Philosophy Bites

Which physical characteristics does a woman have to have to be considered beautiful? Are there many different cultural variations on this? Heather Widdows, author of Perfect Me, thinks that today there is a single set of charactestics and that pressure to conform with these has pernicious effects.

We blame people, and sometimes we blame institutions. Miranda Fricker investigates the nature of blame and its functions, draws some important distinctions, and considers the metaphysical implications of this practice.

There is a long tradition of caste in South Asia. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Nilanjan Das discusses a pre-modern philosophical critic of the whole system, and particularly of its underlying metaphysical assumptions.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

What is a question? It seems obvious, but perhaps it isn't. Lani Watson has just published a book on the topic. She thinks that true questions can be identified by their function, not by their form. She explains what she means by this and why questions matter so much in philosophy and elsehwere.

The utilitarian philosopher Peter Singer has controversial views about when it is acceptable to end a human life. In conversation with David Edmonds he explains his approach, using examples from a range of areas, including infanticide. Some listeners may find some aspects of this discussion disturbing.

The Chinese philosopher Songzi (382 BCE – 305 BCE) maintained that the appropriate response to insults was indifference, not aggression. Jing Hu, a philosopher at Concordia University, Montreal puts his thinking about insults and about the related concept of shame in context, and explains his ideas about the ethics of interpersonal relations. This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

We are the kind of creature that cares whether or not we matter and how. What follows from this? Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Mattering, discuses this with David Edmonds.

Buddhist philosophy rejects the idea of the self. How then can there be any moral responsibility? Monima Chadha, Professor of Indian Philosophy at Oxford University, explains.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations

Predictions aren't quite what they seem to be, according to Carissa Véliz, author of the book Prophecy. They often are intended to persuade you of the inevitability of a certain outcome, and may be self-fulfilling to some degree. Yet they look like simple factual claims about what is likely to happen. We need to be far more aware of the role of prediction in our everyday lives, according to Véliz.

Frederick Douglass and W.E.B Du Bois were two prominent African-Americans who made a significant impact on the civil rights movement in the US. Douglass is particularly associated with the 19th Century abolitionism, and Du Bois with 20th C. pan-Africanism. In this interview Chike Jeffers puts them in their context and introduces some of their key ideas.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations.

Democracy isn't working so well, so why not use a lottery system to choose representatives instead? Alexander Guerrero discusses his version of this old idea in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

Narendra Modi has spoken of "decolonising" India including its post-colonial constitution Are philosophical criticisms of this constitution well-founded? Tarun Khaitan of the London School of Economics discusses.

This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations.

Philosophers argue endlessly about what philosophy is. Janet Radcliffe Richards suggests that a simple way to approach this question is to examine what we think about inconsistencies. She uses an example from medical ethics, the question of whether selling of organs should be permitted, to make her point.

David Edmonds talks to Chike Jeffers of Dalhousie University about Africana Philosophy.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of the Open Society Foundations.

Grief is affected by the passage of time in a way that some attitudes and emotions aren't. Samuel Scheffler explores why this might be so in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

Philosophers who use thought experiments often believe their own intutions in response to them are unviersal. But that's not always so. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Edouard Machery discusses his research on this topic, and some of his surprising conclusions.

This episode was made in association with the Institute of Philosophy and supported by the Ideas Workshop which is part of the Open Society Foundations

Frantz Fanon, who was born in Martinique, died aged 36. He nevertheless made very significant contributions to the discussion of racism and colonialism, influenced strongly by the existentialist tradition. In this episode of the Philosphy Bites podcast David Edmonds discusses Fanon, his ideas, his cultural background, and his impact, with Lewis Gordon, author of What Fanon Said.

In this interview of the Philosophy Bites podcast Nigel Warburton interviews David Edmonds about Peter Singer's famous thought experient about what you would do if you saw a child at risk of drowning in a shallow pond, and what the moral implications of that. David has recently published a book about this thought experiment called Death in a Shallow Pond.

What is distinctive about Mexican philosophy? How much is it linked to its geopolitical context? Carlos Alberto Sanchez, author of Blooming in the Ruins, a book about major themes in 20th century Mexican philosophy discusses this topic in conversation with David Edmonds.

This episode was supported by the Ideas Workshop, part of Open Society Foundations.

Mary Midgley didn't begin publishing until she was 59 years old, but nevertheless made a significant impact and had a distinctive approach. In this episode of Philosophy Bites Ellie Robson discusses some of her key ideas about our relationship with other animals.

Many people think philosophical discucssion is a luxury in times of conflict, but the Palestinian philosopher Sari Nusseibeh is more optimistic. In this episode of Philosophy Bites, recorded in early 2025, he explains why.

Democracy is about acting as a group, but, surprisingly, Robert Talisse argues that what it needs to function well is a degree of solitude for citizens. In-group and out-group dynamics mean that individuals become vulnerable to being pushed towards more extreme views than they would otherwise hold. There is, Talisse, maintains, a need to balance times of thinking together with times of thinking alone, at a distance from the fray.

How did morality evolve? Why do different cultures have such a similar set of moral norms and values? Hanno Sauer gives an evolutionary story that explains the genealogy of morality through human co-operation.

Most Western philosophers are deeply ignorant of Japanese philosophy. Takeshi Morisato who was brought up in Japan, and who has studied both continental and analytic Western traditions provides and introduction to some of the key strands in Japanese philosophy.

Melissa Lane, a classics scholar as well as a philosopher, discusses some key features of Plato's political philosophy and shows its continuing relevance.

Does Socrates still have something to teach us? Agnes Callard thinks he has. Here she discusses the great Athenian and his continuing relevance with David Edmonds.

Henri Bergson was once one of the most living famous philosophers. Now he is less well known. Emily Herring, his biographer, discusses this and some of his key ideas in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast. Nigel Warburton is the interviewer.

For this episode in the Bio Bites strand of the Philosphy Bites podcast Nigel Warburton interviews Lyndsey Stonebridge, author of a recent book about Hannah Arendt, We Are Free To Change the World, about how her thought was affected by her circumstances as an emigré fleeing Nazism.

​Sometimes, there is vagueness about whether it is morally permissible (or even in some situations required) to perform a certain act—moral vagueness. What is the source of moral vagueness? Ofra Magidor discusses this topic with Nigel Warburton.

This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast has been made in association with Vagueness & Ethics, a research project funded by the European Commission (grant agreement number 101028625 — H2020-MSCA-IF-2020) and led by Miguel Dos Santos at Uppsala University.

How can we make decisions under conditions of indeterminacy? Robert Williams discusses this challenging issue with Nigel Warburton.

This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast has been made in association with Vagueness & Ethics, a research project funded by the European Commission (grant agreement number 101028625 — H2020-MSCA-IF-2020) and led by Miguel Dos Santos at Uppsala University.

Peter Godfrey Smith is famous for his work on understanding the minds of other animals, particularly octopuses. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he discusses animal minds with Nigel Warburton.

Hegel is a notoriously difficult philosopher to understand. Here Richard Bourke gives a clear route through his key ideas about history and how it unfolds in conversation with Nigel Warburton.

Recent zoological research has shown us that a wide range of animals are likely to have sentience. We don't know for sure. There is sufficient evidence to think that it is likely that, for example, lobsters can feel pain. What should we do in the light of this? Jonathan Birch of the LSE, author of The Edge of Sentience, discusses this important question with Nigel Warburton.

The Cambridge philosopher Frank Ramsey died aged 26, but in a short brilliant life he made significant contributions to philosphy and economics. Here in the Bio Bites strand of Philosophy Bites David Edmonds discusses Ramsey's life and thought with his biographer Cheryl Misak.

Moral heroes are usually thought of as people who go beyond what is obligatory. Elizabeth Harman discusses whether sometimes we ought to act as moral heroes. She is in conversation with David Edmonds for this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

Can AI help us make difficult moral decisions? Walter Sinnott Armstrong explores this idea in conversation with David Edmonds in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

David Edmonds discusses the life and work of Derek Parfit who died in 2017 in this episode of the Bio Bites strand of Philosophy. David is the author of a recent biography of Parfit.

Yascha Mounk discusses some of the ways in which focussing on gender, racial, and sexual identities can distort political argument and be counterproductive for oppressed minorities.

J.L.Austin was the best known exponent of what came to be known as Ordinary Language Philosophy. He was also a war hero. In this episode of the Bio Bites strand of the Philosophy Bites podcast David Edmonds discusses Austin's life and work with his biographer Mark Rowe.

In this episode James Klagge discusses the life and times of Ludwig Wittgenstein with David Edmonds. This is part of our mini series on the biographies of philosophers, Bio Bites.

What happens when people have sexual desires for one another? Agnes Callard from the University of Chicago discusses sex, eroticism, and much more in conversation with Nigel Warburton.

Not surprisingly, this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast involves mention of sex.

Augustine is usually described as a pessimist with a bleak view of human evil and corruption. Michael Lamb thinks that is a simplistic reading. Augustine has interesting things to say about hope as a virtue.

AI has changed our lives already and looks set to have a huge impact. How should we adapt our thinking about political philosophy in the light of this? The philosopher Seth Lazar explores this question in conversation with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Nigel Warburton interviews Hannah Dawson (editor of The Penguin Book of Feminist Writing) on Mary Wollstonecraft and her book A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792).

What is the relationship between law and morality? How do they differ? Scott Hershovitz discusses these questions with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

Digital ethics is a new field. But what is it, what is its scope? In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Carissa Véliz, author of Privacy is Powerand editor of The Oxford Handbook of Digital Ethics, discusses these topics with Nigel Warburton.

Philosophy Bites is brought to you by the team of David Edmonds and Nigel Warburton. We've been running since 2007.

You might not have an obligation to risk your life saving other people, but if you do, you should go for saving the greatest number. That's more or less what Theon Pummer believes. Listen to him discussing the morality of rescue with David Edmonds in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast

In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast David Edmonds interviews Will MacAskill on the controversial idea that we ought to give the interests of future people substantial weight when deciding what we ought to do now.

What is loneliness and why is it harmful? How does it differ from just being on your own? In the latest episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, Kieran Setiya discusses this important topic with Nigel Warburton.

How should we live? This is the basic question for all of us. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Edith Hall, author of the book Aristotle's Way, gives a sympathetic answer to Aristotle's take on this question.

We have all had transformative experiences. But do they have philosophical relevance? Laurie Paul believes they do. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she discusses this fascinating topic with Nigel Warburton.

How do you solve the question of collective self-government by citizens? Josiah Ober discusses a fundamental problem of democratic societies: how we come to agree on courses of action when we commit to living within a democracy. His argument is that we need to become civic friends, a concept he explains in the conversation.

Skye Cleary approaches questions of human authenticity throught he lens of French Existentialism, and particularly through Simone de Beauvoir's thought. She is in conversation with Nigel Warburton.

Developments in AI are coming very quickly. But it's not easy to work out how to deal with the ethical questions that AI generates. Peter Railton discusses AI and Ethics with Nigel Warburton for this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast

We all make some modifications to our bodies. But often this is in response to social pressures. So is there something to say for the largely unmodified body? Clare Chambers thinks so. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she spells out why. The interviewer is David Edmonds.

Peter Singer is probably the most famous living philosopher. He recently won the million-dollar Berggruen Prize and promptly gave all that money to charity. His positions on this, on animals, poverty, altruism, and much else besides are underpinned by his consequentialism. Here, in conversation with Nigel Warburton he explains his consequentialism and its implications.

Spying raises many ethical issues, but these are rarely discussed - at least by philosophers. Cécile Fabre, author of a recent book on the topic, Spying Through a Glass Darkly, discusses some of these issues with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast. This episode is sponsored by The New European newspaper.

Do we seek pleasure and avoid pain? The moral psychologist Paul Bloom believes psychological hedonism gives an inaccurate picture of what motivates us. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he discusses pain and pleasure with Nigel Warburton.

Stoic philosophers described anger as a temporary madness and argued that we should eliminate it wherever possible. More recently Martha Nussbaum has argued for keeping anger out of political debates. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, in contrast, Myisha Cherry makes the case for rage in some specific circumstances. She discusses rage with Nigel Warburton.

We all do it. But is there anything philosophically interesting about complaining? Agnes Callard thinks there is. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she discusses complaint with Nigel Warburton.

Thomas Hobbes is best known as author of Leviathan which is usually read today for its theory of political authority. Here Arash Abizadeh discusses Hobbes' ethics, the theory of what we are and what are obligations are to each.

Spinoza was famously heretical in his views. No surprise then that he defended free expression. Here Steven Nadler discusses Spinoza's views on this topic with Nigel Warburton.

What is the status of something that is an absence, like a hole? Suki Finn explores the metaphysics of nothing in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast. Suki is also the editor of a new book based on Philosophy Bites interviews with women philosophers selected from our archive Women of Ideas,to be published by Oxford University Press in April.

Jacques Derrida was a controversial philosopher whose writing could be fiendishly difficult to read. Nevertheless he had many followers. Here Pete Salmon, author of a recent biography of Derrida, manages to give a clear account of what Derrida meant by deconstruction.

This episode was sponsored by St John's College. For more information about the college go to www.sjc.edu/podcast

Arthur Schopenhauer is best known for the deep pessimism of his book The World as Will and Representation. Here we focus on a slightly less pessimistic aspect of his philosophy: his views on compassion. Very unusually for an early nineteenth century thinker, he was influenced here by his reading of Indian philosophy. David Bather Woods is the interviewee.

We are very grateful for sponsorship for this episode from St John's College.

Hannah Arendt's experience of the Eichmann trial in 1961 led her to reflect on the nature of politics, truth, and plurality. Samantha Rose Hill, author of a biography of Arendt, discusses the context for this, and the key features of Arendt's views. We are grateful for support for this episode from St John's College - for more information about the college, including online options, go to sjc.edu/podcast

David Edmonds has co-authored a children's book, Undercover Robot. Here in this bonus episode (originally released on the Thinking Books podcast) he discusses it with Nigel Warburton.

Baruch Spinoza was perhaps most famous for his equation of God with Nature - a view that his contemporaries, probably correctly, took to be atheist. But what did he think about death? Steven Nadler, author of A Book Forged in Hell and Think Least of Death, discusses this aspect of his thought with Nigel Warburton.

In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Cornell philosopher Kate Manne discusses the notions of misogyny, male entitlement, and the term that she coined 'himpathy' with Nigel Warburton.

Verificationists believe that every meaningful statement is either true by definition or else empirically verifiable (or falsifiable). Anything which fails to pass this two-pronged test for meaningfulness is neither true nor false, but literally meaningless. Liam Bright discusses Verificationism and its links with the Vienna Circle with David Edmonds in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

For this special episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast (produced under lockdown) Nigel Warburton interviews David Edmonds about his bestselling book, written with David Edinow, Wittgenstein's Poker.It focuses on a heated argument between the two great Viennese philosophers Karl Popper and Ludwig Wittgenstein, and the differing accounts that were give of it by those who were there.

For this first of two special lockdown episodes of Philosophy Bites we interviewed each other. Here David Edmonds interviews Nigel Warburton about his bestseller A Little History of Philosophy. In the companion episode Nigel interviews David about his bestseller Wittgenstein's Poker.

Cheryl Misak has recently published a biography of F.P. Ramsey, the great Cambridge thinker who died at the age of only 26, but who nevertheless made a significant impact in several different fields including philosophy, mathematics, and economics. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she discusses Ramsey's interactions with Wittgenstein. The two thinkers had very different personal styles and their philosophies reflect this.

Philip Goff discusses some of Galileo's insights into the nature of matter. He then goes on to discuss his own view about consciousness, panpsychism. Goff believes that matter is conscious at some level.

In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, recorded before the Covid-19 lockdowns, the political philosopher Elizabeth Anderson explains why we need to be prepared to talk more, even with people with whom we strongly disagree.

What is free will? Do we have it? These are difficult questions. Neuroscience seems to point in the direction of determinism. But Christian List suggests that there might still be room for genuine free will.

Some philosophers have drawn very strange conclusions about the nature of reality. Despite this Emily Thomas believes that their work may still be worth studying. They usually have had good reasons for what they concluded. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast she discusses several wildly implausible metaphysical theories with Nigel Warburton.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our Patreon donors.

Are thought experiments the best way of doing practical ethics? Not according to James Wilson. He thinks we need the rich detail of real cases or complex imaginary cases not a simplified version of reality to make sense of the moral problems we face.

We are grateful for support for this episode from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our supporters on Patreon.

In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, Kate Kirkpatrick, author of a new biography of Beauvoir, Becoming Beauvoir, discusses the relationship between the life and work of Simone de Beauvoir. Beauvoir is often portrayed as applying Jean-Paul Sartre's existentialism to the condition of women. Is this a fair assessment?

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation.

'What is a woman?' has become a contentious question with practical implications. The philosopher Kathleen Stock gives an account of the category 'woman' and how we should think about it. She gives a different answer to this question which Amia Srinivassan addressed in a previous Philosophy Bites interview on this topic.

Christian Miller believes that there is a character gap, a gap between what we think we are like morally and how we actually behave. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he explores the psychology of moral behaviour, and how we can become better people.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation.

Where did ethics come from? Philip Pettit tells an 'as if' story about the birth of ethics that is designed to illuminate what ethics is and why it evolved on this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from Patreon donors for this episode.

Philosophers often talk about possible worlds. Is this just a way of describing counterfactual situations? As Helen Beebee explains, some of them believe that possible worlds actually exist. This episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast is supported by the Marc Sanders Foundation and by Patreon donations.

Throughout its history there have been challenges to the status of philosophy. Paul Sagar discusses some of these in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation in making this podcast, and for donations from Patreon patrons.

Is it always good to be trustworthy? Can trustworthiness come into conflict with other values, such as generosity? Katherine Hawley discusses these and other questions about trustworthiness with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are grateful for support from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our Patreon subscribers for this episode.

Civility is a conversational virtue that governs how people talk to each other. How important is it in political life? In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast Teresa Bejan discusses this manner of speaking and writing and its history.

We are grateful for sponsorship for this episode from the Marc Sanders Foundation and from our Patreon patrons.

You can overdo most things, but can you overdo democracy? Political philosopher Robert B. Talisse thinks you can. He explains why in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

We are very grateful for sponsorship from the Marc Sanders Foundation for this episode.

Robert Wright believes that there are a number of key tenets of Buddhism which are both compatible with present day evolutionary theory, and accurate about our relationship with the world and with our own minds. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he discusses Buddhism, reality, and the mind, with interviewer Nigel Warburton.

We are very grateful for support for this episode from the Marc Sanders Foundation

We are also grateful for the continuing support we receive from donations on Patreon and Paypal.

How can we best help other people? Peter Singer has argued that we should give aid. Despite a lifetime spent believing this, Larry Temkin has started to question whether the effects of aid are beneficial. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast he discusses some qualms about Peter Singer's arguments.

Do states have a moral right to exclude people from their territory? It might seem obvious that states do have such a right, but Sarah Fine questions this in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

This episode of Philosophy Bites was sponsored by the Examining Ethics podcast from the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University. You can subscribe to Examining Ethics on iTunes or listen to episodes at ExaminingEthics.Org

How do I know I'm not dreaming? This sort of question has puzzled philosophers for thousands of years. Eric Schwitzgebel discusses scepticism and its history with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

This episode of Philosophy Bites was sponsored by the Examining Ethics podcast from the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University. You can subscribe to Examining Ethics on iTunes or listen to episodes at ExaminingEthics.Org

What is a robustly demanding good, and what has that got to do with friendship and love? Find out in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast in which Nigel Warburton interviews Princeton Professor Philip Pettit about this topic.

Philosophers talk about 'knowing how' and 'knowing what'. But what is involved in knowing a person? Katalin Farkas discusses this question with David Edmonds in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

This episode was sponsored by the Examining Ethics podcast from the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University.

Are human beings fundamentally different from the rest of the animal world? Can what we essentially are be captured in a biological or evolutionary description? Roger Scruton discusses the nature of human nature with Nigel Warburton in this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast.

The Hard Problem of consciousness is the difficulty of reconciling experience with materialism. In this episode of the Philosophy Bites podcast, in conversation with Nigel Warburton, Anil Seth, a neuroscientist, explains his alternative approach to consciousness,which he labels the 'Real Problem. Anil is a Wellcome Trust Engagement Fellow.