Monthly Archives: February 2010

Beyond the Stars

Posted on February 27, 2010 by profgiles

Partly human nature, but mostly a product of corporate media, we are bombarded with the message that we should be obsessed with stars – sports stars, movie stars, celebrities. There is a something to be said for celebrating excellence, after … Continue reading →

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Defending Nietzsche Contra Žižek

Posted on February 21, 2010 by profgiles

Slavoj Žižek claimed: “Is it not too simple to relieve Nietzsche of responsibility by claiming that the Nazis distorted his thought? Of course they did, but so did Stalinism distort Marx, so was every theory changed (betrayed) in its practico-political … Continue reading →

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Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir

Posted on February 8, 2010 by profgiles

I recently read someone on a philosophy forum write that Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir were “the archetypal soul couple of our time.” Seldom do I see such a desperate need for education! I am seriously grieved to think … Continue reading →

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Misunderstanding Berkeley

Posted on February 2, 2010 by profgiles

Perhaps no philosophy is more prone to misunderstanding and misinterpretation than George Berkeley (pronounced /?b?rkli/). There are two problematic areas of Berkeley’s philosophy. First is that his theory of “immaterialism”—that we have no proof that matter exists—offends common sense. Second … Continue reading →

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