You are an experience machine, everything that has ever happened to you and everything that will ever happen to you is experience. Reflecting on your experience offers a unique insight into the nature of reality and forms the basis for the philosophical methodology of phenomenology. In this episode we explore phenomenology from its inception by Edmund Husserl in the early 20th century, to Martin Heidegger's exploration of being-in-the-world, the embodiment of phenomenology as described by Maurice Merleau-Ponty and its influence on the applied phenomenology of Iris Marion Young's work on femini ..read more

In this brief reflection, I consider the idea of psychological sanctuary, it's importance and its dangers.  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/thehereandnowpodcast ..read more

The cognitive revolution in psychology began in the mid 20th century and supplanted behaviourism as the dominant theoretical paradigm explaining human cognition and behaviour which continues today. We explore the origins of cognitive psychology, what it has revealed about the workings of the mind, cognitive maps and mental models, why it is like a computer but not like a computer, neural networks, and why despite great advances, it fails to capture the totality of what it means to be human. Show notes Cognitive psychology - E. Bruce Goldstein  (2018) Cognitive psychology and its implica ..read more

In part three of power month we explore the postmodern conceptualisation of power as existing within the institutions and structures of society. Rather than something held by individuals, power is intangible and diffused throughout our social norms and values. We consider how this line of thinking came to be and what it means for our understanding of power in the modern world. Master-slave dialectic - Hegel Power - the dialectic of control and class structuration - Anthony Giddens Jean Francois Lyotard (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy) Foucault: Power is everywhere Philosophize This! podc ..read more

Nathalie Wendt is a performing artist, puppeteer and all round creative talent based in Berlin. She is host of The Bullet by Nathalie Wendt, an intriguing podcast which explores philosophy and the nature of reality through the medium of performance audio. We discuss Nathalie's background and approach to the performing arts, the blurring of lines between the real and the imagined, the nature of objective and subjective reality and more. https://nathaliewendt.weebly.com/      The Bullet by Nathalie Wendt Nathalie Wendt Instagram The Here and Now Podcast on Facebook The Here and ..read more

Behaviorism is a tradition within the field of psychology which came to prominence during the early to mid 20th century through the work of John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner. It includes the theories of classical and operant conditioning and was considered to explain all of human behavior. It has since been superseded by the cognitive revolution, however the principles of behaviorism can be found throughout modern psychology and society itself which we explore in this episode. Show notes Ivan PavlovJohn B. Watson B. F. SkinnerEdward ThorndikeAlbert BanduraClassical conditioningLittle Albert e ..read more

The prevailing philosophical paradigm underpinning the physical sciences is materialism, also known as physicalism. Simply, everything that exists is material in some sense. However there are many concepts which seem immaterial so how are these reconciled? In this episode we briefly explore materialism and it’s issues.  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/thehereandnowpodcast ..read more

To kick off the new year I recently spoke with Professor James Tartaglia of Keele University about nihilism and the meaning of life. It turns out, there isn’t one. But all hope is not lost as we also discuss what a modern day philosopher does, what nihilism means for everyday life, how to situate ethics in a meaningless universe, the paradox of absurdism, how to respect the views of others, the difference between evaluative and descriptive statements, the sense of self, and why seeing life as nihilistic is not as bad as it seems. Show notes Professor James TartaligaPhilosophy in a meaningles ..read more

We conclude our brief exploration of existentialism with this final chapter on its darkest philosophical interpretation, nihilism. Nihilism means literally, an ideology of nothing, which has led philosophers to a range of conclusions from the destruction of everything to the, whatever. We briefly consider the implications of nihilism, whether it is really that bad, and finally conclude with a few thoughts on what to fill the emptiness of an meaningless existence with. Happy new year! Show notes Macbeth Nihilism - The internet encyclopaedia of philosophy A defence of nihilism - J Tartaglia an ..read more

An area of existentialist philosophy is absurdism which considers the conflict between the human tendency to seek inherent value and meaning in life and the inability to find these with any certainty. The work of French nobel prize winning writer and philosopher Albert Camus' forms the source material for this episode, specifically his most well known essay The Myth of Sisyphus.  Show notes Absurdism Albert Camus The myth of Sisyphus – Albert Camus Band of Brother hopeless speech  Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/thehereandnowpodcast ..read more