Celebrating the Two Joe's graduation and commiserating their (hopefully temporary) departure from the podcasts, we decided to crack open some champagne, turn on the mics and talk about drones. With Nye finally meeting the Two Joes, we turn to look at their final two essays, the first of which explores what phenomenological ethicist and Holocaust survivor, Emmanuel Levinas may have thought about more modern forms of warfare...
We start with a concise guide to Levinas' philosophy on 'Ethics as First Principle' and the personal and intellectual context for much of his writing - Really useful if you're studying Levinas or want to get an impression of his ideas! After this we chat about war ethics, psychological reactions to catastrophe and continental existentialism. Joe's essay can be found here. Editing, audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica, mandolin)
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Resurrecting the ghosts of the recently graduated Two Joes, Nye and Connor commune over a few drinks to discover the true meaning of the spooky season. Kicking off series two with this more lighthearted episode, we tell stories of séances, discuss the paradox of horror, Halloween culture, horror movies, the Christian and Celtic origins of the festival and much more!
Editing, audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars, keys, maniacal laughter) & Connor (harmonica, mandolin, crows)
Continuing our goodbye / celebration podcasts for the Two Joes, we turn to Joe's essay on Raymond Gaita and the ethics of genetic engineering. The Australian Christian philosopher Gaita argues for a whole new way of thinking about ethics. In his works A Common Humanity and Good & Evil: An Absolute Conception he proposes that morality is very much distinct from ethics.
We explore how this might look when applied to the contemporary issue of biological engineering. Are we right to breed selective qualities in humans? What are we saying when we eliminate diseases and deformities to those who are already living with them? Joe's essay can be found here. Editing, audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica, mandolin)
Be warned this episode contains awful impressions of Ray Winstone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Elvis Presley.
In this session, we once again tackle the question of artificial intelligence, this time with the Two Joes. As Joe's dissertation looks at AI and consciousness we explore some of the philosophical and ethical ideas that spring up in the field including - Asimov's laws, determinism, self awareness, the trolley problem, the Frame Problem, dystopian fiction, the Turing Test and free will & determinism. Do ideas like transhumanism and automated economies irreparably alter what it means to be human? Well unfortunately in this follow up podcast, we have very few answers. After we explore a thought experiment concerning what a fully automated world might look like (again) the conversation takes more inane and sweary turns. In our state of drunken phronesis we offer conspiracy theories about Elvis Presley's death and Connor invents a new word for skeleton. An essay from Joe on transhumanism and "becoming like God". Our thoughts summarised Edited by Connor. Audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica)
Ever wanted to learn philosophy from drunk people? Us, neither. Here's a collection of mini-episodes as Connor and the Two Joes attempt to teach some of the fundamental ideas and thinkers in the history of philosophy, from the Ancient Greeks to the Enlightenment and beyond. Originally improvised audio tests, these conversations are some of the earliest we had, back when we were trying to be professorial and educational. After recovering them from an old hard drive, they are lost no more. Hopefully you'll share in our passion and interest as you follow us from insightful dialogue to drunken mishaps. The conversations featured in this episode are:
0:25 - A Very Brief Introduction to René Descartes' Meditations. Topics covered: "I think therefore I am", Cartesian doubt, Cartesian dualism. 6:15- Thomas Kuhn: The Structure of Scientific Revolutions & Paradigm Theory. Topics covered: Paradigm shifts, Scientism, The Copernican Revolution, Normal science v. revolutionary science, (We're not scientists). 30:40 - Plato's Republic & Why We Read it. Topics covered: Socratic dialogues, Thrasymachus, The Cave, the Forms, Contextual reading and why philosophy is important to read. Edited by Connor. Audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica)
From Plato's Allegory of the Cave and Indirect Realism to The Lego Movie and Apache Helicopters, Connor and the two Joes introduce the world of philosophy and discuss their experiences with the subject in a brief improvised pilot.
After being lost for many months, we have finally managed to recover the pieces of audio from these two sessions, stitching what we could gather into one (relatively seamless) episode. Enjoy. Edited by Connor. Audio & music mastering / production by Nye James. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (guitars, harmonica)
In this second part of our conversation on Blade Runner, Connor and the two Joes turn their blurring focus on its sequel, Blade Runner 2049. Connor is still congested and all three are quite drunk. As with the previous episode, consider yourself warned regarding spoilers! Expect little actual philosophy but plenty of insight into "gay fellas" and tits popping out. Here is an article by Connor and a movie review by Joe.
(00:00 - 00:28) - Intro
(00:28 - 10:10) - Moving onto the recent Blade Runner sequel, we outline the plot and the elements we enjoyed. (10:10 - 21:30) - Exploring the themes and philosophical ideas of the film we start with an absolute gem of a question; enquiring as to whether the film is "blindist". Then we briefly touch upon biblical motifs before segwaying into a discussion on reproduction and Alfonso Cuarón's Children of Men. Finally, we manage to get around to talking about how it handles meaning and reality. (21:30 - 32:22) - Incredibly drunk by this point, we try to unpack gender politics and minority representation in the film, focusing on the use of misogyny and sexism in dystopian fiction. (32:22 - 35:50) - With the conversation derailed and phronesis left well and truly behind we give a passing mention to the continuity of Asian and world themes and mention the musical score before we say our goodbyes. (35:50 - 37:27) - Outro Edited by Connor. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica)
Blade Runner is a 1982 dystopian science-fiction film set in the grim reality of 2019, where a detached and soulless humanity face a word of pervasive advertisement, overpopulation and environmental disaster while grappling with a myriad of uncomfortable ethical problems and struggling to find meaning and identity. Its like our reality but with flying cars. After a drunken movie night Connor and the two Joes grab some beers and rack their brains to try and unpick some of the philosophical ideas presented in both films in the first part of this conversation on the Blade Runner series. Enjoy. (Continued in part II). Here's an article by Connor and a movie review by Joe.
(00:00 - 00:25) - Intro
(00:25 - 08:11) - Connor opens the conversation by asking "what is art?" and "what makes good art?" to which we surmise that art is a contextual conversation through a culturally recognised medium, intended to discuss ideas or emotions to a recipient. "Good" art is usually skilful, for its own sake and resonates its intent with its audience. (08:11 - 15:33) - We talk about the original Blade Runner's plot and lead onto its thematic context and innovations; namely Ridley Scott's iconic cyberpunk and noir aesthetic. (15:33 - 20:43) - The conversation continues as the trio talk pace, tone and Hollywood trends. (20:43 - 28:30) - The philosophy of the film is up for discussion as we touch on ideas of consciousness, characterisation, Biblical themes, the burden of proof, eyes and dolphins!? As well as this we begin mocking the hilarious voice-over featured in the theatrical edition. (28:30 - 33:12) - We round off our initial thoughts on the first film by talking about sci-fi predictions of the future, Rachel and Deckard, whether Deckard is a replicant, character arcs and the film's climactic payoff before Connor finally comes round to admitting he likes the film after all. (33:12 - 33:55) - Outro (33:55 - 34:44) - Lies Edited by Connor. Jingles recorded by Nye (guitars) & Connor (harmonica)
On a cold winter's night, two weeks before Yuletide, three friends discuss the merits and shortcomings of the holiday season. Is Christmas a time for spreading good cheer to all mankind? Or is it a soulless secularised product of capitalism with a disastrous environmental impact - Only philosophy students would ponder such things. As Connor attempts to advocate the true spirit of Christmas, the two Joes are less convinced about the season of giving in a more light-hearted Christmas Special...
Edited by Connor. Jingles recorded by Connor (harmonica, guitars, jaw harp) |
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