Nature and the Nation

In this episode I look at John Sellars' Stoicism, exploring Stoicism's grappling with the eternal question of whether virtue is its own reward, or if happiness is the reward of a virtuous life.

In this episode I examine Allan Bloom's interpretative essay on Plato's Republic, focusing on Book 1 of the Republic and its attempt to define justice.

In this episode I return to Revolt Against the Modern World, Julius Evola's most famous book about the metaphysical nature of the Traditional life and culture. I focus in this episode on Monarchy, Aristocracy, and the materialist reading of Evola's anti-materialism.

In this episode I look at Page duBois' examination of polytheism in theory and practice in her book A Million and One Gods. I focus on the Greek Gods Artemis and Dionysus, and the political implications of polytheism.

In this episode I look at Oriana Fallaci's controversial book, The Rage and the Pride. I focus on her examination of the effects of migration of Italy and her relationship with Christianity.

In this episode I look at Reno's phenomenal examination of the gods as shared loves and social values. I focus on his analysis of Popper, Hayek and Durkheim.

In this book I look at Mark Green's exposition of his religious system, Atheopaganism. I focus on the evolutionary aspect of religion, and Green's positions on values and hierarchy.

In this episode I explore Douglas Murray's phenomenal best-seller, The Strange Death of Europe, with a focus on the history of post-war migration into the United Kingdom.

In this episode I return to The New Polytheism by David Miller, focusing exlusively on the the essay in the appendix by James Hillman called Psychology: Monotheistic or Polytheistic. This essay discusses how our theological inclinations affect our approach to psychoanalysis.

In this episode I look at David Miller's insightful examination of polytheism in sociology, psychology, and philosophy. I focus on his discussions of Niebuhr, Cornford, and Heidegger.

In this episode I look at Heidegger's theories about the role of the poet in carrying the message of the gods to the people, as described in his 1936 essay Holderlin and the Essence of Poetry.

In this episode I explore the myth of Parsifal and the quest for the Holy Grail as presented in Robert Johnson's Jungian analysis, He: Understanding Masculine Psychology.

In this episode I look at The Process of Individuation, an essay by Jung's close friend and colleague, Marie-Louise von Franz, in the anthology Man and his Symbols. I focus on the shadow and the anima, as well as the individualist nature of Jungian psychoanalysis.

In this episode I look at Carl Jung's bird's eye view of his whole life's work, as presented in his contribution to the anthology Man and his Symbols, edited by Jung and published after his death.

In this essay I look at Heidegger's famous essay 'What is Metaphysics?' as well as the accompanying essay by Werner Brock that examines and interprets the essays in the book. I explore Heidegger's assertion that nothingness is a critical component of metaphysics and that metaphysics is a critical compenent of science and the human experience.

Edith Hamilton's The Greek Way is a masterpiece in helping the reader really understand the vital spirit and love of life that contributed to Classical Greek greatness. In this episode I cover this Greek vitalism and also look at Pindar and the true value of Greek aristocracy.

In this episode I look at George Williams' famous rebuke to group selection theory as outlined in Adaptation and Natural Selection. I focus on secondary adaptations, sexual reproduction as an organic adaptation, and the difference between male and female mating strategies.

In this episode I examine William James' 1904 address to the American Psychological Association, The Experience of Activity, as presented in Essays in Radical Empiricism. I focus on the illusory aspect of agency and the need to operate within the version of reality that accessible to our experiences.

In this episode I look at John Dewey's 1900 essay Some Stages in Logical Thought, as published in this 1916 collection, Essays in Experimental Logic. I focus on Dewey's assertion that both some fixity and some flexibility is required on the part of ideas for them to serve in the human task of overcoming obstacles.

In this episode I return to Strauss and Cropsey's magisterial History of Political Philosophy to examine the essay on Kant. I focus on the split between science and morality, and the contradiction formed by Kant's fundamental mistake.

In this episode I engage in an extra-long two-hour examination of the basic philosophy of Martin Heidegger, as described in Michael Inwood's study, Heidegger. Inwood focuses primarily on Heidegger's magnum opus, Being and Time. In this episode I pay particular attention to Heidegger's discussion of the state of being he calls 'ready-to-hand,' as well as authenticity and being-toward-death.

In this episode I revisit Niccolo Machiavelli through the lens of Erica Benner's biography of the Renaissance Italian thinker, Be Like the Fox. I examine Machiavelli's dedication to the ideals of the Florentine Republic and his opposition to leaders who come to rule by the blessings of Fortune.

In this episode I return to Leo Strauss and Joseph Cropsey's History of Political Philosophy, to look at Strauss' own examination of Machiavelli. I focus on Machiavelli's strategic deployment of virtue and vice, and his comparison of Christianity and Paganism.

In this episode I look again at the Sophists with a focus on their dedication to rhetoric, as described by classicist Bernard Knox in his collection of essays, The Oldest Dead White European Males.

In this episode I examine sexual selection and basic mating strategies, plus a look at the possibility of escaping the our evolutionarily acquired behaviors as described in Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution is True.

In this episode I review the basic elements of Aristotle's philosophy, discussing his conception of nature, the four causes, and the four elements. I also continue the discussion from the previous two episodes regarding eudaimonia, phronesis, ethics, and politics.

In this episode I review Aristotle's political and ethical premises with a focus on eudaimonia, arete, and the mixed regime, as described by Carnes Lord in Leo Strauss and Joseph Cropsey's essay collection, History of Political Philosophy.

In this episode I examine various forms of happiness, the difference between happiness and eudaimonia, and the basics of Aristotelian virtue ethics as described by Edith Hall in Aristotle's Way.

In this episode I cover Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher's new, massive, authoritative tome on industrial policy, Industrial Policy for the United States. I look particularly at the qualities of advantageous industries, England's initiation of industrial policy under Henry VII, and Sematech's creation and development.

In this episode I look at how birthrates and population prompt replacement migration, and how it all ties to feminism as described in another Pat Buchanan masterpiece, The Death of the West.

In this episode I examine Evola's impression of the nation and it's constrast to the state, as well as his discussion of population and birth rates, as described in his primary political work, Men Among the Ruins.

In this episode I look at the immigration crisis is terms of population control and the environment, as well as the long failure of politicians to respond to the overwhelming opposition of the American public to the ongoing flood of both legal and illegal immigration, as detailed in Immigration and the American Identity from Chronicles Magazine and Thomas Fleming.

In this episode I look at the Goldwater campaign, the battle over human nature in academia, and the revival of antiestablishment fusionism among the paleocons and paleolibertarians, as described by Paul Gottfried in The Conservative Movement.

In this episode I look at the birth of National Review, its controversies, and the resolution provided by Fusionism, all described in George Nash's expansive Conservative Intellectual Movement in America SInce 1945.

In this episode, I look at the Old Right, its birth in the lead-up to World War 2, and its death at the hands of Wall Street Republicans, Dwight Eisenhower, and National Review as described in the fantastic book, The Betrayal of the American Right by Murray Rothbard.

In this episode I continue my exploration of William James' The Varieties of Religious Experience, with a focus on the conversion process and the subconscious mind.

In this episode I dive into the healthy mind and the sick soul, the foundational concepts of William James' masterpiece, The Varieties of Religious Experience. This is the first of a two-part series.

In this episode I explore the early nationalism of the Republican Party from the New Deal to the Cold War, as described in Michael Miles' Odessey of the American Right, with particular attention paid to US foreign policy at that time.

In this episode I look at the contrast, ruptures, and uncertainties among three early Pragmatists: Charles Peirce, William James, and John Dewey, as detailed in Louis Menand's bestselling The Metaphysical Club. I also examine Randolph Bourne's use of Pragmatism to justify cosmopolitan immigration and the unaccountable bureaucracy of the American Association of University Professors.

In this episode I look at the two writers Oswald Garrison Villard and John Flynn, and their associations with the America First Committee as depicted in Ronald Radosh's Prophets on the Right.

In this episode I look at Jean-Paul Sartre's Existentialism and Human Emotions with a focus on the failure of existentialism to acknowledge human nature.

In this episode I dive deeper into William James' lecture series Talks to Students with the essays On a 'Certain Blindness in Human Beings' and 'What Makes a Life Significant' as presented in Ralph Barton Perry's collection of James' essays, Essays on Faith and Morals. I look particularly at the practicality of this blindness and the balance between ideals and practicality.

In this episode I arrive at Richard Weaver's classic statement of post-war Conservatism, Ideas Have Consequences, in particular the the traditionalist, hierarchical, formal aspects of enduring culture.

In this episode, I discuss William James' consequential essay Philosophical Conceptions and Practical Results and his lecture to students, The Gospel of Relaxation, as collected in The Heart of William James, edited by Robert Richardson.

In this episode I continue my examination of Darwinism and Human Affairs, this time exploring the connections between cultural evolution and genetic evolution. I focus on ways that cultural evolution both aligns with and betrays our genetic drive to reproduction.

In this episode I return to evolutionary theory, discussing the controversy surrounding group selection and its relationship with kin selection and inclusive fitness as described by Richard Alexander in his book Darwinism and Human Affairs.

In this episode I look at William James' further discussions of psychology in Talks to Teachers, in which he draws on prior psychological writings to address the needs of teachers. I pay particular attention to the practical and pragmatic aspect of his discussion of competing drives and ideas, and his limited domain of the activity of the will.

In this episode I return to John Dewey for a look at his essay The Practical Character of Reality, included in the compilation Pragmatism: The Classic Writings edited by H. S. Thayer. I focus on Dewey's examination of the nature of knowledge and awareness.

In this episode I look at John Dewey's overview of the early history of pragmatism as described in Pragmatism: The Classic Writings edited by H. S. Thayer. I examine the major themes of pragmatism, including the importance of consequences, human conduct, the vaguery of ends, and the approximateness of knowledge.

In this episode I revisit History of Political Philosophy to look at Leo Strauss' examination of the political theory of Plato. I look at the attempts to define Justice, the viability of absolute communism, and make my first foray into Plato's theory of ideas.