Overthink

Ellie Anderson, Ph.D. and David Peña-Guzmán, Ph.D.

The best of all possible podcasts, Leibniz would say. Putting big ideas in dialogue with the everyday, Overthink offers accessible and fresh takes on philosophy from enthusiastic experts.

Hosted by professors Ellie Anderson (Pomona College) and David M. Peña-Guzmán (San Francisco State University).

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180 episodes
Updated Tuesday

Episodes180

Newest first

Sep 23, 2025 · 58 min
Masculinity
Performative males, hustle bros, sissies, and manfluencers. In episode 140 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss masculinity. What does it mean to be a man, and how has the concept of masculinity changed over time? They look at the male loneliness epidemic, the current influx of male influencers spreading right-wing rhetoric on the manosphere, and some of the main features of masculinity. Is masculinity rooted in violence and homophobia, or is it possible to have a healthy model of masculinity? In the Substack bonus, your hosts get into the mythopoetic men's movement and the connection between haircuts and masculinity. Works Discussed: Robert Brannon and Deborah Sarah David, The Forty-nine Percent Majority: The Male Sex Role Pierre Bourdieu, La domination masculine R.W. Connell, Gender and Power bell hooks, The Will To Change James W. Messerschmidt, Hegemonic Masculinity Joseph Pleck, The Myth of Masculinity Todd W. Reeser, Moderating Masculinity in Early Modern Culture Frans de Waal, Chimpanzee Politics: Power and Sex Among Apes Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Sep 16, 2025 · 59 min
Neighbors
What does it mean to love thy neighbor? And who counts as a neighbor in the first place? In episode 139 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about neighbors. They think through the parasocial relationships that hold between us and those who live near us, how the values of our neighbors affect our lives, and how neighborly relations blur the public/private distinction. They use the French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas’s philosophy of the neighbor as “the Other” to think about the experience of moral responsibility. And they consider how our relationships with neighbors differ from other relationships? To what extent do we choose our neighbors? How do wealth and class shape our experience of living-with-others? And what actually makes a neighbor a neighbor? In the Substack bonus segment, your hosts question whether we have specific ethical obligations to our neighbors and discuss cultural differences in how people view their neighbors. Works Discussed: Mark Granovetter, “The Strength of Weak Ties” Emmanuel Levinas, Otherwise than Being Hannu Ruonavaara, “The Anatomy of Neighbour Relations” Anna Strhan, “And Who is My Neighbour? Levinas and the Commandment to Love Re-examined” Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Sep 9, 2025 · 54 min
Black Women's Magic with Lindsey Stewart
How did Black Women become magical? In episode 138, Ellie and David talk to Lindsey Stewart about her book, The Conjuring of America: Mojos, Mermaids, Medicine, and 400 Years of Black Women's Magic. They talk about how the concept of ‘conjure’ shifted from its origin in the West African tradition to how it manifests in African American communities today. They discuss how Yoruba religion traveled to the US with slavery, as well as exploring the impact of historical images like the Mammy and the Voodoo Queen. What are the dangers of rhetoric of Black women being magical? How has Christianity influenced the ignorance that many Americans have around conjure? Is Beyonce magical? And does her album Cowboy Carter invoke the West African concept of Sankofa? In the Substack bonus segment, Ellie and David talk about magic on a larger scale, and parse out the differences between magic, religion and science. Works Discussed: Keisha L. Bentley-Edwards and Valerie N. Adams, “I am not (your) superwoman, Black girl magic, or beautiful struggle: Rethinking the resilience of Black women and girls” Kim R. Harris, “Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ embraces country music, Black history and religious imagery” Lindsey Stewart, The Conjuring of America: Mojos, Mermaids, Medicine, and 400 Years of Black Women's Magic Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 26, 2025 · 59 min
Post-Truth
With conspiracy theories, fake news, and anti-science rhetoric everywhere, we are living in an age of post-truth. In episode 137 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss the meaning of truth in our contemporary political and social landscape and how post-truth has increased in the recent years. How do phenomena like opinion overload, news fatigue, and information overload contribute to the spread of post truth? And are we really “post” truth, or do we simply live in an age of “many” truths? Ellie and David explore different conceptions of truth, the differences between misinformation and disinformation, and between lying and bullshitting. And what’s the connection between post-truth and postmodernism? Have so-called “pomo professors” contributed to the rise of political dishonesty and deception? In the bonus, your hosts talk about Michael Hannon’s article “The Politics of Post-Truth” and consider whether “post-truth” is even the right word for the crisis we’re facing. Works Discussed: Max Black, “The Prevalence of Humbug” Harry Frankfurt, “On Bullshit” Ralph Keyes, The Post-Truth Era Jean-François Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth David M. Peña-Guzmán and Rebekah Spera, “The anatomy of a philosophical hoax: The politics of delegitimation in contemporary philosophy” Simon Truwant, De waarheid heeft vier gezichten Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 12, 2025 · 59 min
Burnout
What makes burnout different from exhaustion or fatigue? In episode 136 of Overthink, Ellie and David look at the history of the term burnout and its surprising connection to social justice. They also explore Byung-Chul Han’s reading of burnout as a natural consequence of “achievement culture.” How does our mindless scrolling on TikTok and Instagram reveal our inability to be bored and meditate? And how does this contribute to our personal and collective run-ins with burnout? Why do so many people, academics included, fail to recognize their own burnout? And is it even possible to escape burnout in a capitalist society? In the bonus, your hosts talk about the shame surrounding burnout, errand paralysis, and the relationship between burnout and compulsive buying. Works Discussed: Herbert J. Freudenberger, “Staff Burn-Out” Byung-Chul Han, The Burnout Society Emily and Amelia Nagoski, Burnout, the Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle David M. Peña-Guzmán and Rebekah Spera, Professional Philosophy and Its Myths Anne Helen Peterson, Can’t Even: How Millennials became the Burnout Generation Hannah Proctor, Burnout Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 29, 2025 · 58 min
Travel
Aperol spritzes, ‘Euro summers’, and aesthetic beach pics. In episode 135 of Overthink, Ellie and David discuss all things travel. They discuss the differences how travel changes our relationship to the place where we're from, the difference between travel and tourism, and the place of travel in the history of philosophy. They go from Plato’s views that young people shouldn’t travel to Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s belief that travel is essential for turning boys into men. They also explore the question, why do humans love to travel so much? In the bonus, your hosts debate over their relationships to phones and taking photos while travelling and dive deeper into what it’s like to experience culture shock. Works Discussed: Francis Bacon, “On Travel” Agnes Callard, “Against Travel” Paul Fussell, Abroad Michel de Montaigne, “On Cannibals” Plato, The Republic Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Emile George Santayana, “The Philosophy of Travel” Joseph Shaules, The Intercultural Mind: Connecting Culture, Cognition, and Global Living Emily Thomas, The Meaning of Travel: Philosophers Abroad Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 15, 2025 · 56 min
Weirdness with Eric Schwitzgebel
All metaphysical theories are…really weird. In episode 134 of Overthink, Ellie and David chat with Eric Schwitzgebel about his book Weirdness of the World. They think through the difference between weirdness and bizarreness, the nonsensical nature of philosophical theories, and whether we should all just agree with Occam’s razor that the simplest explanation is always best.Is the recent theory that we’re all living in a simulation really that strange? Is it stranger than the idealist metaphysics of Plato or the atomism of Lucretius? And why are philosophical theories doomed to weirdness? Are we the weird ones, or do we just live in a weird world? In the bonus your hosts talk about the butterfly effect and the infinitude of the universe, and how neurodivergent traits can be rewarded in philosophy. Works Discussed: Graham Harman, Weird Realism: Lovecraft and Philosophy Eric Schwitzgebel, Weirdness of the World Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 1, 2025 · 54 min
Air
Time to take in a breath of fresh air. In episode 133 of Overthink, Ellie and David close out their four-part series on the elements with air. They consider Anaximenes of Miletus’s belief that all things are made of air, Luce Irigaray’s belief that air is feminine, and the modern use of air as a weapon of battle. What can the TV series The Last of Us tell us about the inescapability of air Why have some philosophers thought the soul is made of air? And how does air allow itself to be forgotten? In the bonus, your hosts dive deeper into Irigaray, the plurality of air, and the idea of the ether. Works Discussed: Gaston Bachelard, Air in Dreams Steven Connor, The Matter of Air Luce Irigaray, The Forgetting of Air in Martin Heidegger Elizabeth Povinelli, Geontologies Peter Sloterdijk, Terror from the Air Max Horkheimer and Theodor W. Adorno, Dialectic of Enlightenment The Last of Us (2025) Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jun 17, 2025 · 42 min
Earth
This one’s going to rock your world. In episode 132 of Overthink, Ellie and David dig into the earth for the third part of their four-part series on the elements. They discuss everything from earthworms and carbon dating to the “solidity” of the earth. They look to Foucault, Freud, and Husserl for insights about how the earth can act as a metaphor for the mind and for the past. They also wonder: Is the earth inert matter or a living being? And why do so many creation myths present humans as “made” of earth/clay/mud? So, what is it that we actually mean when we talk about earth as an element? In the bonus, your hosts talk think through Heidegger’s notion of ground and horizon, and the Western association of land with earth. Works Discussed: Michel Foucault, The Archeology of Knowledge Martin Heidegger, “ The Origin of the Work of Art” Edmund Husserl, Crisis of the European Sciences David Macauley, Elemental Philosophy: Earth, Air, Fire, and Water as Environmental Ideas Thomas Nail, Theory of the Earth James Lovelock, Gaia hypothesis Dorian Sagan and Lynn Margulis, “God, Gaia, and Biophilia” Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jun 3, 2025 · 53 min
Water
Oceans, baths, ponds, and amniotic sacs? In episode 131 of Overthink, David and Ellie take a deep dive into the topic of water as part of their four-part series on the elements. They discuss how all life begins in water, and the conceptual features of water, such as its fluidity and shapelessness. What did Thales of Miletus mean by ‘all is water’? How is water used as a metaphor for the Dao? And at what point does being in water go from feeling like Moana to feeling like Jaws? In the Patreon bonus segment, they talk about water as a symbol of purification, the significance of plate tectonics, and the relationship between AI and water usage. Works Discussed: Aristotle, On the Heavens Francis Bacon, Novum Organum Jamie Linton, What Is Water? The History of a Modern Abstraction David Macauley, Elemental Philosophy: Earth, Air, Fire, and Water as Environmental Ideas Anna Secor, “Spacetimeunconscious” Neil Shubin, Your Inner Fish Lao Tzu, Dao De Jing Peter Godfrey Smith, Metazoa Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 20, 2025 · 53 min
Fire
Are all fires inherently bad? In episode 130 of Overthink, David and Ellie launch a four-part series on the elements, starting off hot with fire. They look at the role of fire in Greek mythology (focusing on the myth of Prometheus), the evolution of humans’ relationship with fire, and fire’s role as the universal metaphor. Why did Prometheus steal fire from the Olympians and give it to humans? Why does Bachelard believe that fire is “the” philosophical element par excellence? How did Western culture turn fire from friend to foe? And what would a non-antagonistic relationship to fire look like? In the bonus, your hosts give their fiery takes on arson and pyromania. Works Discussed: Gaston Bachelard, The Psychoanalysis of Fire Stephen J. Pyne, The Pyrocene Stephen J. Pyne, “Fire in the mind: changing understandings of fire in Western civilization.” Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 6, 2025 · 51 min
Discretion with Barry Lam
What value might there be in having fewer rules? In episode 129 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk to philosopher and host of Hi-Phi Nation Barry Lam about his book, Fewer Rules, Better People: The Case for Discretion. They discuss the problems with legalism and bureaucracy and the importance of discretion, as well as how the emergence of AI affects decision-making, and the negative impact of too many rules on our criminal justice system. Are we obliged to follow government rulings? Why is the ‘by the book bureaucrat’ the biggest villain of all? And how can we train people to make better discretionary decisions? In the bonus, your hosts consider the effects of decisions based on private morality and whether there are cultural differences in discretion. Works Discussed: Ronald Dworkin, Taking Rights Seriously Barry Lam, Fewer Rules, Better People: The Case for Discretion Plato, Crito Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Apr 22, 2025 · 55 min
Cleanliness
Episode 128 – Cleanliness How often should you shower to remain ‘clean’? How many times can you re-wear your jeans before they are considered ‘dirty’? In episode 128 of Overthink, Ellie and David take a look at cleanliness. They get into how humans have turned cleanliness into an art, and maybe even an obsession. Why are we so bothered by dirt? What is dirt, anyways? How are notions of dirtiness and cleanliness even into our symbolic systems, including language and religion? And what is up with TikTok’s obsession with the Clean Girl Aesthetic? As they tackle these questions, your hosts also explore the historical weaponisation of the concept of cleanliness against marginalised groups, such as queer people and people of color. In the bonus, Ellie and David discuss cleanliness as a social construct, the link between it and isolation, and Michel Serres’s ‘excremental theory’ of private property. Works Discussed: Bruce Bagemihl, Biological Exuberance Dana Berthold, “Tidy Whiteness: A Genealogy of Race, Purity, and Hygiene” L’Oreal Blackett, “In The “Hygiene Olympics” Black Folks Always Win — But Aren’t We Tired?” Mary Douglas, Purity and Danger Virginia Smith, Clean: A History of Personal Hygiene and Purity Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Apr 8, 2025 · 54 min
Oligarchy
Is Trump’s presidential reign turning the US into an oligarchy? Or did the US fall into oligarchic rule many years ago? In episode 127 of Overthink, David and Ellie dive into what an oligarchy looks like, the dangers of a country’s power being in the hands of the wealthy few, and whether or not oligarchic rule is new for the US. They look to the ancient Greeks for ideas on which form of government is conducive to the good life and explore how Aristotle’s notion of pleonexia relates to the current state of the US. Your hosts investigate how oligarchy morphs into tyranny, and try to answer the question, “How can we resist an oligarchy?” In the bonus, Ellie and David look at the four different types of oligarchy discussed by Jeffrey Winters. Works Discussed: Aristotle, Politics Gordon Arlen, “Aristotle and the problem of oligarchic harm: Insights for democracy” Thom Hartmann, The Hidden History of American Oligarchy Plato, Republic Luke Winslow, Oligarchy in America Jeffrey Winters, Oligarchy Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Mar 25, 2025 · 57 min
Ecstasy
Lasers, fog machines, silent prayers…and don’t forget the ecstasy! In episode 126 of Overthink, Ellie and David dive into the experience of ecstasy. They look at interpretations of ecstasy in the tradition of mysticism, where ecstasy has been figured as a loss of self. How common are experiences of ecstasy? Are they limited to religious contexts, or are there alternate avenues for entering ecstatic states? And what about MDMA and its relation to rave culture? In the bonus, they explore how well ecstasy fits into William James’ framework for mystical states, and consider the relationship between ecstasy, reason, and age. Works Discussed: St. Teresa of Avila, The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus Simon Critchley, On Mysticism: The Experience of Ecstasy James Landau, “The Flesh of Raving” Marghanita Laski, Everyday Ecstasy Wilhelm Mayer-Gross, “The Phenomenology of Abnormal Emotions of Happiness” Simon Reynolds, Generation Ecstasy Summer Heights High (2007) Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Mar 11, 2025 · 53 min
Trans Identity with Talia Mae Bettcher
How should we make sense of the Trump administration’s assault on Trans rights? In episode 125 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk to philosopher Talia Mae Bettcher about her new book Beyond Personhood: An Essay in Trans Philosophy, where she discusses everything from “genderphoria” to her notion of “reality enforcement” (a mechanism of transphobic oppression). In the interview, Dr. Bettcher expresses concerns about certain received views about trans identity, such as the “the wrong body” and “beyond the binary” views, which don’t capture the complexity of trans experiences. How can we move toward a more inclusive culture when it comes to trans identity? And, do we need to reject fundamental philosophical notions such as “person,” “self,” and “subject” in order to understand trans phoria? In the bonus, Ellie and David dive deeper into the idea of the interpersonal object and question whether or not the notion of the self is too far plagued by philosophical baggage and needs to be discarded. Works Discussed: Talia Mae Bettcher, Beyond Personhood: An Essay in Trans Philosophy Talia Mae Bettcher, “Evil Deceivers and Make-Believers: On Transphobic Violence and the Politics of Illusion” Jennifer Finney Boylan, “I’m a Transgender Woman. This Is Not the Metamorphosis I Was Expecting” Dean Spade, Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law Perry Zurn, Andrea J. Pitts, Talia Mae Bettcher and PJ DiPietro, Trans Philosophy Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Feb 25, 2025 · 54 min
Intuition
Our intuitions are never wrong… right? In episode 124 of Overthink, Ellie and David wonder what intuition actually is. Is it a gut feeling, a rational insight, or just a generalization from past experience? They talk about the role intuition has played in early modern philosophy (in the works of Descartes, Hume, and Mill), in phenomenology (in the philosophies of Husserl and Nishida), and in the philosophy of science (in the writings of Bachelard). They also call into question the use of intuitions in contemporary analytic philosophy while also highlighting analytic critiques of the use of intuition in philosophical discourse. So, the question is: Can we trust our intuitions or not? Are they reliable sources of knowledge, or do they just reveal our implicit biases and cultural stereotypes? Plus, in the bonus, they dive into the limits of intuition. They take a look at John Stuart Mill’s rebellion against intuition, the ableism involved in many analytic intuitions, and Foucault’s concept of historical epistemes. Works Discussed: Maria Rosa Antognazza and Marco Segala, “Intuition in the history of philosophy (what’s in it for philosophers today?)” Gaston Bachelard, Rational Materialism Gaston Bachelard, The Philosophy of No Gaston Bachelard, The Rationalist Compromise Immanuel Kant, The Critique of Pure Reason John Stuart Mill, A System of Logic Moti Mizrahi, “Your Appeals to Intuition Have No Power Here!” Nishida Kitaro, Intuition and Reflection in Self-Consciousness Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Feb 11, 2025 · 58 min
Breakups
It’s not you, it’s me… In episode 123 of Overthink, Ellie and David get into the highs and lows of breakups. What, if anything, is valuable about breakups? Does society’s emphasis on monogamy affect how we conceptualize the end of relationships? And what do you do if your ex still has your Netflix password? Your hosts discuss everything from breakups in the age of social media and chemical solutions to heartache to what the laws against domestic abuse and stalking can tell us about how society views breakups. Plus, in the bonus, they take a look at Kierkegaard’s love life and discuss whether it’s ever truly possible to breakup with someone for purely altruistic reasons. Check out the episode's extended cut here! Works Discussed: Brian D Earp et. al, “If I Could Just Stop Loving You: Anti-Love Biotechnology and the Ethics of a Chemical Breakup” Kelli María Korducki, Hard To Do: The Surprising, Feminist History of Breaking Up Pilar Lopez-Cantero, “The Break-Up Check: Exploring Romantic Love through Relationship Terminations” Ovid, Remedia Amoris Deborah Tuerkheimer, “Breakups” Jennifer Wilson, “The New Business of Breakups” Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jan 28, 2025 · 59 min
Writing
You might want to jot down some notes on this one! In episode 122, Ellie and David explore where writing began, the value of writing, and our reasons for writing. Is the widespread use of generative AI technologies, such as ChatGPT, a threat to creative and academic writing? How did writing originate in cuneiform, and how does Derrida's deconstruction of logocentrism encourage us to reconsider the privileging of speech over writing? Listen to it all write here, write now! Plus, in the bonus, they get into some of our most pernicious myths and misconceptions about writing. They talk about the tortured writer trope, the solitary nature of writing, and the connection of writing to class. Check out the episode's extended cut here! Works Discussed: David Abram, The Spell of the Sensuous Geoffrey Bennington and Jacques Derrida, Jacques Derrida Jacques Derrida, “Freud and the Scene of Writing” Jacques Derrida, Of Grammatology Jacques Derrida, “Signature Event Context” Jacques Derrida, Structure, Sign, and Play in the Discourse of the Human Sciences Joan Didion, “Why I write” Walter Ong, Orality and Literacy George Orwell, “Why I write” Plato, The Phaedrus Alva Noë, The Entanglement, How Art and Philosophy Make Us Who We Are Peter Salmon, An Event, Perhaps: A Biography of Jacques Derrida Andrew Robinson, The Story of Writing Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jan 14, 2025 · 57 min
Dark Moods with Mariana Alessandri
In a world that has developed a collective fear of the dark, how can we navigate the not-so-positive feelings that we experience? In episode 121 of Overthink, Ellie and David chat with philosopher Mariana Alessandri about her book, Dark Moods. They talk about how the obsession with light fuels toxic positivity, the ways shame amplifies dark moods, and the harmful effects of associating light with good and darkness with bad. Why does society disregard negative emotions? Does the medical field pathologize grief for good reason? And should we strive to make people feel better when they’re experiencing a dark mood? Plus, in the Patreon bonus, they consider the difficulties of experiencing emotions that lie in a gray area, different types of anger, and whether we need to move away from metaphors of light and darkness entirely. Check out the episode's extended cut here! Works Discussed: Mariana Alessandri, Night Vision, Seeing Ourselves Through Dark Moods Gloria Anzaldúa, Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience Plato, The Republic Miguel de Unamuno, The Tragic Sense of Life Support the show Substack | overthinkpod.substack.com Website | overthinkpodcast.com Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com YouTube | Overthink podcast See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Overthink

Masculinity

Neighbors

Black Women's Magic with Lindsey Stewart

Post-Truth

Burnout

Travel

Weirdness with Eric Schwitzgebel

Air

Earth

Water

Fire

Discretion with Barry Lam

Cleanliness

Oligarchy

Ecstasy

Trans Identity with Talia Mae Bettcher

Intuition

Breakups

Writing

Dark Moods with Mariana Alessandri