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Philosophy has been studied for thousands of years. It involves the use of reason and argument to search for the truth about reality - about the nature of things, ethics, aesthetics, language, the mind, God and everything else. This series of five introductory lectures, aimed at students new to philosophy, presented by Marianne Talbot, Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford, will test you on some famous thought experiments and introduce you to some central philosophical issues and to the thoughts of some key philosophers.Themes and summary (AI-generated based on podcaster-provided show and episode descriptions):
➤ Introductory philosophy lectures • logic, argument, symbolic logic • metaphysics, epistemology, knowledge • language, mind, rationality, consciousness • ethics, political philosophy, justice • history of philosophy from Pre-Socratics to presentThis podcast presents an introductory survey of philosophy framed around how philosophers use reasoned argument to investigate fundamental questions about reality and human life. Across the episodes, it introduces core areas of the subject and shows how philosophical problems are approached through careful analysis, clear definitions, and structured debate, sometimes drawing on well-known thought experiments to test intuitions and clarify concepts.
A central theme is how we can think and communicate: the discussions connect the philosophy of mind and the philosophy of language by asking what rationality is, what consciousness amounts to, and how inner thoughts and experiences can be expressed meaningfully in words. Alongside this, the podcast explores broad metaphysical and epistemological issues—what kinds of things exist, what their nature might be, and what it would take to count as knowledge of them—highlighting the difference between claims about what there is and claims about how we can know.
Practical philosophy is also a major focus. Ethical and political questions are treated in terms of how one ought to live and what principles might justify social and political arrangements, including what a just state could be. Underpinning these topics is attention to philosophical method itself, emphasizing logic and argumentation, including the role of symbolic and philosophical logic in evaluating reasoning and making positions precise.
The series is further situated within the broader intellectual tradition by tracing major developments in the history of philosophy from early Greek thinkers through to contemporary concerns, helping listeners see how today’s questions connect with longstanding debates and influential philosophers.
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Philosophy of language and mind 2009-Jan-09 87 minutes |
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Metaphysics and Epistemology 2009-Jan-09 90 minutes |
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Ethics and politics 2009-Jan-09 92 minutes |
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The philosophical method - logic and argument 2009-Jan-09 94 minutes |
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A romp through the history of philosophy from the Pre-Socratics to the present day. 2008-Nov-13 92 minutes |