History of Philosophy: India, Africana, China

Accounts of the underlying natures of things in the Han period, focusing on the concepts of qi, yin-yang, and the “five phases.”

An overview of Han Dynasty philosophy: its attention to change, its views on the cosmos, resonances across the myriad things, and the tripartite relation between Heaven, Earth and humanity, all within the political context of the Han.

What can archeological finds tell us about the political and intellectual culture of Han China? We find out from an expert in the field (literally).

How historians like Sima Qian and Ban Gu have shaped our understanding of ancient Chinese history, including the history of philosophy.

How were the texts of the Han dynasty different from those in the Warring States period? How historical circumstances shaped philosophical writing, and how texts in turn shaped Han political culture.

The relationship between philosophy and politics in the Han Dynasty, focusing on the example of Huang-Lao, a typically “eclectic” tradition of thought.

An interview about fa-thinkers like Shang Yang and Han Feizi, exploring their relationship to the Qin dynasty and to other schools of thought.

Did the fa-thinkers recognize that human beings natural have moral capacities or dispositions? How did they try to manipulate human nature?

Does Han Feizi’s focus on “standards” allow him to provide a more realistic political theory than the Confucian focus on moral cultivation?

The Han Feizi and its “three pillars” of Legalist philosophy: fa (standards), shu (strategy), and shi (positional power).

Was the short-lived Qin empire, which unified China to put an end to the Warring States period, Legalism in action?

The “fa-thinkers” Shang Yang and Han Feizi encourage the rigorous application of “standards,” including law, reward, and punishment.

To celebrate reaching 50 episodes in this series, Karyn and Peter both chat to a leading scholar of Warring States philosophy.

An interview on humor and amoral ethics in a Daoist classic, the Zhuangzi - and its relation to Confucianism and Legalism.

How is it possible to walk two roads simultaneously? And where does wandering lead us?

Why does the Zhuangzi tell us that death is nothing to fear, to the point that it recommends celebrating the death of loved ones?

How are we to make sense of the different images of Kongzi (Confucius) in the Zhuangzi?

In addition to sages who show us the way, the Zhuangzi features people taking on daily activities such as woodworking and butchering: we discuss how these figures serve as counterpoints to officials in the Zhuangzi’s time.

The many stories about animals in the Zhuangzi encourage us to adopt a perspective that goes beyond the human point of view.

An interview on debates over language and reasoning between the Mohists and the Daoist classic, the Zhuangzi.

The Zhuangzi’s critique of dogmatic approaches to argumentation and governing the state.

We introduce the second great classic of Warring States Daoism, the Zhuangzi, and ask whether it adopts a position of radical skepticism.

Are the methods of warfare proposed in the famous Art of War an example of “applied Daoism”?

An interview on the pervasive use of the yin-yang relational pair in classical Chinese thought generally, and in Daoism in particular.

The concept of wuwei or “non-action”: does it mean that the perfect sage or political ruler simply never does anything?

How the Laozi (Daodejing) applies the lessons of complementarity to the contrast between male and female.

The significance of the Laozi’s use of opposing pairs, which are treated as complementary rather as exclusive dichotomies.

The Laozi (Daodejing) refers to the winds, the rain and the waters. We discuss how these ideas express the Laozi’s views on nature.

The first rule of dao is: don’t talk about dao. We do so nonetheless, focusing on its role in metaphysics and language.

What does “Daoism” refer to in a range of contexts, and how have excavated texts changed our understanding of the tensions between Daoism and Confucianism?

We conclude our series on Mohism with an interview that looks at the Mohists' dialectic and its relationship to their ethics.

Later Mohists explained in the Canons how to provide compelling philosophical arguments, and how to avoid mistakes in argumentation. Does this count as “logic”?

What Mohist dialectics and Gongsun Long’s “White Horse Not Horse” argument tell us about the connection between language and knowledge.

Did Mozi tell people that ghosts exist and that we can change our fate because he thought these things are true, or because it would be beneficial for people to believe them?

An interview on the contrasting views of Mohists and Confucians on ethical duties and warfare.

How the Mohist principle of “inclusive care” leads to political order and (mostly) forbids the fighting of wars.

Disagreements between the Mohists and the Confucians: is seeking benefits the right way to approach life? What motivates us to act morally, care for our loved ones or a doctrine of impartiality?

How did the Mohists establish their consequentialist ethic of “impartial care (jian ’ai)”? Was this theory ultimately grounded in the will of Heaven?

An introduction to the Mozi, the founding text of an anti-elitist school of thought that tests social and political practices by the measure of “benefit.”

In our final episode on classical Confucianism, our interview guest tells us about the surprising moral depth of the concept of "etiquette"

Can classical Confucianism be redeemed from its reputation for rigidly hierarchical thinking when it comes to the relationship between men and women?

Can classical Confucian ideas be adapted to produce a theory of democracy fit for today's world?

Were Confucian ideas about Heaven, ritual, and fate driven by a religious attitude, or a naturalistic one?

Mengzi and Xunzi show that a Confucian political theory need not be idealistic.

An interview about the "resonant cosmos" in early Confucianism, and the role played by music in linking sages to the universe.

The role of knowing in Confucian ethics: should it be understood as “knowing how,” or even “knowing to,” rather than “knowing that”?

Morality is what makes us humans, for the Confucians. But does morality come from inside us, outside us, or both?

Xunzi, a thinker who shaped the course of Confucian philosophy by showing how deliberate effort can overcome our wicked natural tendencies.

Several ancient Chinese texts speak of an egoist and hedonist known as Yang Zhu: did he pose a coherent challenge to the Confucians and other ethicists?

In the Mengzi, the text that bears his name, Mengzi ("Mencius") holds that the human heart-mind is the wellspring of goodness.

Should the remarkable parallels between Aristotelian and Confucian ethics lead us to classify Confucianism as a type of “virtue ethics”?

In this interview, we learn how Kongzi become the pivotal sage of early Chinese history, and what new discoveries teach us about the Confucian tradition.

What does the Analects say about living as a human being? How are individuals embedded in society, and how do they develop their unique identities?

Confucianism puts relationships with family members at the core of their ethical thinking. Is this a strength or a weakness?

Lessons we can take from the teachings of Kongzi (Confucius) in the Analects: challenging authorities, adhering to “benevolence (ren),” and practicing “propriety (li)” in ritual and everyday life.

An introduction to Kongzi, the founder of Confucianism, and to the text that has come to represent his thought, the Lunyu (Analects).

In this interview, we learn how newly discovered texts are changing our understanding of Warring States period philosophy.

What were ancient Chinese philosophical texts written on? How did writing relate to orally transmitted wisdom? How were texts read and used? And what even counted as a “text” in ancient China?

The Four Noble Truths of the Buddha, and the function they are supposed to play in our lives.

The pioneering Sanskrit grammar of Pāṇini and its implications for philosophy of language.

An interview with Brian Black about the philosophical and social aspects of the Upanisads.

The origins of the idea of karma, its moral significance in the Upanisads, and an alternative conception in the Bhagavad Gita.

The god Indra learns patience and something about the self in a famous passage from the Upanisads.

The ancient texts known as the Upanisads claim to expose the hidden connections between things, including the self and the world.

The Vedic period sets the context of the Upanisads, Buddhism and Jainism.

A whirlwind tour of philosophical literature in India.

In this introduction to the series, Peter Adamson and Jonardon Ganeri propose that Indian philosophy was primarily a way of life and search for the highest good.

The historical context of classical Chinese philosophy, and how ancient Chinese historical works themselves became works of philosophy.

Co-host Karyn introduces herself to the listeners and talks about the challenges of tackling classical Chinese philosophical texts.

Early Chinese philosophers were deeply aware of a world that is constantly changing: we look at how Confucians, Legalists, and Daoists responded to this challenge.

Introducing Chinese philosophy through the concept of "dao," a fundamental word in classical Chinese philosophy, with a range of meanings across its different traditions.

How Africana philosophy looked to a young Chike Jeffers, coming into the field in the early 21st century.

The key events and figures in philosophy as an academic discipline, in both Africa and the diaspora.

Cornel West joins us to look back on the development of his thought and the many authors who have inspired him.

An introduction to Cornel West, focusing on his early essay “Philosophy and the Afro-American Experience.”

A movement of legal scholars diagnoses the limitations of merely “formal” measures against discrimination, a point they connect to issues like affirmative action, democratic process, and intersectionality.

What inspired Asante's controversial philosophy of Afrocentricity, and its relationship to religion, nationalism, and feminism.

How writers like George G.M. James, John Henrik Clarke, Cheikh Anta Diop, Yosef ben-Jochannan, and Chancellor Williams prepared the way for the Afrocentricity of Molefi Asante and captured the imaginations of hip hop artists and intellectuals like Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Sylvia Wynter offers a bold and provocative assessment of the role of the humanities in understanding humankind.

Cedric J. Robinson reflects on the power and limitations of Marxism while charting the past and prospects of black radical thought.

The author of an important book on Glissant joins us to talk about his approach to this major Caribbean thinker.

Poet, novelist, playwright and philosopher Edouard Glissant, his theory of "creolization", and the Creolists who were influence by him.

Stuart Hall pioneers “cultural studies,” offering tools for analysis of films, television, fiction and music that were put to use by followers like Paul Gilroy and Hazel Carby.

The great Kenyan writer Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o joins us to speak about his career, his influences, and the power and politics of language.

How one of Kenya's greatest writers came to argue that African literature should be written in African languages.

We bring the story of black feminism up to the turn of the century with the incisive works of bell hooks and Patricia Hill Collins.

In poetry and prose, especially her collection "Sister Outsider," Audre Lorde explores ideas of difference, eroticism, and feminist theory.

The eventful life and penetrating philosophy of Angela Davis, an icon of resistance deeply informed by Marxism and influential on black feminist thought.

Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou and Alice Walker explore the themes of black feminism (or “womanism”) in their fiction. Warning: this episode contains discussion of sexual violence and suicide.

1970s black feminists like Toni Cade Bambara, the Combahee River Collective, and Awa Thiam critique white feminist and black nationalist failures to recognize the unique struggle of the black woman.

Another Caribbean thinker, Walter Rodney of Guyana, explores Africana history from a Marxist perspective.

Famous for his killing at the hands of the Apartheid government in South Africa, Steve Biko was also a deep thinker, who introduced the notion of Black Consciousness.

The political and musical revolution of Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat, and the social critique of his cousin, the playwright Wole Soyinka.

How the Rastafari movement grew from trends within Africana philosophy, and then passed into global popular culture in the music of Bob Marley and other reggae artists.

Sun Ra and Parliament-Funkadelic return to claim the pyramids, and Octavia Butler uses science fiction to confront the brutal past of slavery.

Abdias do Nascimento, a leader in Brazilian theater and politics, and his theory of Qilombismo.

The career and ideas of Nelson Mandela up to the time of his imprisonment, in the context of the founding of the African National Congress.

Two scholars of the same name join us to shed further light on Amílcar Cabral.

Amílcar Cabral, leader of a revolution against colonialism in Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, rethinks culture and Marxist theory as bases for his struggle.