The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast podcast

The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast

The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don't have to know any philosophy, or even to have read the text we're talking about to (mostly) follow and (hopefully) enjoy the discussion. For links to the texts we discuss and other info, check out www.partiallyexaminedlife.com. We also feature episodes from other podcasts by our hosts to round out your partially examined life, including Pretty Much Pop (prettymuchpop.com, covering all media), Nakedly Examined Music (nakedlyexaminedmusic.com, deconstructing songs), Philosophy vs. Improv (philosophyimprov.com, fun with performance skills and philosophical ideas), and (sub)Text (subtextpodcast.com, looking deeply at lit and film). Learn about more network podcasts at partiallyexaminedlife.com.

The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don't have to know any philosophy, or even to have read the text we're talking about to (mostly) follow and (hopefully) enjoy the discussion. For links to the texts we discuss and other info, check out www.partiallyexaminedlife.com. We also feature episodes from other podcasts by our hosts to round out your partially examined life, including Pretty Much Pop (prettymuchpop.com, covering all media), Nakedly Examined Music (nakedlyexaminedmusic.com, deconstructing songs), Philosophy vs. Improv (philosophyimprov.com, fun with performance skills and philosophical ideas), and (sub)Text (subtextpodcast.com, looking deeply at lit and film). Learn about more network podcasts at partiallyexaminedlife.com.

 

#200

Ep. 379: Egyptian Philosophy with Chike Jeffers (Part Two)

Continuing on sources from ancient Egypt, finishing up the instructional literature: "The ... more

22 hrs Ago

1 HR 11 MINS

1:11:12

22 hrs Ago


#199

PEL Presents PvI#105: Friendtor Debate Club w/ Scott Gelfand

Scott, ex-professor at Oklahoma State University and author of "Thinking Ethically: A Hand... more

14 Nov 2025

49 MINS

49:49

14 Nov 2025


#198

PEL Presents PMP#209: Alien Franchised

In light of Noah Hawley TV show Alien Earth, Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn and Al revisit the f... more

11 Nov 2025

53 MINS

53:54

11 Nov 2025


#197

Ep. 379: Egyptian Philosophy with Chike Jeffers (Part One)

The co-author of the African run of the History of Philosophy Podcast (and new book) joins... more

10 Nov 2025

43 MINS

43:54

10 Nov 2025


#196

PEL Presents NEM#241: Humor in Music Discussion

Mark is joined by returning NEM guest <a href= "https://nakedlyexaminedmusic.com/nem139-do... more

09 Nov 2025

1 HR 01 MINS

1:01:09

09 Nov 2025


#195

PREMIUM-Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Four)

We complete our Aquinas treatment for the moment by considering emotions: categorizing the... more

08 Nov 2025

08 MINS

08:51

08 Nov 2025


#194

Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Three)

We're now moving on to the "mind" portion of our discussion, covering how reason motivates... more

03 Nov 2025

49 MINS

49:38

03 Nov 2025


#193

PEL Presents PvI#104: The Hippie Code w/ Vickie Hayley

Mark and Mary are joined by improvisor-comedian-actress-filmmaker-host <a href= "https://v... more

31 Oct 2025

54 MINS

54:45

31 Oct 2025


#192

Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part Two)

Continuing on bits of Thomas Aquinas: Selected Philosophical Writings, completing our anal... more

27 Oct 2025

48 MINS

48:51

27 Oct 2025


#191

PEL Presents PMP#208: An Ed Gein Halloween

It's a special two-hander where Mark and Lawrence reflect on the appeal of horror and how ... more

26 Oct 2025

55 MINS

55:48

26 Oct 2025


#190

PEL Presents NEM#240: Jonathan Rundman, Multi-Branded

Singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist Jonathan (currently based in Minneapolis) has been... more

24 Oct 2025

1 HR 21 MINS

1:21:24

24 Oct 2025


#189

Ep. 378: Aquinas on God and Mind (Part One)

On selections from Thomas Aquinas: Selected Philosophical Writings, mostly taken from the ... more

20 Oct 2025

48 MINS

48:55

20 Oct 2025


#188

PEL Presents PvI#103: Post-COVID Mary and Mark

How does your body talk to you? Your favorite hosts-of-a-philosophy-and-improv-comedy show... more

17 Oct 2025

38 MINS

38:47

17 Oct 2025


#187

Ep. 377: Emil Cioran's Pessimism (Part Two)

Continuing on "Directions for Decomposition" from A Short History of Decay (1949). What is... more

13 Oct 2025

45 MINS

45:46

13 Oct 2025


#186

PEL Presents PMP#207: Spinal Tap and Other Fake Bands

Mark, Lawrence, Sarahlyn, and Al watched Spinal Tap and its new sequel, and we throw these... more

12 Oct 2025

51 MINS

51:22

12 Oct 2025


#185

PEL Presents NEM#239: Adrian Sherwood's Dub Productions

Adrian has applied his distinctive, spacey dub mixing techniques to numerous recordings si... more

10 Oct 2025

1 HR 06 MINS

1:06:31

10 Oct 2025


#184

Ep. 377: Emil Cioran's Pessimism (Part One)

On A Short History of Decay (1949), a pessimist/existentialist somewhat text from the most... more

06 Oct 2025

52 MINS

52:02

06 Oct 2025


#183

PEL Presents PvI#102: Pit of Despair w/ Seth Paskin

Mark's [Partially Examined Life] (https://partiallyexaminedlife.com/) co-host Seth joins u... more

04 Oct 2025

47 MINS

47:57

04 Oct 2025


#182

Ep. 376: Plato's "Laws" (Part Two)

Continuing on selections from this late Platonic dialogue. Starting in Book 4, Plato's cha... more

29 Sep 2025

52 MINS

52:39

29 Sep 2025


#181

PEL Presents PMP#206: Abbott Elementary w/o Emmys

For our Emmys/back-to-school episode, we cover the pinnacle of the current network sitcom ... more

28 Sep 2025

53 MINS

53:13

28 Sep 2025