The Wisdom Of podcast explores great works of literature, the sort of works from which much insight and wisdom can be drawn. We explore themes from happiness, to love, to authenticity and to tragedy.
The Wisdom of With Kristian Urstad by Avant-Garde Productions
Star Wars and Star Trek: Which of these is more philosophically interesting? And which of these two universes would you want to live in? I got my answer!
Han thinks there's a deep existential hollowness lurking beneath the shiny veneer and the noise of modern life. He attributes this to many things about our contemporary society. Find out more!
Is ASMR just some superficial Youtube phenomenon? Or is there something important and deep behind its popularity? Find out more!
On the surface, being a moral saint sounds like a great thing. But, not so fast! The contemporary philosopher Susan Wolf doesn't think so. And both Dostoevsky and Camus have their own concerns about thinking of yourself as morally pure! Find out more!
In our attention-economy wisdom has now become content - ready-made for monetization! Socrates warned against this trend long ago!
These ancient philosophers argued that physical toughness was a discipline essential to happiness. Relevant for us today? I think so! If interested, check out my new book series! The second book is available now! www.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
Nietzsche tells us that one must LEARN to love. That might sound a bit odd to us. What does he mean and why is it important? Find out more! If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
Does astrology make any sense? And if not, why do we still believe in it? If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
What's wrong with hypocrisy? Well, Jesus and Jean-Jacques Rousseau agree on at least one thing that's wrong with it! f interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
The distinguished historian Will Durant published a book where he ranked the greatest thinkers ever! See who made the list! If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
The French philosopher Bergson criticized the scientific notion of time, instead turning to what he called lived time. Find out more! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Agewww.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/
If interested, check out my new book series! Here's the first one: www.amazon.com/Manifesto-Beauty-Reclaim-Digital-World/dp/1069510815/ The full title is: A Manifest on Beauty: Reclaim Real Beauty in a Digital Age
If I could time travel anywhere, I'd skip the big battles and royal balls. Drop me in a smoky café in 1940s Paris—existentialism, espresso, and all! If you're not convinced, take a listen!
How should we meet death? With rage! Or so says the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas! And he's not the only one! Find out more!
What would Kafka think about our attention economy today? And what about the state of our art? Find out more!
Naomi Klein, the Canadian author and social activist, argues for what she sees as the apocalyptic mindset of the far Right. Along with Klein, I offer up a few of my own concerns!
So as we all know, there's the popular or cliched idea that we should be “nonjudgmental”. But by and large, I don't think that's right!
Send us a textThe philosopher Theodor Adorno lays a powerful groundwork for thinking ethically about animals! Find out more!
Send us a textHumour can have real revolutionary force! Ask the philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin. Let's keep laughing at the powerful. It will work!
Send us a textThese giants of literature, they're often viewed as similar from afar. But they're not. Especially when it comes to how they see the human soul and the road to salvation!
Send us a textIn our world of more and faster and louder, we might do well to remember that less is often more! Just ask Miles!
Send us a textThe love letter has become an extinct species! This is a symptom of a much larger problem - at least according to Heidegger!
Send us a textIs human well-being and flourishing really all about detachment? I would argue, no!
Send us a textModern beauty has become tepid and smooth. It lacks the depth and friction and power of genuine beauty! Or so say Han and Plato!
Send us a textInspired by Gabriel Marcel and Martin Buber, I argue that being a good father requires the invisible labor of presence.
Send us a textWhen I was growing up teenage rebellion seemed to be everywhere! Where is it now? At the heart of this decline: social media and technology!
De Beauvoir and Arendt both argue against passive forms of happiness! Find out more!
Socrates argues that ignorance is the worst of all evils! Especially in the service of power! Ring any bells today?
One could argue that we live more superficially than ever before. Pascal and Kierkegaard are particularly relevant here!
Plato chose not to write essays. He wrote dialogues instead. Why? And how is this relevant for us today? Find out more!
I think this ancient myth is more relevant today than ever before! Find out more!
According to Nietzsche, cultures can be healthy or decadent. How do we see the culture today?
The psychologist Erich Fromm argues that we tend to willingly submit to authoritarianism! Relevant today?
Carl Jung believed that UFOs have their basis in a vital psychic need! Find out more!
What Camus has to say in The Rebel is very relevant to our current trend towards absolutist and binary thinking!
Kierkegaard spends a lot of time talking about the connection between existence and passion! We'd do well to listen to him!
The archetype of the earth is crucial for understanding Dostoevsky's view! Find out more!
As friends we gratify and pamper too much, or so these philosophers say! Find out more!
The Ancient Greeks had two words for time - chronos and kairos. What is this distinction and how might it be important for us today? Find out more!
The Beats were a group of poets and writers who emerged after WWII. What was their philosophy all about? Find out more!
Apart from the death of Jesus, no death has been discussed more than that of Socrates. And for very good reasons! Find out more!
How do we take the sting off of death? How about a little less ego, a little more selflessness! Find out more!
Dare to know and think! This was Kant's calling in his famous 1784 essay "What is Enlightenment?" Find out more!
The words “know thyself” were carved into stone at the entrance to the revered temple of Apollo at Delphi in Greece. What does it mean? Well, the Greek playwright Sophocles and the philosopher Socrates interpret it in their own way!
In 1927 the philosopher Bertrand Russell gave a lecture called Why I am not a Christian. Find out more!
Both Dostoevsky and Heidegger, in their own way, look for ways to salvage some deeper meaning and experience in the midst of our increasingly technological and rational-scientific world! Find out more!
One of the most emotionally powerful novels ever written! A father and son try to make their way across a post-apocalyptic America trying to get to a better place.
Is there anything more important than hope, especially today? These two profound philosophers have lots to say about this!
Selfie-ism permeates our world culture! Do we have cause for concern? What would the existentialists think?
What's going on? Why don't we care about character anymore? This is very troubling.
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