Get this audiobook for free when you try Audible:
http://www.audible.com/offers/30free?asin=B019JEJZ7Q&source_code=AUDORWS0128169G6Z

Rage/Killian by Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright, Narrated by Emily Beresford

Fifteen months ago, Detective Lindsay Boxer's life was perfect – with her beautiful baby daughter and doting husband, Joe, she felt nothing could go wrong.

But Joe isn't everything that Lindsay thought he was, and she's still reeling from his betrayal as a wave of mysterious heart attacks strikes seemingly unrelated victims across San Francisco.

And at the trial of a bomber Lindsay and Joe worked together to capture, his defence raises damning questions about Lindsay and Joe’s investigation.

A deadly conspiracy is working against Lindsay and soon she could be the one on trial.


Read more at https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1110498/16th-seduction/#XFh1XX3r6Wj3vp6O.99

16th Seduction by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Audiobook Extract) Read by January LaVoy

We are rejoined by guest Law Ware to discuss several sources, some less formal than others. Cultural sources included:

1. Peggy McIntosh: "Unpacking the Invisible Backpack" (1989)
2. Tim Wise: "White Like Me" documentary (2016)
3. George Yancy: "Dear White America" (2015 editorial in the NY Times The Stone)
4. John McWhorter: "The Privilege of Checking White Privilege” (2015 editorial in the Daily Beast)

Academic articles included:

1. Charles W. Mills: "White Ignorance" (2007)
2. Lewis R. Gordon: "Critical Reflections on Three Popular Tropes in the Study of Whiteness" (2004) (From What White Looks Like, George Yancy, ed)
3. Lawrence Blum: "White privilege: A mild critique" (2008)

You may wish to first listen to our initial foray into philosophy and race, where we talked about DuBois, MLK, and others.

Don't wait for part 2! Get your full, ad-free Citizen Edition right now with your PEL membership. Please support PEL!

McIntosh picture by Olle Halvars.

White Privilege (Peggy McIntosh, Charles Mills, et al) (Part One)

On the 1967 neo-Marxist, Situtationist book.

What is culture? In modern capitalism, Debord thinks that it's all about the economy. It's not just our jobs that keep us trapped, but our life outside of working hours is also demanded by "the system" via our activity as consumers, and this commoditization infiltrates every corner of our lives.

Debord wants us to WAKE UP, break our chains, and live lives of immediacy, vitality, and authenticity. This means wrenching ourselves from "the spectacle," which is not just the media created to distract us (per our ep. #136 on Adorno), but our whole shallow culture where technology, efficiency, and loss of aesthetic quality in favor of economic quantity all isolate us from each other so that we can't effectively engage in political opposition.

Is this all a bit exaggerated? Is the type of shallowness Debord refers to really restricted to the modern age, or to capitalism? Haven't we always had spectacles foisted upon us to keep us in line? Mark, Seth, Wes, and Dylan delve into this prescient critique and come up firing on all four cylinders.

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Guy Debord's "Society of the Spectacle" (Part One)

More on the 1967 Situtationist book.

Do we buy Debord's critique? Is any merely partial critique (i.e., not calling for revolution) just more spectacle? Is technology inherently dehumanizing? Haven't some of these passivity/anti-technology arguments even been launched back in history against things like books? Could Debord's model of authenticity be mass produced, i.e., is this something that we can achieve as a society as Debord hopes, or merely as individuals (if that)?

Continued from part 1, or just get the ad-free Citizen Edition. Please support PEL!

End song: "Millionaire" by The Mekons (1993), one of whom, Jon Langford, Mark interviewed on Nakedly Examined Music #22.

Millionaire

Guy Debord's "Society of the Spectacle" (Part Two)

In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as his elderly cousin Bilbo entrusts the Ring to his care. Frodo must leave his home and make a perilous journey across Middle-earth to the Cracks of Doom, there to destroy the Ring and foil the Dark Lord in his evil purpose.

Buy 

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien, Read by Rob Inglis

The Partially Examined Life is a philosophy 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 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.