Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchHoP 480 Honorable Ignorance: French Skepticism
Episode 481
So-called “libertines” like Mothe le Vayer revive ancient skepticism, provoking a backlash from Mersenne and Arnauld. Were they right to see the skeptics as anti-religious?
Published on 10 hours ago
HoP 479 Gideon Manning on Cartesian Medicine
Episode 479
An interview exploring Descartes' interest in medicine, how his medical ideas relate to his dualism, and his influence on medical science.
Published on 2 weeks ago
HoP 478 This Gland Is Your Gland: Cartesian Science
Episode 478
From comets to blood transfusions, embryology, and the debate over the pineal gland: Descartes’ impact on science, especially medicine.
Published on 4 weeks ago
HoP 477 The Mind Has No Sex: Cartesianism and Gender
Episode 480
Why Cartesianism appealed to women and became the inspiration for a pioneering feminist, Poullain de la Barre; and why Cartesianism was not the only option for women philosophers of the age.
Published on 1 month, 1 week ago
HoP 476 What He Should Have Said: the Early Cartesians
Episode 477
Early Cartesians including Cordemoy and de La Forge develop but also challenge Descartes’ ideas, defending atomism and occasionalism.
Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago
HoP 475 Ariane Schneck on Elisabeth and Descartes
Episode 476
We finish our look at Elisabeth of Bohemia and Descartes by talking to Ariane Schneck about their correspondence, focusing on the mind-body problem and the passions.
Published on 2 months, 1 week ago
HoP 474 States of the Union: Descartes on the Passions
Episode 475
What do emotions reveal about the connection between mind and body? We turn to Descartes’ correspondence with Elisabeth and his On the Passions to find out.
Published on 3 months, 3 weeks ago
HoP 473 As Rational As You: Elisabeth of Bohemia
Episode 474
A royal scholar and philosopher sets aside the tribulations of her family to debate Descartes over the relation between mind and body and the nature of happiness.
Published on 4 months, 1 week ago
HoP 472 Less Cheer, More Knowledge: Descartes’ Ethics
Episode 472
Descartes’ “provisional” morality and his views on free will and virtue.
Published on 4 months, 3 weeks ago
HoP 471 Unclear and Indistinct Ideas: Debating the Meditations
Episode 473
Descartes’ Meditations caused controversy as soon as it appeared. In this episode we look at criticisms including the “Cartesian Circle,” and how Descartes answered them.
Published on 5 months, 1 week ago