Men Of Ideas (EP07): Bernard Williams on “Linguistic Philosophy”

Details

Welcome to Week 3 of SADHO’s Short Course in Analytic Philosophy!

On June 16, we covered Phases I and II (as represented by Wittgenstein). And on June 30, we covered Phase III (as represented by Ayer).

This week, on July 14, we will cover Phases IV and V with Magee’s utterly masterful conversation with Bernard Williams—the episode that professional philosophers consider the best of the series.

Here’s an overview of the phases for reference:

Phase I (1900–1910) — Propositional realism (Moore and Russell)
Phase II (1910) — Common sense realism (Moore); logical atomism and ideal-language analysis (Russell, early Wittgenstein)
Phase III (1930–1945) — Logical Positivism (Vienna Circle, esp. Schlick, Carnap; A. J. Ayer)
Phase IV (1945–1965) — Ordinary-language analysis (late Wittgenstein, Ryle, Austin, Strawson, Grice)
Phase V (1965–TODAY) — [Potemkin Village, amalgam of complexified logic, maths, and physics worship, after destruction of AnaPhil by Quine, Gödel, Tarski, and so on].

We will savor and discuss three Magee interviews before inviting our Guest Expert, who will field all your by-then integrated questions about the Analytic Tradition. So, yes, we will have an educational super-festival with a Guest Expert, but only after doing “pure Magee for three.”

Now, here’s the usual ad copy for newcomers:

In 1978, Bryan Magee interrogated and then flawlessly clarified the greatest living philosophers of our day.

40 years later, these sessions remain the most astoundingly deep and intelligible philosophical discussions I’ve ever heard.

Magee’s skill as an interviewer is absolutely jaw dropping. Even if you have no philosophical training, you cannot help but be floored by Magee’s superhuman powers of recapitulation, clarification, promotion, connection, synoptic overview, and heart-fluttering betterment of every phase of the conversation. Magee is such a good interviewer that your previous heroes will seem like posturing frauds by comparison.

If you are listening at your best, and know the topic being discussed, you will find that Magee speaks for you.

METHOD

Watch this week’s episode prior to the discussion and we’ll go over your favorite parts during the show, many of which will be replayed live for review and discussion.

FULL PLAYLIST

Mar 10 — Episode 01. Isaiah Berlin on “Introduction to Philosophy”

Mar 24 — Episode 02. Rick Roderick on “Marx” (Hegel and Modern Life)

Apr 07 — Special Event ⟩ LIVE WITH HARRY CLEAVER

Apr 21 — Episode 03. Herbert Marcuse on “Frankfurt School”

May 05 — Special Event ⟩ LIVE WITH DOUGLAS KELLNER

May 19 — Episode 04. William Barrett on “Martin Heidegger“ + BONUS

Jun 02 — Special Event ⟩ LIVE WITH STEVEN TAUBENECK

Jun 16 — AnaPhil #1: Episode 05. Anthony Quinton on “Wittgenstein”

Jun 30 — AnaPhil #2: Episode 06. A. J. Ayer on “Logical Positivism”

Jul 14 — AnaPhil #3: Episode 07. Bernard Williams on “Linguistic Philosophy”

Jul 28 — Special Event ⟩ LIVE WITH SUPREME ANAPHIL MASTER