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The new philosophy podcast! Philosopher Rebecca Lowe talks with philosophical guests about philosophical concepts, with the aim of providing rigorous yet accessible rough working definitions.Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ accessible philosophical analysis and working definitions • political philosophy: rights, freedom, democracy, liberalism, politics • ethics and moral psychology: forgiveness, happiness • governance values: transparency, privacy, justice, mercy, obligationsThis podcast is a conversational philosophy show focused on developing clear, workable definitions of important concepts in moral and political life. Host Rebecca Lowe speaks with philosophers and other intellectually engaged guests to examine how contested terms are used in ordinary language, what theoretical commitments sit behind those uses, and whether the concepts can be defined in a rigorous way without losing their practical relevance.
Across the episodes, the discussions repeatedly connect abstract analysis to real-world institutions and choices. Many conversations center on political philosophy and public ethics: democracy, freedom, liberalism, politics, rights, privacy, and transparency. These topics are treated both as ideas and as features of social and legal systems, raising questions about what such values require, how they relate to one another, and how they might be protected or realized in practice. The podcast also tackles more personal or ethical themes—such as happiness and forgiveness—probing what counts as the relevant state or act, what makes it valuable or problematic, and how it relates to neighboring notions like justice, charity, grace, mercy, or obligation.
A common thread is attention to conceptual tensions: whether rights can conflict, how preferences differ from rights, what it means to “ground” a right, what makes politics hard to define, and how ideals like transparency and privacy can constrain or enable each other. Overall, listeners can expect accessible but careful philosophical inquiry aimed at sharpening the meaning of influential words that shape moral judgment and political debate.
| Episodes: |
Working Definition episode 9: Forgiveness, with Ben Brophy2026-Mar-28 61 minutes |
Working Definition episode 8: Rights, with John Tasioulas2026-Feb-18 65 minutes |
Working Definition episode 7: Happiness, with Henry Oliver2025-Dec-26 47 minutes |
Working Definition episode 6: Liberalism, with Michael Ignatieff2025-Dec-12 54 minutes |
Working Definition episode 5: Politics, with Oliver Traldi2025-Nov-12 59 minutes |
Working Definition episode 4: Privacy, with Ignacio Cofone2025-Sep-29 48 minutes |
Working Definition episode 3: Freedom, with Tyler Cowen2025-Aug-29 60 minutes |
Working Definition episode 2: Democracy, with Josiah Ober2025-Aug-03 61 minutes |
Working Definition episode 1: Transparency, with Tom Hoenig2025-Jul-20 39 minutes |