A Repost From Emma Taylor

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100 Fascinating Lectures for the Amateur Philosopher

November 14th, 2010

There’s a lot you can learn about philosophy from an accredited college, but there’s also a lot to be gleaned from your own experiences, reading through the numerous free resources offered on the web. Whether you’re a college student or just someone who loves learning about the fundamentals of philosophical thought, this list of great lectures can help you take advantage of lessons, teachings and thoughts from some of the greatest scholars in the field today – and throughout history.

Famous Philosophy

Check out these lectures to learn more about the works of famous philosophers and their theories on being, self, society and more.

1. The Claims of Community / Where Our Loyalty Lies: This two-part lecture presents arguments from Kant, Rawl and Aristotle and applies them to our role in both family and community.
2. The Good Citizen / Freedom vs. Fit: Professor Michael Sandel lectures on Aristotle’s theory of justice and freedom, applying them to real-life scenarios.
3. What’s a Fair Start? / What Do We Deserve?: Explore ideas of equality in access to resources, opportunities and money in response to accident versus hard work in this two-part lecture series.
4. Logicomix: An Epic Search for Truth: Christos H. Papadimitriou shares insight into the life and work of Bertrand Russell in this lecture about his new graphic novel on the famous logistician.
5. A Lesson in Lying / A Deal Is A Deal: This lecture delves into issues of morality, truth and the theory of the "hypothetical contract" to gain a better understanding of what true justice is, or if such a thing really exists.
6. Mind Your Motive / The Supreme Principle of Morality: Have you ever thought about what gives you your rights and makes you human? How about what defines morality? This lecture will force you to address both, sharing the thoughts of philosopher Immanuel Kant.
7. Putting a Price Tag on Life / How to Measure Pleasure: These joint lectures will give you a crash course in the works of Utilitarian philosophers Jeremy Bentham and J.S. Mill.
8. Louis Menand: Pragmatism’s Three Moments: Pulitzer Prize-winning author and professor of English Louis Menand explains the philosophy of pragmatism in this fascinating lecture.
9. Philosophy Circa 1905: Take a look back at the state of philosophy in 1905 and learn what works were popular and how they formed the basis for much of 20th Century philosophy.
10. Heidegger and a Hippo Walk Through Those Pearly Gates: Who says learning philosophy can’t be fun? In this lecture you’ll get to take a humorous look at the work of Nietzsche, Camus, Sartre and Heidegger.
11. Slavoj Zizek: The Monstrosity of Christ: Philosopher and sociologist Zizek explores how principles of Christianity impact modern cultural, economic and sexual thought.

Metaphysics

These weighty lectures deal with matters like the nature of being, nonbeing, space, time and possibility.

12. Creativity: The Mind, Machines, and Mathematics: Public Debate: It has long been debated whether machines can achieve true consciousness. This lecture further explores that debate with scientists arguing for both sides making their points.
13. What Makes a Life Significant?: Philosopher Sissela Bok, joined by professors Louis Menand and Cornel West discuss what makes a life significant in our society in this engaging lecture.
14. Rethinking Free Will: New Perspectives on an Ancient Problem: This lecture from Professor Robert Kane brings unconscious mental functions and neurology into a discussion of free will and morality.
15. Living a Magical Life: Professional metaphysician Sherry Henderson shares her ideas on how to live more "magically," thought it’s likely not what you think.
16. How to Live Given the Certainty of Death: Can you enjoy your life knowing that you will one day die? This lecture addresses that concept, discussing how we should live, set goals and do quality work.
17. Personal Identity, Part I: Identity Across Space and Time and the Soul Theory: Learn more about "soul theory" as well as what it means for a person to exist now both now and in the future with regard to personal identity in this thought-provoking lecture.
18. Dan Dennett on our consciousness: Whether you agree or disagree, this lecture raises an interesting point. Dan Dennett argues that we do not often understand our consciousness nor the biological processes that limit, control and deceive it.
19. Jim Holt: The Puzzle of Existence: Learn about topics like being and nothingness, existence and emptiness, quantum tunneling and the uncertainty principle in this lecture.
20. Philosophy of Death: Human beings spend a lot of time thinking about being but what about nonbeing? This lecture will set the foundation for a philosophical foundation of the nature of death.
21. Arguments for the Existence of the Soul: In this lecture, you can learn about some of the philosophies that have argued that human beings do indeed have a soul.
22. Arguments for the Immortality of the Soul: This lecture focuses on Plato’s Phaedo, going through his arguments for why we not only have a soul, but that this soul is immortal and eternal as well.
23. The Rationality of Suicide: What does it take for an individual to decide to end his or her life? This lecture begins exploring the rationality that leads to this decision making and whether in some extreme cases it can actually be the most rational decision.

Ethics and Morality

Through these lectures you can gain a better understanding of what ethics and morality mean, both in the broader context and for you as an individual.

24. Where Morals Come From and Why It Matters: In this lecture, you’ll hear from a neuroscientist, a lawyer and a philosopher who each present a different take on where we get our morality and why we have it.
25. Ethics and Enlightened Leadership: Hear from the Dalai Lama on why it’s essential to promote ethics and compassion in society and seek out and be leaders who embody these principles.
26. Global Poverty: How Demanding Are Our Obligations?: Do we have an moral obligation to help those less fortunate than us? This lecture asks just that question and comes up with some surprising answers.
27. Talking About Justice: Economists and philosophers discuss the best ways to achieve social justice in a world where cultures have a very different understanding of just what justice is in this lecture.
28. Philanthropy Reconsidered: George McCully discusses just what philanthropy is in today’s world and whether or not our new technologies have played a role in changing it.
29. George Price and the Search for the Origins of Kindness: This lecture will help you to learn more about the biological origins of altruism.
30. Biological Foundations of Morality: What is Virtue?: Here you can learn about a wide range of issues related to virtue, from what ancient philosophers had to say about it to what modern technology can tell us about the mind.
31. Debating Same-Sex Marriage / The Good Life: In these two lectures, viewers will be asked to think about the idea of differing ideas of right and wrong in society as well as define just what the good life is.
32. Ethics and Integrity in Good Times and in Crisis: Here, Howard Putnam, former CEO of Southwest Airlines, talks about the necessity of integrity and ethics in business, especially in times of crisis.
33. The Moral Side of Murder / The Case for Cannibalism: Can murder ever be morally justifiable? These two lectures will have you thinking about this complex conundrum for days to come.
34. Michael Sandel: What’s the right thing to do?: Continuing this theme, in this lecture you’ll be asked to consider whether doing wrong can ever be right.
35. Sam Harris: Science can answer moral questions: Learn why science should be considered in issues of right and wrong and setting out standards of morality.
36. Is Morality Unified?: This lecture takes on philosophy from within the field, asking whether or not morality is something unified enough to be taken on through philosophical thought, as it differs so widely among cultures and people around the world.

Political Philosophy

Check out these lectures for some great insights into the relationship between citizens and their governments.

37. Why is there No Class Warfare in the US? American Exceptionalism and Inequality: In this talk, Chuck Collins discusses the impact of the Bush tax cuts, issues of distribution of wealth and the growing income disparity in the US.
38. Forced Labor in the Globalized World: Whether we like to think about it or not, slavery is still an issue for millions of people around the world. This lecture talks about not only the moral implications of this, but the economic and political ones as well.
39. Machiavelli: The Prince: Explore Machievelli’s political treatise on life in Renaissance Florence through this highly informative lecture– a great primer for those who have not read the book.
40. The Electoral College in U.S. Presidential Elections: Logical Foundations, Mathematics and Politics: In this lecture, you’ll hear one man’s take on the unfairness of the current U.S. Electoral College system and its impact on true democracy.
41. Tariq Ali: The Idea of Communism: Through this lecture you can gain a better understanding of the true philosophies behind communism.
42. Constitutional Government: Locke, Second Treatise: Learn about the work of John Locke and his impact on the thinking of our founding fathers like Thomas Jefferson through this lecture.
43. Hired Guns? / For Sale: Motherhood: Michael Sandel discusses the morality and obligations behind both citizenship and motherhood.
44. Free to Choose / Who Owns Me?: Explore Libertarian philosophies of government through this series of lecture focusing on freedom of choice, economics and more.
45. Socratic Citizenship: Plato, Apology: Here, you’ll get a chance to learn about what ancient philosophers had to say about citizenship and why Plato’s The Apology of Socrates was so great at defining free expression and political philosophy as a whole.
46. The Sovereign State: Hobbes, Leviathan: In this lecture, you’ll get a great education in the views of philosopher Thomas Hobbes, especially those he espoused in his work Leviathan.
47. Democratic Statecraft: Tocqueville, Democracy in America: Professor Steven Smith discusses both the moral and psychological elements of the democratic state as laid out by Alexis de Tocqueville.

Aesthetics

What is beauty? Is it in the eye of the beholder or is there a set standard? Do we need beauty in the world to thrive? These lectures deal with these issues of aesthetics and more.

48. Art in Times Like These: In this lecture, you’ll take a look at the power of art in challenging times.
49. Natural History, Aesthetics, and Conservation: What is there to like about snakes, lizards and frogs? Professor Harry Greene shares his insights into why aesthetics have played such a major role in conservation efforts.
50. Selective Attention: Neuroscience and the Art Museum: Learn how our understanding of the brain’s structure is furthering our understanding of human perception, sensation and aesthetics in this lecture.
51. Blue Guitars: Arts and Aesthetics in Learning: Maxine Greene, professor emerita of philosophy and education, shows how art can transform learning from humdrum to exciting– a powerful commentary on the meaning of beauty in our lives.
52. Evil: The Artist’s Response: Can evil be beautiful? Can it be art? This lecture addresses the power of evil in our lives and in the work of a host of poets, playwrights and writers.
53. Jacques Ranciere and Peter Sloterdijk debate Aesthetics: French philosopher Ranciere and German philosopher Peter Sloterdijk share their different views on aesthetics in this talk.

Logic

Part mathematics, part philosophy, these lectures touch on the study of this classic form of reasoning.

54. How Markets Fail: The Logic of Economic Calamities: We expect economics to abide by logical rules, but as this lecture shows us, the human mind and consumer behavior doesn’t always follow logic.
55. Dan Ariely: The Upside of Irrationality: Learn why irrationality is often as much as part of our decision-making as reason and logic.
56. The Philosophical Method: Logic and Argument: This lecture is an excellent starting point for learning about the basics of how logic is used in philosophy.
57. What Is the Normative Role of Logic?: Learn more about John Locke and his take on philosophy and logic in this lecture.
58. Renaissance Thought: The Lost Continent Between Logic and the Occult: Here you’ll find an interesting lecture on Renaissance thought, often blending beliefs from the Dark Ages with those from the coming Scientific Revolution.

Religion

These lectures delve into questions about the existence of a god or gods, what religion means for morality and other issues that have troubled mankind for centuries.

59. The Dignity of Difference: Interweaving philosophy, history, religion, this lecture asks listeners to take a different approach to thinking about religion in an increasingly global community.
60. The Medium Religion: Philosopher, critic and essayist Boris Groys offers his insights into the recent upsurge in fundamentalism and the role the digital media has to play in this.
61. Stephen Prothero: God Is Not One: Learn about the eight religions that rule the world and some of the major differences between them in this lecture from Professor Prothero.
62. Implications for Ethics and the Church: This lecture takes a unique approach to religion, offering neuroscience as a way for the Church to better deal with human behavior and morality.
63. Pinker and Goldstein: Science, Fiction, and God: Philosopher Rebecca Newberger Goldstein and her husband Steven Pinker discuss some of the problems with religion in this talk.
64. Christopher Hitchens and Rabbi David Wolpe: The Great God Debate: Hear from an atheist and a Rabbi on important issues like whether or not there is a god and the role of science in religion.
65. Rational Theism: From Doubt to Conviction: In this lecture, Ken Wear explains why he created Rational Theism as an alternative to traditional religious beliefs.
66. Faiths in Conflict: Searching for a Common Space: This lecture examines whether or not fundamentally different faiths can coexist harmoniously.
67. Reincarnation Validated: Whether you believe in it or not, this lecture provides an intriguing look at the science behind reincarnation.
68. Paths in Consciousness: This lecture explains why health isn’t just about body, but about mind and spirit as well.
69. Spiritual, But Not Religious?: You’ll gain an understanding of the difference between the religious and the spiritual in this talk from Professor Taylor.
70. Matters of Faith: Take an academic look at what faith means with insights from Cornel West, Harvey Cox, Mary Gordon and Christopher Lydon.
71. The Case for God: In this lecture, Karen Armstrong explores the human longing for a divine being in cultures around the world and throughout history.
72. Tom Honey on God and the tsunami: Many people find it hard to believe in a god that would let horrible disasters occur. This lecture aims to understand how faith and disaster can go hand in hand.
73. The Baha’i Faith and Metaphysics: Learn more about the metaphysical aspects of the Baha’i faith in this lecture.
74. Buddhism Basics and Beyond: Senior Buddhist monk Geshe Phende shares the essentials of Buddhist philosophy in this lecture, also touching on how they can be applied to 21st century society.
75. The Dalai Lama on Universal Responsibility: This lecture from the Dalai Lama will explore the idea of universal responsibility and its application not only in the Buddhist faith, but in all societies around the world.

Philosophy of Language

Our language forms the foundation of how we understand the world, but also brings up some major philosophical questions in regard to how we use it and how it may color our perceptions. Learn more in these lectures.

76. The Idea of Universality in Linguistics and Human Rights: Learn how the inborn capacity for language and a complex behavior such as morality just might be linked in this engaging talk from Noam Chomsky.
77. Words and Rules: The Ingredients of Language: In this lecture, Steven Pinker explores how our language learning comes from a wide range of sources, drawing both on memory and following learned rules.
78. The Computational Nature of Language Learning: Check out this lecture to see how we can apply evolutionary principles to language, determining how and why we use it.
79. Explorations in Language Learnability Using Probabilistic Grammars and Child-directed Speech: See where logic and learning come into play when children are discovering how to use language in an inductive manner.
80. Machine Learning of Language from Distributional Evidence: Learn why traditional linguistics just can’t explain how people talk in the real world and what they choose to say.

Philosophy of Mind

The human mind is complex and difficult to understand, but the lecturers in these videos take a crack at it, addressing everything from personal identity to decision making.

81. The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature: Renowned professor Steven Pinker offers up his understanding of our inborn nature, something that makes many people very uncomfortable to acknowledge.
82. Neurothics: Learn why biology might not be destiny from this engaging lecture from professors in psychology and neuroscience.
83. When I’m 64: Discounting, Time Preference, and Personal Identity: Philosophy alone cannot account for why humans make the decisions they do. Learn more about the strange ways we decide in this fascinating lecture on the human mind.
84. Contemplative Dimensions of Human Experience: Gain an understanding of how the human mind can be trained, challenged and expanded using experience, study and education from Trappist monk Thomas Keating.
85. Denialism: Media in the Age of Disinformation: We like to think that we are moving closer to greater knowledge, but this lecture may show you that the media and popular society are scurrying further away from science, not closer to it.
86. The Ceaseless Society: What Happens to Our Mind, Body, and Spirit When we Just Never Stop?: How does being constantly connected affect the way we live our lives? This lecture explores that and the importance of real mindfulness to happiness and fulfillment.
87. Reason, Emotion, and Receptivity to Morality: Philosopher Jeanette Kennett uses psychopathy to distinguish whether or not the rational is mutually exclusive from the sentimental.
88. Brains, Beliefs, and Beyond: Learn more about the structure and function of our brains, something that might have a big impact on our beliefs, actions and how we perceive the world.
89. Daniel Kahneman: The riddle of experience vs. memory: In this lecture, you’ll learn how our brains experience happiness differently when we are experiencing versus when we are remembering.
90. Jonah Lehrer on Emotional Hijacking and How We Decide: Take a look at the role emotion and wishful thinking have on rational decision making processes through this lecture.

Miscellaneous

91. Emily Levine’s theory of everything: Take a fun look at philosophy and the way our world is interconnected in this lecture from comedienne and writer Emily Levine.
92. Dan Dennett’s response to Rick Warren: Here, you can hear one philosopher’s thoughts on teaching religion in school and what it means to be a moral person.
93. Alain de Botton: A kinder, gentler philosophy of success: How do you define success and a life well-lived? Here, you’ll find a look at this age-old quandary with a gentler look that offers us more ways to find happiness in work.
94. Nick Bostrom on our biggest problems: Philosopher and transhumanist Nick Bostrom takes a look at the future of humankind and what might lie within us that can help solve some of our most troubling problems.
95. Henry Markram builds a brain in a supercomputer: In this lecture, you’ll see how a computer can model the human mind, letting us see into its functions and malfunctions with greater clarity.
96. Dan Dennett on dangerous memes: You might not think that internet meme you forward has much meaning, but after you hear this lecture you might change your mind.
97. Companion Stars: Einstein & Godel at Princeton: See how philosopher Godel and physicist Einstein, both working at Princeton during the 1940′s and 50′s, had differing world views but similarly world-changing ideas.
98. Our Bodies, Our Technologies: Learn how close we may be to a world where human abilities are in line with those of machines and what that might mean philosophically if it came to pass.
99. Sherwin Nuland on hope: What is hope? Why do we need it? Can it make us better people? In this short lecture, surgeon Sherwin Nuland talks about these issues and much more.
100. David Deutsch: A new way to explain explanation: In the past, the world changed much more slowly and the scope of human knowledge was much smaller. This lecture explores what our fast-paced, information-laden world means for the way we understand life and how it’s changed human society.
     

Reposted From Emma Taylor