History of Philosophy: India, Africana, China
च्यानल विवरणहरू
History of Philosophy: India, Africana, China
Peter Adamson teams up with Jonardon Ganeri, Chike Jeffers, and Karyn Lai to represent the philosophical traditions of ancient India, Africa and the African diaspora, and classical China. Website: www.historyofphilosophy.net.
हालैका एपिसोडहरू
243 एपिसोडहरू
HPC 38. Easy Does It: Non-Action in the Laozi
The concept of wuwei or “non-action”: does it mean that the perfect sage or political ruler simply never does anything?
HPC 37. She Stoops to Conquer: Femininity in the Laozi
How the Laozi (Daodejing) applies the lessons of complementarity to the contrast between male and female.
HPC 36. Fishing for Complements: Polarities in Daoism
The significance of the Laozi’s use of opposing pairs, which are treated as complementary rather as exclusive dichotomies.
HPC 35. Way Better than Greenwashing: Daoism on Nature
The Laozi (Daodejing) refers to the winds, the rain and the waters. We discuss how these ideas express the Laozi’s views on nature.
HPC 34. You Don’t Say! the Dao That Cannot Be Told
The first rule of dao is: don’t talk about dao. We do so nonetheless, focusing on its role in metaphysics and language.
HPC 33. Let Us Count the Ways: What is Daoism?
What does “Daoism” refer to in a range of contexts, and how have excavated texts changed our understanding of the tensions between Daoism and Confucia...
HPC 32. Chris Fraser on Mohism
We conclude our series on Mohism with an interview that looks at the Mohists' dialectic and its relationship to their ethics.
HPC 31. Push and Pull: Mohist Dialectic
Later Mohists explained in the Canons how to provide compelling philosophical arguments, and how to avoid mistakes in argumentation. Does this count a...
HPC 30. Horse of a Different Color: the Mohists on Language and Knowledge
What Mohist dialectics and Gongsun Long’s “White Horse Not Horse” argument tell us about the connection between language and knowledge.
HPC 29. Ghost Writers: the Mohists on Religion
Did Mozi tell people that ghosts exist and that we can change our fate because he thought these things are true, or because it would be beneficial for...
HPC 28. Ting Mien Lee on Mohism and Confucianism
An interview on the contrasting views of Mohists and Confucians on ethical duties and warfare.
HPC 27. Give Peace a Chance: the Mohists on War and Politics
How the Mohist principle of “inclusive care” leads to political order and (mostly) forbids the fighting of wars.
HPC 26. Culture Wars: Mohist and Confucian Debates
Disagreements between the Mohists and the Confucians: is seeking benefits the right way to approach life? What motivates us to act morally, care for o...
HPC 25. Benefit, Then Stop: Mohism and Impartial Care
How did the Mohists establish their consequentialist ethic of “impartial care (jian ’ai)”? Was this theory ultimately grounded in the will of Heaven?
HPC 24. Measuring Up: Mohist philosophy
An introduction to the Mozi, the founding text of an anti-elitist school of thought that tests social and political practices by the measure of “benef...
HPC 23. Amy Olberding on Confucian Ethics
In our final episode on classical Confucianism, our interview guest tells us about the surprising moral depth of the concept of "etiquette"
HPC 22. Inside Job: Women in Confucianism
Can classical Confucianism be redeemed from its reputation for rigidly hierarchical thinking when it comes to the relationship between men and women?
HPC 21. Sor-Hoon Tan on Confucian Democracy
Can classical Confucian ideas be adapted to produce a theory of democracy fit for today's world?
HPC 20. Heaven Can Wait: Ritual and Religion in Confucianism
Were Confucian ideas about Heaven, ritual, and fate driven by a religious attitude, or a naturalistic one?
HPC 19. The Kingly Way: Confucian Political Philosophy
Mengzi and Xunzi show that a Confucian political theory need not be idealistic.
HPC 18. Erica Brindley on Music and the Cosmos in Confucianism
An interview about the "resonant cosmos" in early Confucianism, and the role played by music in linking sages to the universe.
HPC 17. Knowing Me, Knowing You: Confucian Epistemology
The role of knowing in Confucian ethics: should it be understood as “knowing how,” or even “knowing to,” rather than “knowing that”?
HPC 16. To Become or Not to Become: the Confucians on Our Moral Natures
Morality is what makes us humans, for the Confucians. But does morality come from inside us, outside us, or both?
HPC 15. Flexing Your Moral Muscles: Xunzi on Moral Cultivation
Xunzi, a thinker who shaped the course of Confucian philosophy by showing how deliberate effort can overcome our wicked natural tendencies.
HPC 14. Every Man for Himself: Virtue and the Body
Several ancient Chinese texts speak of an egoist and hedonist known as Yang Zhu: did he pose a coherent challenge to the Confucians and other ethicist...
HPC 13. The Trembling Ox: Mengzi and the Compassionate Heart
In the Mengzi, the text that bears his name, Mengzi ("Mencius") holds that the human heart-mind is the wellspring of goodness.
HPC 12. Gentlemen’s Agreement: Confucian Virtue Ethics
Should the remarkable parallels between Aristotelian and Confucian ethics lead us to classify Confucianism as a type of “virtue ethics”?
HPC 11. Mark Csikszentmihalyi on Early Confucianism
In this interview, we learn how Kongzi become the pivotal sage of early Chinese history, and what new discoveries teach us about the Confucian traditi...
HPC 10. We’re a Pack Animal: Individual and Society in Confucianism
What does the Analects say about living as a human being? How are individuals embedded in society, and how do they develop their unique identities?
HPC 09. Family Values: Confucian Role Ethics
Confucianism puts relationships with family members at the core of their ethical thinking. Is this a strength or a weakness?
HPC 08. Confucius Says: Reading the Analects
Lessons we can take from the teachings of Kongzi (Confucius) in the Analects: challenging authorities, adhering to “benevolence (ren),” and practicing...
HPC 07. Uncrowned King: Kongzi (Confucius) and the Analects
An introduction to Kongzi, the founder of Confucianism, and to the text that has come to represent his thought, the Lunyu (Analects).
HPC 06. Franklin Perkins on Excavated Texts
In this interview, we learn how newly discovered texts are changing our understanding of Warring States period philosophy.
HPC 05. Going Paperless: Ancient Chinese Texts
What were ancient Chinese philosophical texts written on? How did writing relate to orally transmitted wisdom? How were texts read and used? And what...
HPC 04. Open Season: the Historical Context
The historical context of classical Chinese philosophy, and how ancient Chinese historical works themselves became works of philosophy.
HPC 03. Karyn Lai on Classical Chinese Philosophy
Co-host Karyn introduces herself to the listeners and talks about the challenges of tackling classical Chinese philosophical texts.
HPC 02. The Only Constant: Change and the "Yi Jing"
Early Chinese philosophers were deeply aware of a world that is constantly changing: we look at how Confucians, Legalists, and Daoists responded to th...
HPC 01. Journey of a Thousand Li: Introduction to Chinese Philosophy
Introducing Chinese philosophy through the concept of "dao," a fundamental word in classical Chinese philosophy, with a range of meanings across its d...
HAP 142 - Final Chat with Chike Jeffers
How Africana philosophy looked to a young Chike Jeffers, coming into the field in the early 21st century.
HAP 141 - Job Openings - the Rise of Africana Professional Philosophy
The key events and figures in philosophy as an academic discipline, in both Africa and the diaspora.