D.T. Suzuki’s Very American Zen
Zen was a conservative form of Buddhism in Japan that eventually became a way for Americans to find inner peace.
Discovering the Joy of Solitude While Social Distancing
Does the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century Romantic notion of solitude offer a lesson for those practicing social distancing?
3 Women Philosophers of the Enlightenment
They shaped the history of Western philosophical thought. It's past time to recognize their contributions.
Robert Brandom, a Philosopher’s Philosopher
Robert Brandom’s A Spirit of Trust, a groundbreaking new book on Hegel, seeks to unite analytic philosophy with continental.
Burn This Book!
Li Zhi’s exasperation with the corruption, greed, and superficiality of the powerbrokers in his society fueled his rebellious writing.
The Extremely Real Science behind the Basilisk’s Lethal Gaze
According to the extramission theory of vision, our eyes send out beams of elemental fire that spread, nerve like, to create the visual field.
Marxferatu: Teaching Marx with Vampires
For a younger generation trying to understand Marxism, the best way in may be: vampirism.
The Man behind the “New Man”
Otto Weininger's only book, Sex & Character, is a misogynist, anti-Semitic screed masquerading as philosophy. Yet it was enormously influential in fin-de-siècle Vienna.
That Time a Woman Rode Aristotle Around Like a Horse
In the Middle Ages, the legend of Aristotle and Phyllis exemplified the “Power of Women” trope.
How Early Feminist Writer Margaret Fuller’s Memoirs Were Rewritten
Margaret Fuller was one of the most-read Americans of the mid-nineteenth century, but then men started to edit her for posterity.