History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps

How the French formal garden embodied both Cartesian philosophy and the political ideology of the French monarchy.

How philosophy at the universities evolved in response to Cartesianism and the “new science.”

Arnauld’s attack on Malebranche’s theory of the “vision in God” leads to a nuanced debate over the nature of ideas.

What inspired the occasionalist theory embraced by the 17th century Cartesians? We find out from a leading specialist on the topic.

What led Malebranche to his notorious view that all bodily motions and thoughts are caused by God, with created things serving only as “occasions” for divine action?

We begin to explore Malebranche’s controversial development of Cartesian philosophy by looking at his theodicy.

Antoine Arnauld and Pierre Nicole update the study of logic to take account of the ideas of Descartes.

Antoine Arnauld combines Cartesian philosophy with Jansenism, one of the most controversial religious movements of the 17th century.

An interview on contemporary approaches to Pascal's Wager: where decision theory meets philosophy of religion.

Should we gamble on belief in God to have a chance at infinite reward?

Blaise Pascal was a pioneering scientist and deeply spiritual religious thinker; what united these two sides of his thought?

Why did Sébastian Basso and Pierre Gassendi think ancient atomism was the key to developing a new, modern science?

Gassendi’s path from skepticism to “baptized Epicureanism.”

So-called “libertines” like Mothe le Vayer revive ancient skepticism, provoking a backlash from Mersenne and Arnauld. Were they right to see the skeptics as anti-religious?

An interview exploring Descartes' interest in medicine, how his medical ideas relate to his dualism, and his influence on medical science.

From comets to blood transfusions, embryology, and the debate over the pineal gland: Descartes’ impact on science, especially medicine.

Why Cartesianism appealed to women and became the inspiration for a pioneering feminist, Poullain de la Barre; and why Cartesianism was not the only option for women philosophers of the age.

Early Cartesians including Cordemoy and de La Forge develop but also challenge Descartes’ ideas, defending atomism and occasionalism.

We finish our look at Elisabeth of Bohemia and Descartes by talking to Ariane Schneck about their correspondence, focusing on the mind-body problem and the passions.

What do emotions reveal about the connection between mind and body? We turn to Descartes’ correspondence with Elisabeth and his On the Passions to find out.

A royal scholar and philosopher sets aside the tribulations of her family to debate Descartes over the relation between mind and body and the nature of happiness.

Descartes’ “provisional” morality and his views on free will and virtue.

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.

Did the metaphysics of Francisco Suárez mark a shift from traditional scholasticism to early modern philosophy?

What was Luis de Molina trying to say about human free will with his doctrine of “middle knowledge,” and why did it provoke such controversy?

To celebrate reaching 450 episodes, Peter looks at the philosophical resonance of two famous artworks from the turn of the 16th century: Dürer’s Self-Portrait and Michelangelo’s paintings in the Sistine Chapel.

We learn from Anna Tropia how Jesuit philosophy of mind broke new ground in the scholastic tradition.

The “School of Salamanca,” founded by Francisco Vitoria, and the commentators of Coimbra are at the center of a movement sometimes called the “Second Scholastic.”

Yes, there were Spanish Protestants! Andrew (Andrés) Messmer joins us to explain how they drew on humanism and philosophy to argue for their religious agenda.

Cajetan, Bañez and other thinkers make Aquinas a central figure of Counter-Reformation thought; we focus on their theories about analogy and the soul.

Ignatius of Loyola’s movement begins modestly, but winds up having a global impact on education and philosophy.

Teresa of Ávila and John of the Cross push the boundaries of individual spirituality and offer philosophically informed accounts of mystical experience.

Fray Luis de Leon, Antonio Nebrija, Beatriz Galindo and other scholars bring the Renaissance to Spain.

In this interview we learn about the main issues in modern-day philosophy of disability, and the relevance of this topic for the European encounter with the Americas.

Bartholomé De las Casas argues against opponents, like Sepúlveda, who believed that Europeans had a legal and moral right to rule over and exploit the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

Iberian expeditions to the Americas inspire scientists, and Matteo Ricci’s religious mission to Asia becomes an encounter between European and Chinese philosophy.

How religious persecution and censorship shaped the context of philosophy in Catholic Europe in the sixteenth century.

How the Counter-Reformation or Catholic Reformation created a context for philosophy among Catholics, especially in Spain, Portugal, and Italy.

An expert on Renaissance alchemy tells us how this art related to philosophy at the time... and how she has tried to reproduce its results!

Our last figure of the English Renaissance undertakes daring investigations of chemistry, medicine, agriculture, and cosmology – and gets accused of magic and Rosicrucianism.

The cosmological and methodological implications of breakthroughs in the understanding of magnetism and electricity at the turn of the 17th century.

Changing ideas about eyesight, light, mirror images, and refraction – and the skeptical worries they may have inspired.

How scientists of the Elizabethan age anticipated the discoveries and methods of the Enlightenment (without necessarily publishing them).

Science, intrigue, exploration, angelic seances! It's the life and thought of Elizabethan mathematician and magician John Dee.

A discussion of the history and philosophical significance of scholasticism from medieval times to early modernity, and even today.

The evolution of Aristotelian philosophy from John Mair in the late 15th century to John Case in the late 16th century.

How women’s writing in England changed from the early fifteenth century, the time of Margery Kempe, to the late sixteenth century, the time of Anne Lock.

How Macbeth reflects the anxieties and explanations surrounding witchcraft and witch-hunting in early modern Europe.

Can Shakespeare’s Tempest be read as a reflection on the English encounter with the peoples of the Americas?

How the Renaissance turn towards individual identity is reflected in Shakespeare's most famous play. 

We're joined by Patrick Gray to discuss Shakespeare's knowledge of philosophy, his ethics, and his influence on such thinkers as Hegel.

How should we approach Shakespeare’s plays as philosophical texts? We take as examples skepticism and politics in Othello, King Lear, and Julius Caesar.

We begin to look at Elizabethan literature, as Sidney argues that poetry is superior to philosophy, and philosophy is put to use in Spenser’s "Fairie Queene".

Richard Hooker defends the religious and political settlement of Elizabethan England using rational arguments and appeals to the natural law.

The evolution of ideas about kingship and the role of the “three estates” in 15th and 16th century England, with a focus on John Fortescue and Thomas Starkey.

What is the message of the famous, but elusive, work "Utopia", and how can it be squared with the life of its author?

Humanism comes to England and Scotland, leading scholars like Thomas Eylot and Andrew Melville to rethink philosophical education.

A leading expert on the history of the Reformation joins us to explain the very different stories of England and Scotland in the 16th century.

John Knox polemicizes against idolaters and female rulers, while the humanist George Buchanan argues more calmly for equally radical political conclusions.

The historical context of English philosophy in the sixteenth century, with particular focus on Thomas Cranmer, and the role of religion in personal conscience and social cohesion.

Marie le Jars de Gourney, the “adoptive daughter” of Montaigne, lays claim to his legacy and argues for the equality of the sexes.

No doubt that we're in good hands with interview guest Henrik Lagerlund, who brings his expertise in the history of skepticism to bear on the French Renaissance.

The sources and scope of the skepticism of Montaigne, Charron, and Sanches.

In his “Essays” Montaigne uses his wit, insight, and humanist training to tackle his favorite subject: Montaigne.

Joseph Scaliger, Isaac Casaubon, and Guillaume du Vair grapple with history and the events of their own day.

A chat with Ann Blair about the "Theater of Nature" by Jean Bodin, and other encyclopedic works of natural philosophy.

The polymath Jean Bodin produces a pioneering theory of political sovereignty along the way to defending the absolute power of the French king.

Protestant French thinkers like François Hotman and Theodore Beza propose a radical political philosophy: the king rules at the pleasure of his subjects.

An interview on the nature of religious tolerance, and the forms it took during the Reformation and in the thought of early modern thinkers like Locke and Leibniz.

Even as wars of religion in France prompt calls for toleration, hardly anyone makes a principled case for freedom of conscience… apart from Sebastian Castellio.

The methods of Peter Ramus sweep across Europe, winning adherents and facing stiff opposition in equal measure.

A chat with Ramus expert Robert Goulding on the role of mathematics in Ramist philosophy.

Peter Ramus scandalizes his critics, and thrills his students and admirers, by proposing a new and simpler approach to philosophy.

Peter reads the first chapter of his new book Don’t Think for Yourself: Authority and Belief in Medieval Philosophy, available from University of Notre Dame Press. Pre-order with the code 14FF20 from undpress.nd.edu, to get a 20% discount!

Challenges to Galenic medical orthodoxy from natural philosophy: Jean Fernel with his idea of the human’s “total substance,” and the Paracelsans.

Jacques Lefèvre d’Étaples and Julius Caesar Scaliger fuse Aristotelianism with humanism to address problems in logic and literary aesthetics.

Peter chats with the hosts of three great philosophy podcasts: Elucidations, Hi-Phi Nation, and the Unmute Podcast.

In his outrageous novel about Pantagruel and Gargantua, Rabelais engages with scholasticism, humanism, medicine, the reformation, and the querelle des femmes.

A Renaissance queen supports philosophical humanism and produces literary works on spirituality, love, and the soul.

We begin to look at philosophy in Renaissance France, beginning with humanists like Budé and the use of classical philosophy by poets du Bellay and Ronsard.

Comets! Magnets! Armadillos! In this wide-ranging interview Lorraine Daston tells us how Renaissance and early modern scientists dealt with the extraordinary events they called "wonders".

Johannes Kepler fuses Platonist philosophy with a modified version of Copernicus’ astronomy.

Responses to Copernicus in the 16th century, culminating with the master of astral observation Tycho Brahe.

How revolutionary was the Copernican Revolution?

John Sellars returns to the podcast to discuss Lipsius' work on Seneca and the early modern Neo-Stoic movement.

Justus Lipsius draws on Seneca and other Stoics to counsel peace of mind in the face of political chaos, but also writes a work on how such chaos can be avoided.

Amidst religious conflict in the Netherlands, Dirck Coornhert pleads for religious toleration and freedom of expression.

Schegk, Taurellus, Gorlaeus, and Sennert revive atomism to explain chemical reactions, the composition of bodies, and the generation of organisms.

Paracelsus adapts the tradition of alchemical science for use in medicine, and in the process overturns the scientific theories of Aristotle and Galen.

An interview with Helen Hattab on the scope and impact of scholastic philosophy among Protestants.

Was Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa a dark magician, a pious skeptic, or both?

In a surprise twist, some Protestant thinkers embrace the methods of scholasticism, and even find something to admire in the work of Catholic authors like Aquinas.

John Calvin's views on predestination and the limits of human reason.

The Swiss theologian Zwingli launches the Reformation in Switzerland, but clashes with Luther and more radical Protestants.

Faced with massive political upheaval and the rise of the Anabaptists, Luther argues for a socially conservative version of the Reformation.

Luther’s close ally Melanchthon uses his knowledge of ancient philosophy and rhetoric in the service of the Reformation.

Erasmus clashes with Martin Luther over the question whether our wills are free or enslaved to sin.

How radical was Luther? We find out from Lyndal Roper, who also discusses Luther and the Peasants' War, sexuality, anti-semitism, and the visual arts.

How Luther’s doctrine of justification by faith alone and his attack on the Church relate to the history of philosophy.

Trends in Aristotelian philosophy in northern and eastern Europe in the fifteenth century, featuring discussion of the “Wegestreit” and the nominalist theology of Gabriel Biel.

The “learned piety” of Desiderius Erasmus, the greatest figure of northern humanism.

Learned ignorance, coincidence of opposites and religious peace: Paul Richard Blum discusses the central ideas of Nicholas Cusanus.

The radical negative theology of Nicholas of Cusa, and his hope of establishing peace between the religions of the world.

Rudolph Agricola, Juan Luis Vives and other humanist scholars spread the study of classical antiquity across Europe and mock the technicalities of scholastic philosophy.

The impact of the printing press on the history of philosophy, and its role in helping to trigger the Reformation.

How humanism and scholasticism came together with the Protestant Reformation to create the philosophy of 15-16th century Europe.

For our finale of the Italian Renaissance series we're joined by Ingrid Rowland, to speak about art, philosophy, and persecution in Renaissance Rome.

Did Galileo’s scientific discoveries grow out of the culture of the Italian Renaissance?

Giordano Bruno’s stunning vision of an infinite universe with infinite worlds, and his own untimely end.

Our guest Brian Copenhaver joins us to explain how Ficino and other Renaissance philosophers thought about magic.

Ficino, Pico, Cardano, and other Renaissance thinkers debate whether astrology and magic are legitimate sciences with a foundation in natural philosophy.

Was the natural philosophy of Bernardino Telesio and Tommaso Campanella the first modern physical theory?

An interview with Guido Giglioni, who speaks to us about the sources and philosophical implications of medical works of the Renaissance.

The polymath Girolamo Cardano explores medicine, mathematics, philosophy of mind, and the interpretation of dreams.

Connections between philosophy and advances in medicine, including the anatomy of Vesalius.

The humanist study of Pythagoras, Archimides and other ancient mathematicians goes hand in hand with the use of mathematics in painting and architecture.

An interview with Dag Nikolaus Hasse on the Renaissance reception of Averroes, Avicenna, and other authors who wrote in Arabic.

Jacopo Zabarella outlines the correct method for pursuing, and then presenting, scientific discoveries.

Pietro Pomponazzi and Agostino Nifo debate the immortality of the soul and the cogency of Averroes’ theory of intellect.

An interview with David Lines on the role of Aristotle in Renaissance ethics.

Aristotle’s works are edited, printed, and translated, leading to new assessments of his thought among both humanists and scholastics.

The blurry line dividing humanism and scholastic university culture in the Italian Renaissance.

Leon Battista Alberti, Benedetto Cotrugli, and Poggio Bracciolini grapple with the moral and conceptual problems raised by the prospect of people getting filthy rich.

Tommaso Campanella’s “The City of the Sun” and other utopian works of the Italian Renaissance describe perfect cities as an ideal for real life politics.

Bruni, Poggio, Machiavelli, and Guicciardini explore political ideas and historical method in works on Roman and Italian history.

Leading Machiavelli scholar Quentin Skinner joins Peter to discuss morality, history, and religion in the Prince and the Discourses.

Peter celebrates reaching 350 episodes by explaining a single sentence in Machiavelli's "Discourses."

Machiavelli’s seminal work of political advice, "The Prince," tells the ruler how to be strong like a lion and cunning like a fox.

Did “civic humanism” really make republicanism a newly dominant political theory in the Italian Renaissance?

The prophetic preacher Girolamo Savonarola attacks pagan philosophy and puts forward his own political ideas, before coming to an untimely end.

An interview with Cecilia Muratori, an expert on the surprisingly modern ideas about non-human animals that emerged in the Renaissance.

Pico della Mirandola and Giannozzo Manetti praise humans as the centerpiece of the created world. But what about the other animals?

Pico della Mirandola argues for the harmony of the ancient authorities, draws on Jewish mysticism, and questions the value of humanist rhetoric.

Jewish philosophers in Renaissance Italy, focusing on Leone Ebreo’s Dialogues of Love, the Averroism of Elijah del Medigo, and Italian Kabbalah.

An interview with Denis Robichaud on how, and why, Plato was read in the Italian Renaissance.

Ficino describes a “Platonic” love purified of sexuality, prompting a debate carried on by Pico della Mirandola, Pietro Bembo, and Tullia d’Aragona.

Marsilio Ficino’s revival of Platonism, with a focus on his proofs for the soul’s immortality in his magnum opus, the Platonic Theology.

The blossoming of Renaissance Platonism under the Medici, who supported the scholarship of Poliziano, Ficino, and Pico della Mirandola.

Refutation of misogyny in Moderate Fonte and Lucrezia Marinella.

Cassandra Fedele, Isotta Nogarola, and Laura Cereta seek fame and glory through eloquence and learning.

Christine de Pizan's political philosophy, epistemology, and the refutation of misogyny in her "City of Ladies".

An interview with Sabrina Ebbersmeyer about the relation of emotion to reason and the body, and panpsychism, in the Renaissance.

The rediscovery of Epicurus, Lucretius, and Sextus Empiricus spreads challenging ideas about chance, atomism, and skepticism.

Humanists from Bruni and Valla to Pontano and Castiglione ask whether ancient ethical teachings can still help us learn how to live.

Jill Kraye returns to the podcast to discuss the nature of humanism, its relation to scholasticism, and its legacy.

Lorenzo Valla launches a furious attack on scholastic philosophy, favoring the resources of classical Latin.

Coluccio Salutati and Leonardo Bruni combine eloquence with philosophy, taking as their model the refined language and republican ideals found in Cicero.

Bessarion and George Trapenzuntius, rival scholars from the Greek east who helped inspire the Italian Renaissance.

A first look at the themes and figures of philosophy in the Italian Renaissance.

The series on Byzantium concludes as Michele Trizio discusses the mutual influence of Byzantium and Latin Christendom.

When the Byzantine empire ended in 1453, philosophy in Greek did not end with it. In this episode we bring the story up to the 20th century.

Was Gemistos Plethon, the last great thinker of the Byzantine tradition, a secret pagan or just a Christian with an unusual enthusiasm for Platonism?

Thomas Aquinas finds avid readers among Byzantines at the twilight of empire, and is used by both sides of the Hesychast controversy.

Gregory Palamas and the controversy over his teaching that we can go beyond human reason by grasping God through his activities or “energies”.

Mathematics and the sciences in Byzantium, focusing on scholars of the Palaiologan period like Blemmydes and Metochites.

Historian Judith Herrin joins us to talk about competition and mutual influence between Islam and Byzantium.

Intellectual exchange between Christians and Muslims, and the later flowering of Syriac literature including the philosopher Bar Hebraeus.

The Neoplatonist Proclus gets mixed reviews from Christians, as Nicholas of Methone refutes him but the Georgian philosopher Ioane Petritsi helps to revive his thought. 

Peter's Munich colleague Oliver Primavesi tells us how Greek manuscripts are used to establish the text of authors like Aristotle. 

Without handwritten copies produced by Byzantine scribes, we would know almost nothing about ancient philosophy. How and why were they made?

Legal and economic thought in Byzantium: the sources of the law’s authority, the relation of church and civil law, just price, and just war.

The role of women in Byzantine society and the complex attitudes surrounding eunuchs: did they make up a “third gender”?

A chat about commentaries on Aristotle from Byzantium with guest Katerina Ierodiakonou.

Princess Anna Komnene makes good use of her political retirement by gathering a circle of scholars to write commentaries on Aristotle.

The larger meaning of history in the chronicles written by Michael Psellos, Michael Attaleiates, Anna Komnene, and Niketas Choniates.

Psellos and other experts in rhetoric explore how this art of persuasion relates to philosophy.

Byzantine political thought from the time of Justinian down to the Palaiologos dynasty wrestles with the nature and scope of imperial power.

The trial of John Italos and other signs of Byzantine disquiet with the pagan philosophical tradition.

Dominic O'Meara speaks to Peter about Michael Psellos, focusing especially on his political philosophy.

Michael Psellos and his attitude towards pagan philosophy and the political life.

Peter's twin brother Glenn Adamson discusses the philosophical implications of craft.

Photius, “the inventor of the book review,” and other Byzantine scholars who preserved ancient learning.

Peter is joined by Andrew Louth for a discussion of John of Damascus and his theological use of philosophy.

John of Damascus helps to shape the Byzantine understanding of humankind and the veneration of images, despite living in Islamic territory.

Is it idolatry to venerate an icon of a saint, or of Christ? The dispute leads the Byzantines to ponder the relation between an image and its object.

Eastern Christian philosophy outside of Constantinople, focusing on translation and exegesis in the languages of Syriac and Armenian.

We begin to look at the third tradition of medieval philosophy, in which the heritage of classical antiquity is preserved and debated by the Byzantines.

Peter King, Catarina Dutilh Novaes, and Russ Friedman discuss their approaches to medieval philosophy, and its contemporary relevance.

Rachel Barney, Christof Rapp, and Mark Kalderon join Peter to discuss the importance of ancient philosophy for today's philosophers.

Bob Pasnau joins Peter to discuss ideas about substance from Aquinas down to the time of Locke, Leibniz and Descartes.

New paperbacks and a new series!

The Renaissance ideals of humanism and universal science flourish already in the medieval period, in the works of Petrarch and Ramon Llull.

New ideas and and new universities in Italy and greater Germany including Vienna and Prague, where Jan Hus carries on the radical ideas of Wyclif.

John Wyclif refutes nominalism and inspires the Lollard movement, which anticipated Reformation thought with its critique of the church.

Jean Gerson’s role in the political disputes of his day, the spread of lay devotion and affective mysticism, and the debate over the Romance of the Rose initiated by Christine de Pizan.

Peter is joined by Isabel Davis to discuss marriage, sex and chastity in Chaucer, focusing on the Wife of Bath's speech.

Medieval attitudes towards homosexuality, sex and chastity, and the status of women. Authors discussed include Aquinas, Catherine of Siena, and Chaucer.

Philosophical themes in Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” and “Troilus and Criseyde,” as well as Langland’s “Piers Plowman.”

Julian of Norwich’s Shewings and the Cloud of Unknowing lay out challenging paths to knowledge of, and union with, God.

Martin Pickavé returns to the podcast to talk about theories of the emotions in Aquinas, Scotus and Wodeham.

Be surprised by how many philosophical problems arise in connection with angels (how many can dance on the head of a pin is not one of them).

Dietrich of Freiberg, Berthold of Moosburg, John Tauler and Henry Suso explore Neoplatonism and mysticism.

The scholastic and mystic Meister Eckhart sets out his daring speculations about God and humankind in both Latin and German.

Changing ideas about money, just price, and usury, up to the time of Buridan, Oresme, and Gregory of Rimini.

The medievals were too firm in their beliefs to entertain skeptical worries, right? Don't be so sure, as Peter learns from Dominik Perler.

The debate between Nicholas of Autrecourt and John Buridan on whether it is possible to achieve certain knowledge.

Peter speaks to Jack Zupko about John Buridan's secular and parsimonious approach to philosophy.

The hipster’s choice for favorite scholastic, John Buridan, sets out a nominalist theory of knowledge and language, and explains the workings of free will.

An interview with Monica Green reveals parallels between medicine and philosophy in the middle ages.

Ockham, Buridan, Oresme and Francis of Marchia explore infinity, continuity, atomism, and the impetus involved in motion.

Bradwardine and other thinkers based at Oxford make breakthroughs in physics by applying mathematics to motion.

Sara Uckelman soundly defeats Peter in the medieval logical game of "obligations."

The scholastics discuss the ambiguity of terms, the nature of logical inference, and logical paradoxes, and play the game of “obligations.”

Scotus, Ockham, and Bradwardine ask how we can be free if God knows and chooses the things we will do in the future.

Walter Burley flies the flag for realism against Ockham and other nominalists.

An interview with Susan Brower-Toland covering Ockham's views on cognition, consciousness, and memory.

How the language of thought relates to spoken and written language, according to William of Ockham.

Ockham trims away the unnecessary entities posited by other scholastics.

William of Ockham on freedom of action and freedom of thought.

In his book Defender of the Peace, Marsilius of Padua develops new theories of representative government, rights, and ownership.

Peter muses on recent political events in light of the history of philosophy.

Giles of Rome and Dante on the rival claims of the church and secular rulers.

Italy’s greatest poet Dante Alighieri was also a philosopher, as we learn from his Convivio and of course the Divine Comedy.

Marguerite Porete is put to death for her exploration of the love of God, The Mirror of Simple Souls.

A conversation with Tom Pink about medieval theories of freedom and action.

An introduction to philosophy in the 14th century, focusing on two big ideas: nominalism and voluntarism.

Deborah Black joins Peter to talk about al-Farabi's innovations concerning knowledge and certainty.

The rise of Islam creates a new context for philosophy not only among Muslims, but also Jews and Christians.

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Julian the Apostate and the philosophers of Athens and Alexandria try to keep pagan philosophy alive in the late Roman empire

A recording of Peter's lecture delivered on Oct 25, 2011, at the Arts and Humanities festival on "The Power of Stories" at King's College London.

Drawing on the De Anima, On the Heavens, Physics and Metaphysics, Peter tackles Aristotle’s theory of mind and its relation to his theology.

Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics on happiness and virtue

Plato's Republic defends and defines justice at the level of the ideal city and the person

MM McCabe of King's discusses the fragments of Heraclitus