History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps

Descartes’ Meditations caused controversy as soon as it appeared. In this episode we look at criticisms including the “Cartesian Circle,” and how Descartes answered them.

We're joined in this episode by a leading expert on one of the most famous works of philosophy ever written: Descartes' Meditations.

The word “Cartesian” is synonymous with a radical contrast between mind and body. What led Descartes to his dualism, and how can he explain vital activities in humans and animals having rejected the Aristotelian theory of soul?

How Descartes fashioned a “method” to repel even the strongest and most radical forms of doubt, with the cogito argument as its foundation.

For Descartes body is purely geometrical. So how does he understand features we can perceive, like color, and causation between bodies?

How René Descartes’ understanding of his own intellectual project evolved across his lifetime.

A look at the political and religious ferment that made up the historical context of philosophy in 17th century France and the Netherlands.

In this interview we learn more about the Republic of Letters: its importance for the history of ideas, it geographic breadth, who was involved, and the contributions of figures including Leibniz and Hartlib.

How scholars around Europe created an international network of intellectual exchange. As examples we consider the activities of Mersenne, Peiresc, Leibniz, Calvet, and Hartlib.

What is Enlightenment, anyway?

We finish our look at philosophy in the Reformation era with an interview about Galileo's use of a revolutionary technology: the telescope.

The philosophical issues at the heart of the notorious condemnation of Galileo and Copernican astronomy.

Though most famous for his role in persecuting Galileo, Robert Bellarmine was a central figure of the Counter-Reformation, especially in his political thought.

Carlo Ginzburg’s innovative historical study The Cheese and the Worms looks at the ideas of an obscure 16th century miller, suggesting how popular culture might be integrated into the history of philosophy.

Natural philosophy and medicine in the work of two unorthodox thinkers of the late sixteenth century, both of them women.

Why do critics consider Don Quixote the first “modern” novel, and what does it tell us about the aesthetics of fiction?

We're joined by Tom Pink, who tells us about Suárez on ethics, law, religion, and the state.

Suárez and other Iberian scholastics ask where political power comes from and under what circumstances it is exercised legitimately.

Vitoria, Molina, Suárez and others develop the idea of natural law, exploring its relevance for topics including international law, slavery, and the ethics of economic exchange.