Podcast appearances and mentions of Iris Murdoch

Imagine a woman setting herself the task of liking her son's choice of wife. At first she finds her daughter-in-law unbearable, but through the effort of seeing her clearly and justly she comes to accept and even appreciate the younger woman. For Iris Murdoch this is an example of moral labour, the struggle to achieve virtue that is understood intuitively by all of us. In her 1970 book The Sovereignty of Good, a collection of three lectures, Murdoch rejects the unambitious, ‘milk and water' ethics of her fellow English moralists at Oxford in favour of a Platonic system in which morality has the same objectivity as mathematics. In this episode Jonathan and James discuss Murdoch's lifelong philosophical project to establish what the rational unity of morality might be like without God. They consider her ideas of ‘unselfing' and of goodness as a replacement for God, and what she got wrong about Sartre's distinction between authenticity and sincerity. Non-subscribers will only hear an extract from this episode. To listen to the full episode, and to all our other Close Readings series, subscribe: Directly in Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://lrb.me/applecrcip⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ In other podcast apps: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://lrb.me/closereadingscip⁠ Further reading in the LRB: Alexander Nehamas: John Bayley's 'Iris': https://lrb.me/cipep12murdoch1 James Wood: Existentialists and Mystics: https://lrb.me/cipep12murdoch2 Rosemary Hill on Iris Murdoch: https://lrb.me/cipep12murdoch3 Audiobooks from the LRB Including Jonathan Rée's 'Becoming a Philosopher: Spinoza to Sartre': https://lrb.me/audiobookscip

In this episode Miles is joined by Anne Rowe (University of Chichester/Kingston), Rachel Hirschler (Kinston University) and Rosanna Hilyard (Chatto & Windus) to celebrate the publication of 'Poems from An Attic: Selected Poems 1936-1995', published today by Chatto and Windus. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/470920/poems-from-an-attic-by-murdoch-iris/9781784746124 ANNE ROWE is Visiting Professor at the University of Chichester and Emeritus Research Fellow with the Iris Murdoch Archive Project at Kingston University. She has published widely on Iris Murdoch, including The Visual Arts and the Novels of Iris Murdoch (2002), Iris Murdoch in the Writers and Their Work series (2019) and most recently is Co-Editor of Poems from an Attic: Selected Poems 1936-1995 by Iris Murdoch (2025). Rachel Hirschler works at the Kingston University archives and is lead transcriber for Murdoch's poetry and much else besides. Rosanna Hilyard is Assistant Editor at Chatto and Windus, and has been shepherding Poems from an Attic to publication. Her fiction and non-fiction has appeared in The Isis Magazine, The Northern Echo, and several anthologies including Tactical Reading, Adrift and Outside Of Me.

In this episode Miles talks to Andrea Delaune (University of Canterbury, New Zealand) about her new book, 'Iris Murdoch and Early Childhood Education: Enhancing Attention and Moral Vision in Pedagogy' (Routledge, 2025). https://www.routledge.com/Iris-Murdoch-and-Early-Childhood-Education-Enhancing-Attention-and-Moral-Vision-in-Pedagogy/Delaune/p/book/9781032886169 Andrea Delaune is Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Education at University of Canterbury (Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha), New Zealand, where she conducts research at the intersection of ethics, pedagogy and early childhood practice. Her scholarly work explores how moral philosophy—especially concepts of attention, care, and moral vision—can illuminate and revitalise the everyday practices of early childhood teaching, care and policy. One of her central studies draws on the work of Iris Murdoch, applying Murdoch's ideas of attention and the moral imagination to early childhood contexts. Beyond her research, Delaune is actively engaged in the professional community: she serves as Co-President of OMEP Aotearoa, New Zealand (the local chapter of the World Organisation for Early Childhood Education), where she is involved in advancing children's rights, well-being of early childhood educators, and ethical dimensions of educator-child relationships. Iris Murdoch and Early Childhood Education: Enhancing Attention and Moral Vision in Pedagogy (Routledge, 2026), argues for a reconceptualisation of teaching as a lived philosophical practice rather than purely a technical act.

Episode 217: Hosts Richard Kyte and Scott Rada tackle a subject that’s easy to overlook — beauty. Not the kind of beauty sold in store aisles or filtered through a cellphone, but the kind that stops us in our tracks and makes us forget, for just a moment, about ourselves. Kyte recalls a recent camping trip during which he stumbled upon a scene so stunning that he instinctively reached for his phone — only to realize he’d left it behind. What followed, he says, was an experience of pure presence: sunbeams slicing through lifting fog, the quiet steps of deer and the realization that no photograph could ever do it justice. That moment becomes the starting point for a conversation about how beauty reshapes our sense of meaning and morality. “We spend so much time in our own heads,” Kyte said. “Beauty reminds us there’s something significant outside ourselves.” It’s an idea that stretches from Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essays on nature to Iris Murdoch’s notion of “unselfing” — the idea that paying attention to something beyond our own desires is the first step toward living ethically. Rada connects those philosophical ideas to everyday life — including the digital habits that make true attention harder to find. He wonders whether seeing a beautiful image on a four-inch screen counts as the same kind of experience. Kyte doesn’t dismiss the value of photography but insists that beauty can’t be possessed, only encountered. “The moment we try to capture it, we risk losing it,” he said. The discussion ranges from foggy forests to still-life paintings, from Emerson’s influence on John Muir to the idea that even the way we see other people changes when we cultivate reverence. Along the way, the hosts wrestle with one provocative question: If we begin to see beauty everywhere, does it still feel extraordinary?

Licenciado en Filología Inglesa y en Filología Hispánica, doctor en Literatura española y teoría de la literatura. Ha escrito varios libros, entre ellos: Manual de supervivencia (que le valió el Premio del Instituto Literario y Cultural Hispánico), Darwin en las Galápagos, el diario Viaje al ojo de un caballo, Veinte días en Mongolia, El volumen de relatos Cuatro cuentos italianos, el poemario Lisergia, El libro de historiografía y teoría literaria El poema en prosa en los años setenta en España, etc. Traductor de autores como W. B. Yeats, Robert Browning, R. W. Emerson, H. D. Thoreau, D. H. Lawrence, Iris Murdoch, Joseph Campbell, Leslie Stephen o Mark Haber. Es también profesor de inglés en la Escuela Oficial de Idiomas de Madrid-Carabanchel.

In this episode we discuss Murdoch's conceptualisation of virtue and what it might mean to be virtuous. We'll range across her philosophy, of course, but we'll also have time to visit her fiction and consider if she embeds some of her ideas about virtue into her novels. Joining Miles to discuss this fascinating topic is Tony Milligan. Tony is a Research Fellow in Philosophy of Ethics in the Theology and Religious Studies at Kings College, University of London. And his current research, as part of the KCL (China) team and the University of Manchester (Russia) team within the Cosmological Visionaries project, takes in the ethical aspects of dialogue building between local scientists, indigenous peoples and national minorities in Russia and China in the face of climate change. The key theme uniting his broader areas of research is otherness and our shared future. This works its way into various publications on Space (other places), philosophy of love (other people), and animals (other creatures). Tony is also an Affiliate of the Lau China Institute. For many years he's been fascinated by Murdoch's philosophy, indeed his PhD thesis at the University of Glasgow was titled 'Iris Murdoch's Romantic Platonism' and he's gone on to publish widely on her work.

My thanks to Catherine Lacey for a great discussion! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.commonreader.co.uk/subscribe

1 september. Mattias Svensson samtalar med Anna Victoria Hallberg om hennes bok ”Du berör min själ: Scener ur ett liv med Iris Murdoch”. Utöver Iris Murdochs tankar och författarskap diskuterar de individens frihet, tråkiga filosofer och hur man blir en borgerlig bohem.

Welcome to a new season of the Iris Murdoch Podcast! In this episode we're celebrating the 50th anniversary of the publication of one of Murdoch very best novels, and one of the six first-person male narrated novels, A Word Child. This is a revisit as we discussed this wonderful novel way back in 2021 – it was our ninth podcast and this episode is our seventieth! – so if you might want to catch up with that one if you love this novel. As you might expect, we also discuss a wide range of Murdoch's other novels. Joining Miles is Frances White. Frances is the Deputy director of the IMRC here at Chichester and the author of many works on Murdoch, the most recent being the edited collection Iris Murdoch and the Western Theological Imagination (Palgrave, 2025) And joining Frances and Miles is Liz Whittome. For many years she was the Chief and Principal Examiner of English for Cambridge Examinations. She has published several books on studying English at A-Level with Cambridge University Press. She is currently writing a monograph on Murdoch and Shakespeare.

We're counting down the days until the publication of The Hallmarked Man! Nick Jeffery and John Granger take perhaps the last look at Rowling's most recent postings before they dive into discussion about the meaning and artistry of Strike8.In today's conversation, they review Rowling's relationship with Stephenie Meyer, the author of the Twilight series, a New York Times feature article ‘The Wizard's Everlasting Spell' about the growth of Potter fan fiction with a romantic twist, and Rowling's acerbic review of Nikola Sturgeon's memoir Frankly. Nick and John discuss along the way the initial response of cultural gatekeepers to the quality of the writing in Harry Potter, the history of Rowling's relationship with the writers of romantic fan fiction using her characters in light of Fifty Shades of Gray, and Hogwarts Professor's role in making ‘Rowling Studies' legitimate and the culture-wide acceptance of Rowling as a writer of merit “something we've always known” rather than a controversial assertion.And what does all that have to do with the imminent release of Hallmarked Man? Nick and John share their more-than-tentative plans for reading Strike8 and the best way — not the only way, of course, but a much better way than, say, cataloging predictions everyone will forget by mid-September — to prepare for our first reading of an epic Rowling-Galbraith title.We hope you are as excited as we are to the advent of Hallmarked Man and that you're looking forward to exploration of its breadth and depth beneath the surface plot with us in the coming month!Links To Subjects Discussed Above:The Wizard's Everlasting Spell Why Magic, Dragons and Explicit Sex Are in Bookstores Everywhere: Romantasy is propping up the fiction market. Thanks to a generation that grew up reading about a boy wizard. (The New York Times, 20 August 2025, Alexandra Alter)The new version of the [‘Dramione' Potter fan fiction] story that so captivated Ms. Stallone will soon be released as “Alchemised,” and the novel's publisher, Del Rey, is betting that the feverish devotion to its fanfiction predecessor will translate into blockbuster sales. Del Rey has ordered a first printing of 750,000 copies for the novel's release in late September; translations are lined up in 21 languages.Besides appealing to hordes of existing fans, “Alchemised” has another advantage: It taps into the raging appetite for romantasy, a subgenre that blends fantasy elements like magic, fairies and dragons with love, yearning and explicit sex.In a way, the romantasy explosion — driven by the success of blockbuster authors like Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros, whose series have sold millions upon millions of copies — stems from the legacy of popular young adult series like “Twilight” and “Harry Potter.” Those books molded generations of young readers who have grown up but still crave big fantasy novels — now with a dose of erotica.“They grew up with the characters, and the stories ended, but there's still such a huge appetite,” said Leah Hultenschmidt, publisher of the romance imprint Forever. “They're still hungry for that magical world building, an epic cast of characters and heroism, and maybe they just want it a little spicier.”Publishers are frantically searching for the next breakout romantasy series. Last year, romantasy sales topped more than 32 million copies in print alone, a 47 percent jump over the previous year, according to Circana Bookscan. Five of the 10 best-selling adult fiction titles this year are romantasies. At the same time, adult fiction sales overall have stagnated.The kind of romance that's selling like crazy now — erotically charged genre mash-ups — first took off in fanfiction before publishers recognized there was an appetite for it.“For a long time, you had to go to fanfiction to find that,” said Anne Jamison, a professor of English at the University of Utah who has studied fanfiction. “Romantasy basically is what fanfiction made.”* Alchemized Sen Lin Yu* ‘Romantasy' Novels on Amazon, Etc.The twilight of Nicola Sturgeon: J.K. Rowling reviews FranklyI know I'm stating the obvious, and I'll probably be one of countless reviewers making the same point, but it's impossible to read Nicola Sturgeon's memoir without remembering the smash hit fictional franchise, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. For those who don't know (ie, everyone who wasn't a tween or teenage girl, or living with one, 2005-2015), Twilight was massively popular for roughly a decade, each new book or film being greeted adoringly by its devoted fans. [opening paragraph)Rowling and Romantasy:* ‘The Twenty Richest Authors in the World:' Rowling #2 (!), Meyer #18, Collins #20* The Sunday Times' List of the “100 Bestselling Books of the Last Five Decades:” Rowling #23, Meyer #42, 58, 59, and 64* Twilight Book Sales * Stephen King: “Stephenie Meyer Can't Write Worth a Darn”* Speaking of Disappearances – Whatever Happened to Stephenie Meyer?* Fifty Shades of Grey Book Sales* ‘Fifty Shades Outsells Harry Potter'* ‘Rowling Refuses to Read Fifty Shades'* Rowling about Sales of Fifty Shades: “Just think how many books I could've sold if Harry had been a bit more creative with his wand.”Rowling August 2025 Tweet about Writers who are All Lake No Shed (and Vice-Versa) The Silkworm and its Women Writers:* Kathryn Kent: “I write fantasy with a twist… It's fantasy slash erotica really, but quite literary” (416) “She makes Dorcus Pengelly look like Iris Murdoch” (232)* Dorcus Pengelly: “She writes pornography dressed up as historical romance” (225)* Elizabeth Tassel: All Shed, No Lake (per Strike)You told Quine that Bombyx Mori sounded brilliant, that it would be the best thing he'd ever done, that it was going to be a massive success, but that he ought to keep the contents very, very quiet in case of legal action, and to make a bigger splash when it was unveiled.And all the time you were writing your own version. You had plenty of time to get it right, didn't you, Elizabeth? Twenty-six years of empty evenings, you could have written plenty of books by now, with your first from Oxford… but what would you write about? You haven't exactly lived a full life, have you?… (442)Did it feel good, raping and killing your way through everyone you knew, Elizabeth? One big explosion of malice and obscenity, revenging yourself on everyone, painting yourself as the unacclaimed genius, taking sideswipes at everyone with a more successful love life, a more satisfying — (440)* Michael Fancourt about women writers (298):I said that the greatest female writers, with almost no exceptions, have been childless. A fact. And I have said that women generally, by virtue of their desire to mother, are incapable of the necessarily single-minded focus anyone must bring to the creation of literature, true literature. I don't retract a word. That is a fact.* Hobart's Sin, Owen Quine's first and best novel, the “Key” to Tassel's Bombyx Mori, the “book within a book:” “The plot of Hobart's Sin turns on Hobart, who's both male and female, having to choose between parenthood and abandoning his aspirations as a writer: aborting his baby, or abandoning his brainchild” (229)* “It's all about a hermaphrodite who's pregnant and gets an abortion because a kid would interfere with his literary ambitions” (242)* Rowling about The Silkworm: It is the Story that Inspired the Series, the Lake OriginActually, the plot for Silkworm predated the plot for Cuckoo's Calling. I'd had the idea for that plot, the book within the book, for seven or eight years before I wrote it. That often happens with me, I have an idea and I keep it and sit on it. But I keep it and I play with it like a Rubik's cube and there'll come a point where everything clicks and it's ready to be written. I have a lot of notebooks filled with these kinds of things. Silkworm was like that. I sat on that plot for a long time before using it.* “It's a novel about novels with another novel inside it” (~1;15)Reading for Wisdom and JolliesAn Introduction to and Example of Reading Rowling at Four Levels: A Quadrigal Reading of The Christmas PigReading Rowling the Hard, Right Way versus Enjoying the Surface Story and Discussing Themes: An Introduction to Perennialist ReadingTraditional Symbols in Harry Potter and Cormoran Strike: A Perennialist ViewHarry Potter's Bookshelf — What to Read to Understand Rowling's Artistry and How to Read Her Work to Grasp Her Meaning and IntentionThe Deathly Hallows LecturesHarry Potter as Ring Cycle and Ring Composition* ‘How Does Ring Composition Work Anyway?'Darke Hierogliphicks: Alchemy in English Literature from Chaucer to the Restoration (Stanton Linden)How to Think About The Ink Black Heart Pre-Publication – Seven Tools for Serious Readers to Review (February 2022)And Don't Forget!* In Praise of Friendship - a Robin and Strike Heresy Get full access to Hogwarts Professor at hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe

durée : 00:58:59 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - À travers ses romans et sa réflexion philosophique, Iris Murdoch explore des thèmes tels que la liberté, les relations humaines, le pouvoir des structures sociales, tout en donnant une voix complexe aux expériences féminines. En quoi consiste la voie féministe subtile indiquée par Iris Murdoch ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Camille Braune Doctorante en philosophie à l'université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne

durée : 00:59:08 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - En 1970, Iris Murdoch publie "La souveraineté du Bien", ouvrage marqué par ses lectures de Platon, de Wittgenstein ou encore de Simone Weil. Comment la conception du Bien d'Iris Murdoch nous donne-t-elle les clés afin de nous rendre (moralement) meilleurs ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Emmanuel Halais Philosophe français

durée : 00:59:47 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - Dans le premier roman d'Iris Murdoch "Sous le filet" (1954), nous suivons le héros Jake, empêtré entre sa paresse, ses galères d'argent, ses illusions qui perdurent et les inévitables malentendus du langage. En quoi ce roman est-il nourri par les préoccupations philosophiques de Murdoch ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Barbara Servant Docteure en littérature comparée, chercheuse associée au CERC Paris 3 Sorbonne Université et au CELLAM, Université de Rennes 2.

durée : 00:59:44 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - L'itinéraire philosophique d'Iris Murdoch (1919-1999) est marqué par les enseignements de Wittgenstein sur le langage, ainsi que par l'existentialisme sartrien. Comment découvrir la vérité si le langage peut mentir ? Peut-on percer le mystère de la vie humaine, en dépit de son opacité ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Frédéric Worms Philosophe, directeur de l'Ecole Normale Supérieure de Pari

In this lecture Miles Leeson, Director of the Iris Murdoch Research Centre at the University of Chichester, discusses Murdoch's reception by her contemporaries and look at the lighter side of how she was lampooned, both directly and indirectly, in the work of H.E. Bates, Malcolm Bradbury, Brigid Brophy, Barbara Pym and Ian McEwan, as well as the reception of her work by Philip Larkin and Monica Jones. Whilst a good deal of this was affectionate, and some even complementary, there was also a streak of jealousy and cruelty present. As Murdoch grew in popularity, and as a public intellectual figure, this became commonplace and is part of the mythic figure of ‘Iris' that was played out in the 2001 film, but has now has begun to fade from the public imagination. Miles's lecture asks what it might mean for us to admire her work today in the light of these texts.

Ein Gastmahl "Er schrieb das Leben, aber wenn er lebte, verschrieb er sich." Veza Canetti wusste, wovon sie sprach. Sie war die erste Frau von Elias Canetti. Er selbst inszenierte sich scharfsinnig, begabt, schöpferisch, einzigartig. Wie sehr er seinem eigenen Bild tatsächlich entsprechen konnte oder wie oft er sich "verschrieb", hing nicht zuletzt von seinen Liebesbeziehungen ab. Sie richteten ihn auf oder rissen ihn zu Boden. Hier melden sich die Frauen zu Wort. In einem sind sie sich einig: Mit Canetti war es eine endlose Quälerei. Aber ganz ohne ihn war die Welt ohne Sinn. Veza Canetti, Friedl Benedikt, Marie-Louise von Motesiczky, Iris Murdoch und Hera Canetti bekommen Stimmen, Gesichter und Körper. Sie erzählen und streiten, sie lesen aus Tagebüchern und Briefen, auch aus unveröffentlichten Texten von Canetti. Sie zeigen das Licht und die Schatten in ihren Leben, mit und ohne den Mann, der ihre große Liebe war. In einem sind die Frauen sich einig: Mit Canetti war es eine endlose Quälerei. Aber ganz ohne ihn war die Welt ohne Sinn. Von Ina Strelow Redaktion: Joachim Dicks Produktion: NDR 2014

It's more clear than ever that outdated concepts of governance are failing the people, with horrifying results. Let's embrace a new concept of anationality (which rejects nationalism as atheism rejects religion) and search for a more humane ethics of attention, empathy and unselfing, such as can be found in the philosophy of Iris Murdoch.

Nytt ljus riktas mot fyra kvinnliga filosofer som försökte återupprätta moralen efter andra världskrigets grymheter - frågor som talar rätt in i vår oroande tid. Lyssna på alla avsnitt i Sveriges Radio Play. I Oxford möttes fyra kvinnor som skulle komma att revoltera mot den analytiska filosofin som hade dominerat universitetet fram till andra världskriget. Logiken stod i centrum, människan hade reducerats till en maskin och frågor om kärlek, mening, godhet och ondska viftades bort som subjektiva värden och nonsens. Iris Murdoch, Elizabeth Anscombe, Mary Midgley och Philippa Foot träffades i en tid då de manliga filosofistudenterna kallades in i kriget och flyktingar från Europa intog lärosätena. Kriget och avslöjandet om förintelsens fasor påverkade deras filosofi. De tog tillbaka moralen in i filosofin, vidgade samtalet om vad det var att vara människa, rotade moralen i djur, natur och mänskligt liv. Nu hålls konferenser och det skrivs böcker om deras liv och filosofi, senast i svensk översättning kom Kvinnorna i Oxford, skriven av filosoferna Clare Mac Cumhail och Rachael Wiseman. Idag när krig efter krig startas och kriser radas på varandra, vad kan dessa filosofer säga vår tid?Medverkande: Lyra Ekström Lindbäck, filosof och författare och Frits Gåvertsson, filosof och forskare vid avdelningen för idé- och lärdomshistoria vid Lunds universitet.Programledare: Cecilia Strömberg WallinProducent: Marie LiljedahlVeckans tips:Bok:Naturlagarna - Eirikur Örn NorddahlMuseum:Skissernas Museum i Lund

In this second episode focused on Existentialists and Mystics we'll be reading two essays – ‘Thinking and Language' and ‘Nostalgia for the Particular' – together. If you've yet to listen to our prior episode on Murdoch earliest work on Sartre then you may wish to catch up with that, before you listen to us here. Both essay were originally give as oral presentations. The first, ‘Thinking and Language' came from a symposium entitled, naturally enough, Thinking and language and was part of a conversation between Murdoch, Gilbert Ryle and A.C. Lloyd in 1951. The second, ‘Nostalgia for the Particular' was read at a meeting of the Aristotelian Society on the 9th June 1952. As both papers reference each other in their published form it seemed obvious to discuss them together on one episode. Miles is joined by Lesley Jamieson. Lesley is an Assistant Professor and postdoctoral researcher at the Centre for Ethics as Study in Human Value at the University of Pardubice (Czechia) and her research has centred on the history of analytic philosophy (with a focus on women, especially Iris Murdoch). This work has resulted in a monograph entitled Iris Murdoch's Practical Metaphysics: A Guide to her Early Writings (Palgrave, 2023), as well as a number of articles on the philosophy of mind and philosophy of education. Lesley's current research is an examination the practice of "public philosophy" just prior to and after the Second World War among such figures as Susan Stebbing, A. J. Ayer and Iris Murdoch.

Send us a textIf Brigid Brophy's The King of a Rainy Country had a soundtrack, it might include the soft patter of rain on a garret window, jazz drifting from a smoky cafe, the hum of a Vespa on narrow cobblestone streets … and the obnoxious griping of a few dozen uncultured Americans! As the description suggests, Brophy's 1956 novel has a little bit of everything  — atmosphere, nostalgia and poignancy mixed with subversive wit and madcap antics. Kim and Amy play “tour guide” examining Brophy's life and accomplishments, including this wonderfully quirky book, recently reissued by McNally Editions.Mentioned in this episode:McNally Editions The King of a Rainy Country by Brigid BrophyMarginalia article about Brigid Brophy and Iris Murdoch by Maria PopovaLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 51 on Rosamond LehmannDusty Answer by Rosamond LehmannLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 150 on Elizabeth SmartBy Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept by Elizabeth SmartLost Ladies of Lit Episode No. 184 on Elizabeth Taylor Vs. Elizabeth TaylorBBC program “Take it Or Leave It”In Transit by Brigid BrophyHackenfeller's Ape by Brigid BrophyThe Snowball by Brigid BrophyFifty Works of English Literature We Could Do Without by Brigid Brophy, Michael Levey and ??The Crown Princess and Other Stories by Brigid Brophy“Spleen” by BeaudelaireDeath in Venice by Thomas Mann“As You Like It” by William ShakespeareSupport the showFor episodes and show notes, visit: LostLadiesofLit.comSubscribe to our substack newsletter. Follow us on instagram @lostladiesoflit. Email us: Contact — Lost Ladies of Lit Podcast

#KöşedekiKitapçı'da bugün

In this episode, we discuss Chapter 6 of Cusk's Outline alongside an essay by Murdoch called The Idea of Perfection. In this essay, Murdoch argues that the way we pay attention to the world is ethically significant. We talk about how Cusk's narrator attends to the world, and what this leads the reader to infer about her character and sense of self. Speaker names: • Dr. Scarlett Baron, Associate Professor in the English Department at UCL. • Alice Harberd, PhD Student in the Philosophy Department at UCL.

Miles is joined by Lucy Oulton (University of Chichester) to discuss her new book, Iris Murdoch's Wild Imagination: Nature and the Environment (Palgrave, 2025). https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-87833-6 This book presents the first ecocritical study of novelist, philosopher, poet and public intellectual Iris Murdoch (1919–1999). It brings her love of the natural world into the light, arguing for its critical significance when Murdoch conveys an awareness of intricately interconnected ecologies through her work: an awareness that anticipates the motivations and concerns of modern-day environmental humanities. The book is the first of its kind to assess some of Murdoch's poems, seen as early articulation of the environmental imagination that finds recurrent expression in her novels, philosophical writings and personal journals throughout her writing life. This book offers a significant entry point for a new research direction in Murdoch studies by explicating her unique perspective on the natural world. Lucy Oulton is a Research Associate at the Iris Murdoch Research Centre, University of Chichester, UK. She is an Editor of the Iris Murdoch Review, to which she has also contributed.

In this episode Miles is joined by joined by Mark Hopwood, Associate Professor of Philosophy, from the University of Sewanee, USA to discuss his new book – which has just been published – The Moral Philosophy of Iris Murdoch. This is his first monograph since he published the co-edited volume that he's perhaps best known for in Murdoch circles, the magisterial Murdochian Mind in 2022. Both books published by Routledge. https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/The-Moral-Philosophy-of-Iris-Murdoch-by-Mark-Hopwood/9780367819576 Examining the role of vision, imagination, love, goodness, and transcendence in Murdoch's work, The Moral Philosophy of Iris Murdoch presents a compelling and original argument that she is one of the major moral philosophers of the twentieth century.

Compra 'La campana' aquí: ⁠https://www.onallibres.cat/la-campana-9788418858895Aquesta setmana a L'illa de Maians, presentat i dirigit per Bernat Dedéu, parlem del llibre 'La campana', d'Iris Murdoch. L'edita Edicions de 1984 el 2025.En parlem amb Marina Porras i Jaume C. Pons Alorda. Un podcast d'Ona Llibres - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://onallibres.cat⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Presentat i dirigit per Bernat Dedéu.Edició i realització per Albert Olaya.

More at https://www.philosophytalk.org/shows/iris-murdoch. Iris Murdoch may be best known for her works of fiction, but her philosophical contributions were equally significant. A moral realist influenced by Plato and Simone Weil, she developed theories in virtue ethics and care ethics. So what is the relationship between Murdoch's works of fiction and her philosophical writings? Why did she believe that "nothing in life is of any value except the attempt to be virtuous"? And given that, why did she think human life has no purpose? Josh and Ray explore Murdoch's life and thought with Eva-Maria Düringer from the University of Tübingen, author of "Evaluating Emotions."

In this, her first public lecture, Dr Maria Peacock discusses Iris Murdoch's search for home using examples from her novels and biography. This lecture was given at the University of Chichester on Saturday 29th March, 2025.

S3E100 Miles Leeson returns to the podcast to talk about Iris Murdoch, this time concentrating on her short collection of poems, A Year of Birds.    Miles and Ash discuss connections between Murdoch's poetry and philosophy, the critical reputation of her poems and some of the folklore tradition associated with her chosen birds.    To pre-order a copy of Poems from an Attic:  https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/470920/poems-from-an-attic-by-murdoch-iris/9781784746124 And to listen to The Iris Murdoch podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-iris-murdoch-society-podcast/id1506230228   Title Music: 'Not Drunk' by The Joy Drops. All other music by Epidemic Sound.  @earreadthis earreadthis@gmail.com facebook.com/earreadthis

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3549: Spending time in nature and reconnecting with cherished childhood places can offer a profound shift in perspective. Rachel Macy Stafford reflects on how revisiting her aunt and uncle's home after decades helped her rediscover the power of "unselfing," turning attention outward to embrace the beauty of the world beyond personal worries. By zooming out, immersing in nature, and appreciating life's vastness, we can find strength and clarity in unexpected ways. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.handsfreemama.com/2023/08/25/i-hope-you-feel-small-the-surprising-upside-of-unselfing/ Quotes to ponder: "This card reminded me of your long driveway. Every time we pulled into the driveway leading up to your house, my heart raced with excitement and happiness." "At home, I tended to make myself the center of my own universe, so naturally, everything felt big and overwhelming. But at my aunt's house, I was immersed in the beauty of nature using all of my senses." "Experiences that refresh our energies, calm our anxieties, and nurture our well-being are more accessible than we might think." Episode references: The Sovereignty of Good by Iris Murdoch: https://www.amazon.com/Sovereignty-Good-Iris-Murdoch/dp/0415253993 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3549: Spending time in nature and reconnecting with cherished childhood places can offer a profound shift in perspective. Rachel Macy Stafford reflects on how revisiting her aunt and uncle's home after decades helped her rediscover the power of "unselfing," turning attention outward to embrace the beauty of the world beyond personal worries. By zooming out, immersing in nature, and appreciating life's vastness, we can find strength and clarity in unexpected ways. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.handsfreemama.com/2023/08/25/i-hope-you-feel-small-the-surprising-upside-of-unselfing/ Quotes to ponder: "This card reminded me of your long driveway. Every time we pulled into the driveway leading up to your house, my heart raced with excitement and happiness." "At home, I tended to make myself the center of my own universe, so naturally, everything felt big and overwhelming. But at my aunt's house, I was immersed in the beauty of nature using all of my senses." "Experiences that refresh our energies, calm our anxieties, and nurture our well-being are more accessible than we might think." Episode references: The Sovereignty of Good by Iris Murdoch: https://www.amazon.com/Sovereignty-Good-Iris-Murdoch/dp/0415253993 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3549: Spending time in nature and reconnecting with cherished childhood places can offer a profound shift in perspective. Rachel Macy Stafford reflects on how revisiting her aunt and uncle's home after decades helped her rediscover the power of "unselfing," turning attention outward to embrace the beauty of the world beyond personal worries. By zooming out, immersing in nature, and appreciating life's vastness, we can find strength and clarity in unexpected ways. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.handsfreemama.com/2023/08/25/i-hope-you-feel-small-the-surprising-upside-of-unselfing/ Quotes to ponder: "This card reminded me of your long driveway. Every time we pulled into the driveway leading up to your house, my heart raced with excitement and happiness." "At home, I tended to make myself the center of my own universe, so naturally, everything felt big and overwhelming. But at my aunt's house, I was immersed in the beauty of nature using all of my senses." "Experiences that refresh our energies, calm our anxieties, and nurture our well-being are more accessible than we might think." Episode references: The Sovereignty of Good by Iris Murdoch: https://www.amazon.com/Sovereignty-Good-Iris-Murdoch/dp/0415253993 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Miles is joined by Prof. Bridget Clarke (University of Montana) to discuss her new book, entitled ‘Iris Murdoch' in the Cambridge Elements, Elements on Women in the History of Philosophy series from Cambridge University Press. https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Iris-Murdoch-by-Bridget-Clarke/9781009358149 Bridget is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Montana and her research interests include the History of Ethics, Moral Psychology and, of course, Iris Murdoch, who she has been working on for the past twenty years or more. This new book, however, is her first monograph dedicated solely to Murdoch work. To access Iris Murdoch's Review of Dr Zhivago - mentioned at the end of the podcast - use this link: https://mailadminchiac-my.sharepoint.com/:w:/g/personal/m_leeson_chi_ac_uk/ESChvUwQ5xpIiacFzothi7QB8eT3VRQavDZRT83RCUuvVg?e=FEEhQe

In this podcast Miles is joined by Michela Dianetti and Lucy Elvis (both from Galway University, Ireland) discusses the role Murdoch's work can play in public philosophy. They discuss working with her philosophy, her radio play 'The One Alone', her novel 'The Unicorn', the Quartet biography 'Metaphysical Animals' and much more. Dr Michela Dianetti is a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Galway and a CPI (Community of philosophical inquiry) facilitator. Her PhD research developed a literary ethics of attention grounded in the philosophies of Simone Weil and Iris Murdoch, applying them to the literary work of Elsa Morante. She is currently researching the influence of Weil's and Murdoch's philosophies on Ann Margaret Sharp's theorization of P4C and the role of attention in CPI. mdianetti@universityofgalway.ie Dr. Lucy Elvis teaches and researches on issues in the Philosophy of Art and Culture and the Community of Philosophical Inquiry (CPI) as a faculty member at the University of Galway. She is a founding director of Curo Thinking for Communities and has practised philosophical thinking with communities in schools, libraries, galleries, and music festivals. Currently, she is researching the CPI as a forum for practising and developing attention as described by Iris Murdoch, Simone Weil and Hans-Georg Gadamer. lucy.elvis@universityofgalway.ie Some of the texts mentioned: Sharp, Ann Margaret, “Self-transformation in the community of inquiry” in Gregory, Maughn, and Megan Laverty, eds. 2019. In Community of Inquiry with Ann Margaret Sharp: Childhood, Philosophy and Education. 1st edition. London New York (N.Y.): Routledge. Mac Cumhaill, Clare, and Rachael Wiseman. 2022. Metaphysical Animals: How Four Women Brought Philosophy Back to Life. London: Chatto & Windus. White, Frances. 2012. “A Post-Christian Concept of Martyrdom and the Murdochian Chorus: The One Alone and T.S. Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral.” In Iris Murdoch: Texts and Contexts, edited by Anne Rowe and Avril Horner, 177–91. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK. And some websites to check out: https://aireinquiryandenvironment.wordpress.com/ https://www.universityofgalway.ie/colleges-and-schools/arts-social-sciences-and-celtic-studies/history-philosophy/disciplines-centres/philosophy/

In this episode Miles is joined by Ian D'alton (Trinity College, Dublin) and Frances White (University of Chichester) to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Murdoch's ninth novel, The Red and The Green. Ian is a visiting research fellow in the Centre for Contemporary Irish History at Trinity College, Dublin, and his most recent work is Southern Irish Protestants: Histories, Lives and Literatures was published just a few months ago. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Southern-Irish-Protestants-Histories-Literature/dp/1916742505 Frances is a Visiting Research Fellow and Deputy Director of the Iris Murdoch Research Centre at the University of Chichester, editor of the Iris Murdoch Review, and Writer in Residence at Kingston University Writing School. Her prize-winning biography Becoming Iris Murdoch was published in 2014 (Kingston University Press) and her monograph, Iris Murdoch and Remorse: Beyond Forgiving? was published in 2024 https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-43013-8 You can find an excellent article on Murdoch and Ireland by Frances White and Gillian Dooley here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/0013838X.2019.1672449

In this episode Miles is joined by Daniel Read (University of Kingston) to discuss his new book, 'Degrees of Evil in Iris Murdoch's Fiction and Philosophy'. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-75841-6 We range across all of her published work - in literature, fiction and theology - and ask why the nature of evil obsessed her throughout her career.

durée : 00:59:01 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - À travers ses romans et sa réflexion philosophique, Iris Murdoch explore des thèmes tels que la liberté, les relations humaines, le pouvoir des structures sociales, tout en donnant une voix complexe aux expériences féminines. En quoi consiste la voie féministe subtile indiquée par Iris Murdoch ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Camille Braune Doctorante en philosophie à l'université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne

durée : 00:59:04 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - En 1970, Iris Murdoch publie "La souveraineté du Bien", ouvrage marqué par ses lectures de Platon, de Wittgenstein ou encore de Simone Weil. Comment la conception du Bien d'Iris Murdoch nous donne-t-elle les clés afin de nous rendre (moralement) meilleurs ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Emmanuel Halais

durée : 00:59:38 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - Dans le premier roman d'Iris Murdoch (1954), nous suivons le héros Jake, empêtré entre sa paresse, ses galères d'argent, des illusions qui perdurent et les inévitables malentendus du langage. En quoi ce roman est-il nourri par les préoccupations philosophiques de Murdoch ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Barbara Servant Docteure en littérature comparée, chercheuse associée au CERC Paris 3 Sorbonne Université et au CELLAM, Université de Rennes 2.

durée : 00:59:44 - Avec philosophie - par : Géraldine Mosna-Savoye, Antoine Ravon - L'itinéraire philosophique d'Iris Murdoch (1919-1999) est marqué par les enseignements de Wittgenstein sur le langage, ainsi que par l'existentialisme sartrien. Comment découvrir la vérité si le langage peut mentir ? Peut-on percer le mystère de la vie humaine, en dépit de son opacité ? - réalisation : Nicolas Berger - invités : Frédéric Worms Philosophe

In this episode Miles is joined by Robert Cremins (University of Houston, Texas) and Daniel Read (Kingston University) to celebrate the anniversary of Murdoch's Whitbread Award-winning novel from 1974. They cover the culture of the 1970s, trauma, childhood, cruelty, black humour, love triangles, links to other writers, links to other novels by Murdoch and much more. Robert is a writer and Senior Lecturer in the Honours College at the University of Houston, and the Faculty Director of Creative Works. A novelist, short story writer and literary critic, Robert has got a lifelong love of Murdoch's fiction. He is currently working on next year's North American special edition of the Iris Murdoch Review which will be published in the Autumn of 2025. Daniel Read lectures at the University of Kingston and his monograph, Degrees of Evil in Iris Murdoch's Fiction and Philosophy, is due from Palgrave MacMillan in early 2025.

Álvaro Pombo, a sus 85 años, natural de Santander, se ha convertido en el Premio Cervantes 2024. A su faceta de novelista hay que añadir su aportación como escritor de relatos y de poesía con un estilo único y original, a pesar de ser clasificado dentro del realismo subjetivo. Autor de 'El metro de platino iridiado', pero también de 'La fortuna de Matilda Turpin', de 'Donde las mujeres' o del flamante 'El exclaustrado' que acaba de publicar Anagrama hace unas semanas. Este último título no solo está lleno de humor, también de reflexiones metafísicas, morales, religiosas... De eso vamos a hablar en unos minutos con la editora del Premio Cervantes, la directora de Anagrama Silvia Sesé, y con uno de los escritores que más admira al santanderino, Gonzalo Torné, con el que podremos analizar cuánto hay de Iris Murdoch en la obra de Pombo. Hemos estado en la rueda de prensa que ha dado hoy miércoles para celebrar el galardón. Vamos a seguir en cierto modo hablando de literatura, de alguien que escribe versos para luego cantarlos. Un músico, de Salamanca, que tomó una frase de un Premio Cervantes, de Jorge Guillén, para construir un álbum luminoso, optimista, pero crítico, realista; que habla, desde el principio, de muerte: Delgado.Escuchar audio

A conversation between Dr Jay Parini, a prolific author and the D.E. Axinn Professor of English and Creative Writing at Middlebury College, and Dr Stephen Blackwood, the founding president of Ralston College, recorded on the occasion of the release of a Ralston College short course, “Robert Frost: The American Voice,” taught by Dr Parini. Dr Parini discusses the film adaptation of his most recent book Borges and Me (2020), shares stories of his friendships with literary figures including Jorge Luis Borges, W. H. Auden, and Iris Murdoch, explains why poetry matters, and shares the fruits of a life “lived in literature.” Applications are now open for next year's MA program. Full scholarships are available. https://www.ralston.ac/apply Authors, Artists, and Works Mentioned in this Episode: Jay Parini, Borges and Me Alan Cumming Jorge Luis BorgesBeowulf Robert Burns Isaiah Berlin Homer Aeschylus Dante Michel de Montaigne William Wordsworth W. B. Yeats Brian Friel, Dancing at Lughnasa Robert Burns, “A Red, Red Rose” William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet Iris Murdoch, The Bell W.H. Auden Boethius Jay Parini, Robert Frost: A Life Robert Frost, “Fire and Ice” Jay Parini, Robert Frost: 16 Poems to Learn by Heart Robert Frost, “The Road Less Traveled” Robert Frost, “After Apple-Picking” Robert Frost, “Birches” Robert Frost, “Directive” Robert Frost, “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” Gerard Manley Hopkins Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning T. S. Eliot, Four Quartets

In this episode Miles is joined by Dr Frances White (University of Chichester) and Liz Whittome (Former Chief and Principal Examiner of English for Cambridge Examinations) to discuss dogs in Murdoch's Fiction. The episode covers Under the Net, The Sandcastle, The Nice and the Good, The Sacred and Profane Love Machine, The Green Knight and The Philosopher's Pupil in some depth as well as discussing other Murdoch novels. You can buy Chris Boddington's 'Iris Murdoch's People A-Z' via the society website, here: https://irismurdochsociety.org.uk/product/iris-murdoch-people-a-to-z/

Matías Rivas, Arturo Fontaine y Sofia García-Huidobro recomendaron "La carta de Joan Anderson", de Neal Cassady y el Mubi Fest Santiago 2024

In this episode Miles is joined by Prof. Larry Blum (U-Mass, USA) to discuss the intellectual and personal connections between Iris and Dorothy Emmet. This follows on from a previous episode on Emmet, which you can find in the Podcast archive. Professor Lawrence Blum is Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts and Education and Professor of Philosophy. His scholarly interests are in race theory, moral philosophy, moral psychology, moral education, multiculturalism, social and political philosophy, philosophy of education, the philosophy of Simone Weil, and, more recently, philosophy and the Holocaust, and ethics and race in film. You can find his Stanford Encyclopaedia Entry on Murdoch here: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/murdoch/ You can find materials on the Oxford Quartet, as well as Dorothy Emmet, here: https://www.womeninparenthesis.co.uk/

In this episode Miles is joined by Matt Congdon (Vanderbilt, USA), Sam Filby, (Northwestern, USA) and Francey Russell (Columbia, USA) to consider Murdoch's moral psychology. They discuss Murdoch's essay 'Vision and Choice in Morality' and 'On 'God' and 'Good''- you can find both in 'Existentialists and Mystics'. Also recommended is this article by Cora Diamond: https://www.abc.net.au/religion/cora-diamond-picture-of-the-soul-the-moral-psychology-of-iris-m/11316086 Matt Congdon is a philosopher at the University of Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee specializing in ethics, social philosophy, and aesthetics. He writes about emotions, interpersonal recognition, moral change, the aesthetics of interpersonal ethical life, and the intersections of ethics and epistemology. His work on these topics has appeared in The Philosophical Quarterly, Analysis, Philosophy, The European Journal of Philosophy, Episteme, and Philosophical Topics, amongst others. His book, Moral Articulation: On the Development of New Moral Concepts appeared in November 2023 with Oxford University Press and you can hear him discussing it on a previous podcast so check that out if you've not already listened in. He is currently working on two new book projects: one on the aesthetic dimensions of interpersonal ethical life and one on the philosophy of Iris Murdoch. He is also working on essays on the non-propositional rationality of emotions, Iris Murdoch, and struggles for recognition. Francey Russell is Assistant Professor of philosophy at the University of Columbia, New York and works on issues in moral psychology and ethics broadly construed, often overlapping with topics in social philosophy and aesthetics, and drawing from contemporary and historical sources. She works mostly on Kant and Freud, but also Nietzsche and Cavell. She is writing a book on the concept of self-opacity and its significance for philosophical accounts of agency and moral psychology. She also writes film criticism, and is working on a project on cinematic aesthetics in genre films as well as the recent article in The Philosophical Quarterly ‘Moral Psychology as a Soul Picture', which illuminates Murdoch thinking in this very area. Sam Filby is currently working on his PhD thesis on Murdoch at Northwestern University, Chicago. His work focuses on Murdoch's aesthetics and – handily for this podcast – moral psychology and he's recently presented his work at the Sorbonne in Paris and, a few weeks ago, here at the University of Chichester.

Why is that when a loved one dies, grief seems inescapable--and then diminishes? The brilliant Edinburgh philosopher Berislav Marusic's "Do Reasons Expire? An Essay on Grief" begins with his grief for the unexpected and early loss of his mother: "I stopped grieving or at least the grief diminished, yet the reason didn't really change. It's not like that my mother stopped mattering to me or that I stopped loving her, but still this change in grief somehow seemed reasonable." What are philosophers and the rest of us to make of this durable insight? John is lucky to be joined in this discussion of Beri's thoughts on grief by by his new Brandeis philosophy colleague, Katie Elliott. She is not afraid to complicate things further, proposing to Beri that we distinguish between the immediate affective intensity of the initial loss and persistent negative emotions towards the fact of the loss, even when that initial affective heat of loss has faded. Beri reponds that emotions are "thinking with feeling" and we maybe want to be skeptical about splitting the two. Beri sees two aspects of grief: "On the one hand, the vision of loss that is constituted by grief and on the other hand, a vision of grief from a empirical or as some philosophers, like to say, a creature construction perspective." It is wrong to make a pragmatist case for the sheerly functional advantages of getting over grief, and also a mistake to see (like Sigmund Freud) grief as a kind of work, a task, to detach oneself from the mourned object. John asks what it means that he personalizes his sensation of grief, focussing not on the lost beloved, but on the way the beloved, or the lost beloved, remains present to him, a loss felt inside himself. Beri invokes Iris Murdoch's warning against the "fat relentless ego" (The Sovereignty of Good, 1970, p 50) intruding itself--when what really should be at stake is the lost object of one's grief. Beri closes by suggesting that grief doesn't happen to us in the way digestion happens (purely involuntary). Sure, grief is not strictly controllable, and yet because it is reasons responsive rather than simply somatic, it is me. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Why is that when a loved one dies, grief seems inescapable--and then diminishes? The brilliant Edinburgh philosopher Berislav Marusic's "Do Reasons Expire? An Essay on Grief" begins with his grief for the unexpected and early loss of his mother: "I stopped grieving or at least the grief diminished, yet the reason didn't really change. It's not like that my mother stopped mattering to me or that I stopped loving her, but still this change in grief somehow seemed reasonable." What are philosophers and the rest of us to make of this durable insight? John is lucky to be joined in this discussion of Beri's thoughts on grief by by his new Brandeis philosophy colleague, Katie Elliott. She is not afraid to complicate things further, proposing to Beri that we distinguish between the immediate affective intensity of the initial loss and persistent negative emotions towards the fact of the loss, even when that initial affective heat of loss has faded. Beri reponds that emotions are "thinking with feeling" and we maybe want to be skeptical about splitting the two. Beri sees two aspects of grief: "On the one hand, the vision of loss that is constituted by grief and on the other hand, a vision of grief from a empirical or as some philosophers, like to say, a creature construction perspective." It is wrong to make a pragmatist case for the sheerly functional advantages of getting over grief, and also a mistake to see (like Sigmund Freud) grief as a kind of work, a task, to detach oneself from the mourned object. John asks what it means that he personalizes his sensation of grief, focussing not on the lost beloved, but on the way the beloved, or the lost beloved, remains present to him, a loss felt inside himself. Beri invokes Iris Murdoch's warning against the "fat relentless ego" (The Sovereignty of Good, 1970, p 50) intruding itself--when what really should be at stake is the lost object of one's grief. Beri closes by suggesting that grief doesn't happen to us in the way digestion happens (purely involuntary). Sure, grief is not strictly controllable, and yet because it is reasons responsive rather than simply somatic, it is me. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why is that when a loved one dies, grief seems inescapable--and then diminishes? The brilliant Edinburgh philosopher Berislav Marusic's "Do Reasons Expire? An Essay on Grief" begins with his grief for the unexpected and early loss of his mother: "I stopped grieving or at least the grief diminished, yet the reason didn't really change. It's not like that my mother stopped mattering to me or that I stopped loving her, but still this change in grief somehow seemed reasonable." What are philosophers and the rest of us to make of this durable insight? John is lucky to be joined in this discussion of Beri's thoughts on grief by by his new Brandeis philosophy colleague, Katie Elliott. She is not afraid to complicate things further, proposing to Beri that we distinguish between the immediate affective intensity of the initial loss and persistent negative emotions towards the fact of the loss, even when that initial affective heat of loss has faded. Beri reponds that emotions are "thinking with feeling" and we maybe want to be skeptical about splitting the two. Beri sees two aspects of grief: "On the one hand, the vision of loss that is constituted by grief and on the other hand, a vision of grief from a empirical or as some philosophers, like to say, a creature construction perspective." It is wrong to make a pragmatist case for the sheerly functional advantages of getting over grief, and also a mistake to see (like Sigmund Freud) grief as a kind of work, a task, to detach oneself from the mourned object. John asks what it means that he personalizes his sensation of grief, focussing not on the lost beloved, but on the way the beloved, or the lost beloved, remains present to him, a loss felt inside himself. Beri invokes Iris Murdoch's warning against the "fat relentless ego" (The Sovereignty of Good, 1970, p 50) intruding itself--when what really should be at stake is the lost object of one's grief. Beri closes by suggesting that grief doesn't happen to us in the way digestion happens (purely involuntary). Sure, grief is not strictly controllable, and yet because it is reasons responsive rather than simply somatic, it is me. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/literary-studies

Dame Judi Dench has played everyone from the writer Iris Murdoch to M in the James Bond films. But among the roles the actress is most closely associated, are Shakespeare's heroines and some of his villians. Amongst those roles are the star-crossed lover Juliet, the comical Titania and the tragic Lady Macbeth. Now she's reflecting on that work, and Shakespeare's work in Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays The Rent.The book is comprised of Dench's conversations with her friend, the actor and director Brendan O'Hea.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy