Mark Linsenmayer, Wes Alwan, Seth Paskin, Dylan Casey
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The Partially Examined Life is a podcast by some guys who were at one point set on doing philosophy for a living but then thought better of it. Each episode, we pick a short text and chat about it with some balance between insight and flippancy. You don't have to know any philosophy, or even to have read the text we're talking about to (mostly) follow and (hopefully) enjoy the discussion. For links to the texts we discuss and other info, check out www.partiallyexaminedlife.com. We also feature episodes from other podcasts by our hosts to round out your...
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Philosophy becomes a live practice here, carried through sustained argument, cultural criticism and close attention to how creative work gets made.
The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast makes abstract arguments audible by letting several voices test definitions, challenge examples and revise positions in real time.
A three-inch square gets cross-examined; bring your appetite for arguments that refuse to stay abstract.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A smart, cranky look at South Park's strange persistence after 28 seasons.
Pretty Much Pop treats South Park as a study in staying power, tracing how Trey Parker and Matt Stone built a show that started with self-distributed shorts and still seems willing to shift from year to year by season 28.
Hegel's law, guilt, and atomization become a live argument instead of a neat summary.
This episode keeps returning to Hegel's account of spirit, guilt, and the split between human law and divine law, then turns that pressure toward the Oedipus metaphor and the idea that action can bring the unconscious into view by becoming crime.
Hegel's civic calm gives way to Antigone's split obligations.
Part 2 of The Partially Examined Life stays with Hegel's Spirit section, moving from the beauty of ethical life toward the Antigone conflict. The discussion keeps circling the same knot from different angles: custom and communal life on one side, family duty on the other, with…
A sharp, funny take on why Stranger Things feels true even when it barely resembles real life.
The episode treats Stranger Things as a useful stress test for a bigger problem: how a show can feel emotionally honest while still leaning hard on heightened kids, exaggerated jokes, and the kind of friendship talk that rarely sounds that neat in real life.
A comic philosophy face-off that keeps testing what counts as evidence.
Philosophy vs. Improv plays like a comic face-off, with Mark Linsenmeier and Mary Hines bringing Elijah Dan, an actual philosophy professor in Canada, into a lively talk about belief, evidence, and what people accept as real.
A sharp look at Mel Brooks, collaboration, and the stories comedy legends tell about themselves.
Mel Brooks' career is treated less as a nostalgia piece than as a useful look at how comedy is actually built: by teams, recurring bits, and a willingness to leave space for other people's jokes.
A skeptical, lively discussion of Hamnet that weighs grief, Shakespeare, and awards-season suspicion.
Pretty Much Pop treats Chloe Zhao's Hamnet as a talky, skeptical take on Shakespeare, grief, and the awards-season logic behind prestige film.
A loose, funny interview that uses Hegel, absurdity, and self-mockery to make philosophy feel intimate.
John S. Hall treats absurdity as a serious route into Hegel, using the master-slave section to think through how people try to know one another.
Ira Glass frames weekly theme-driven segments spanning family secrets to Portland's protest conflict.
Shankar Vedantam unpacks the psychology behind relationships, careers, and money through researcher interviews.
David McRaney interviews researchers on cognitive bias, motivated reasoning, and why minds change.
Ryan Holiday pairs daily Stoic lessons with long-form guest conversations at his Texas bookstore.
NHPR's Jason Moon investigates the Bear Brook barrel murders and a New Hampshire wrongful-conviction case.
Russ Roberts interviews authors and economists on ideas from classical liberalism to AI.
The panel keeps working through Hegel on spirit.
Mark Linsenmeier and Mary Hines open with “Philosophy vs.
The Partially Examined Life hosts Mark Lintonmeyer, Seth Paskin, Wes Alwyn, and Dylan Casey work through sections 464-483 of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, covering his analysis of how law relates to society.
Kenneth Walker could be the surprise Super Bowl MVP.
Mark Lint Meyer talks with John S.
The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast's Pretty Much Pop discussion on Stranger Things focuses on why season 1 felt “made for” different ages, from 80s kids to 90s kids and their children.
The Partially Examined Life episode 383, part two, finishes Freud's Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego by moving from chapter 8 on love and hypnosis to chapter 9 on the herd and chapter 10 on the primal horde.
Pretty Much Pop spends the episode on South Park as it just finished its 28th season.
Robert Diebel walks through songs from across his catalog, beginning with The Forest from the Tree and working back through earlier records.
Rich Baker joins Mark Linsenmeier and Mary Hines on Philosophy vs.
Wes Alwyn and Mark Linton Meyer use Hegel’s “Unhappy Consciousness” to explain why the section in the Phenomenology of Spirit is harder than they expected, after already having covered stoicism, skepticism, and the self-consciousness chapter.
Second installment of The Partially Examined Life's discussion of Graham Harman's Object-Oriented Ontology.
The hosts continue their deep dive into Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, focusing on sections about ethical life, spirit, and the conflict between human law and divine law.
Mary Hines and Mark Linsenmeier interview musical improviser Jerome Kurtenbach about blending improv comedy with music, adapting to Zoom, and the philosophy of creativity.
The hosts continue their discussion of Graham Harman's Object-Oriented Ontology, focusing on how aesthetics and metaphor provide indirect access to reality, contrasting with literalism and mysticism.
The hosts discuss Graham Harman's book 'Object-Oriented Ontology,' exploring his Kantian-inspired theory that objects are real but inaccessible directly, critiquing scientism and engaging with topics like aesthetics, emergence, and fictional entities.
Mary Hines and Mark Linsenmeier talk with Jenny Hansen about how improv and philosophy both depend on listening, trust, and “yes, and” rather than rigid rule-following.
Pretty Much Pop’s “Oscars So Black?” centers on Lawrence Ware’s claim that a black film needs black creators behind the camera, not only black actors on screen.
The Partially Examined Life episode 385, part two, puts Wes, Dylan, Mark, and Graham Harman into a long argument about Kant, Hegel, Aristotle, and object-oriented ontology.
The hosts of The Partially Examined Life kick off 2026 by imagining they have only five episodes left, leading to a lively discussion of their philosophical bucket list topics, including Hegel, Heidegger, quantum mechanics, and recognition theory.
The hosts continue their discussion of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, focusing on how culture shapes individuality through a dialectical process.
Kavus Torabi discusses his journey from London math rock band Monsoon Bassoon through joining Cardiacs to becoming leader of legendary prog rock band Gong after David Allen's death.
In-depth film criticism panel examines Mel Brooks' entire filmography in light of Apatow's 99-Year-Old Man documentary.
The hosts debate Chloe Zhao's film Hamnet, based on Maggie O'Farrell's novel about Shakespeare's son.
Mark Lintonmeyer interviews Canadian guitarist Darren Michael Boyd about his shift from vocal bands to guitar-led instrumentals, discussing his creative process, influences like George Harrison and metal, and challenges in the music industry.
Philosophy vs.
The hosts dive into Hegel's 'Phenomenology of Spirit,' focusing on the spirit section to explore what society is.
Philosophy professor Elijah Dann discusses his journey from evangelical Christian to skeptic, exploring topics like critical thinking, religious experience, and the role of debate in universities.
Host Mark Lintonmeyer interviews British indie singer-songwriter Lande Hekt for Nakedly Examined Music, discussing her journey from founding punk group Muncie Girls at age 17 to her fourth solo album Lucky Now.
A roundtable discussion about the film adaptations of Andy Weir's novels Project Hail Mary and The Martian, focusing on emotional impact and personal reactions.
The hosts discuss sections 511-537 of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, focusing on how wealth and power affect people.
An interview with singer-songwriter Bill Pritchard discussing his career and playing songs from his albums.
A philosophy podcast discussing Kierkegaard's Concluding Unscientific Postscript and Galen Strawson's essay against narrativity.
The hosts discuss Hegel's concept of self-alienated spirit and how culture shapes individuals in the modern world.
The hosts discuss sections 438-463 of Hegel's Phenomenology of Spirit, focusing on the concept of divine law and the role of the family versus the citizen.
Two hosts blend philosophy and improvisational comedy in a humorous discussion about co-hostery.
A philosophical discussion on liberal democracy and its crisis, analyzing Patrick Deneen's book and historical context.
The hosts discuss the crisis of liberal democracy by analyzing texts from Lincoln, Pinker, Deneen, and Fukuyama.
Two hosts and a philosophy professor discuss theories of humor, including superiority, incongruity, and Freud's perspective.