From the Editors Archives - Page 93 of 170

Feature

Is Alex Israel for Real?

Sun, sincerity and simulacra in SPF-18

April 2, 2018 • by Nicola Sayers

The campy, nostalgic, Hollywood-inspired works of young(ish) artist Alex Israel would not be out of place as the scenery for a nineties-California-themed party, yet they regularly sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars – sometimes more – and he has had solo exhibitions in prestigious galleries globally. Israel’s first major ...

Feature

In Love’s Shadow

Reflections on love at the Night of Philosophy

March 31, 2018 • by Rossen Ventzislavov

In the title track from his album Station to Station, at the junction where the music resolutely picks up pace, David Bowie sings: “It’s not the side effects of the cocaine. I’m thinking that it must be love.” [1] In contrast to the accelerating beat, the lyric is riddled with irresolution. Is love ...

Feature

The Radical Center and The Politics of the Gray

Notes on the implications of the social condition for an understanding of politics

March 30, 2018 • by Jeffrey C. Goldfarb

Over the past three months, I have been publishing weekly Gray Friday posts, reflecting on the events of the day and enduring human problems, and considering how contributions to Public Seminar inform my appreciation of the beauty of the gray. Today, I will begin to explain the political implications I ...

The Radical Center and The Politics of the Gray

Feature

Courage Before the Break

Agnes Heller’s Theory of “Radical Needs” Revisited

March 30, 2018 • by Max L. Feldman

“Good persons exist, how are they possible?” With this question, inimitable Hungarian philosopher Agnes Heller outlines her philosophical territory. As readers of critical theory, it is hard to know how to begin expressing our admiration for the energetic grande dame of our tradition. One anecdote might suffice: Heller’s mentor, the great, but ...

Education

Dear NRA, We Are Here to Stay

A reflection on gun violence, teenage political passion, and possibility

March 30, 2018 • by Margo Pedersen

I struggled very much with writing a piece about National Walkout Day. I have so many thoughts and opinions swirling in my head about this action and the subsequent events that I am almost afraid to put them down on paper, for fear I will leave something out. I also ...

Feature

Stoicism and Love, Not a Contradiction

Symposium on Love

March 30, 2018 • by Massimo Pigliucci

Plato’s Symposium, written between 385 and 370 BCE, is one of the classics of Western philosophy, and indeed is a sheer pleasure to read. Not only we are treated to a fun (if utterly non factual!) story by the playwright Aristophanes on the origin of the idea of soul mates, ...

Feature

People Falling All Around Us

Why the killing of Marielle Franco?

March 29, 2018 • by Marianna Poyares

On the night of the 14th of March, elected councilwoman for the city of Rio de Janeiro, Marielle Franco, was shot dead in her car while returning from an event dedicated to black women’s empowerment. Nine gunshots were fired against the car, four of which hit Marielle directly in the ...

Feature

Symposium on Love

Intermezzo sub species aeternitatis

March 29, 2018 • by Chiara Bottici

It is 5.30 am, that time of the night when the darkness awaits for the light, like an intrepid lover, who has been alone for too long. It is a time of passage, when everything is still dark, but we can already hear the noise of the day break. Day ...

Feature

Cambridge Analytica, the Austin Serial Bomber, and Stanford’s “Manel”

Past Present Episode 124

March 28, 2018 • by Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, Nicole Hemmer and Neil J. Young

In this week's episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki debate the historical significance of Cambridge Analytica and its relationship with Facebook, a serial bomber in Austin, and an all-white, all-male history conference at Stanford.

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Cambridge Analytica, the Austin Serial Bomber, and Stanford’s “Manel”

Feature

On Leaping Into Love

Night of Philosophy Love Symposium

March 28, 2018 • by Skye C. Cleary

Remember the last time we had this dinner party, Aristophanes got drunk and went on a rant about soulmates? Here we are -- almost 2,500 years later -- and people still believe in this myth. Everyone seems to have forgotten that Aristophanes was joking! When we fall in love, it does feel ...