#211 Catherine Wilson: Epicureanism, Atomism, Materialism, And Modernity
Dr. Catherine Wilson was until recently Professor of Philosophy at the University of York, and is now teaching part-time at the City University of New York, and also a writer. She holds degrees in Philosophy from Yale, Oxford and Princeton and has taught in the USA, Canada, and Germany. Dr. Wilson teaches and writes in the history of modern philosophy and on early modern science and also works in the areas of ethics and aesthetics with a special interest in the evolution of morality and the science behind visual experience. She’s the author of books like Moral Animals: Ideals and Constraints in Moral Theory, Epicureanism at the Origins of Modernity, and Epicureanism: A Very Short Introduction, and Metaethics from a First Person Standpoint: An Introduction to Moral Philosophy.
In this episode, I am joined by Dr. Wilson to talk about Epicureanism. We talk about its origins; some of its basic tenets, like materialism and atomism; how the epicureans thought about perception; and an early form of protodarwinism. We also refer to how the European early scientists and Enlightenment philosophers got influenced by Epicureanism. In the second part of the conversation, we discuss the Epicurean philosophy of life, and in what significant ways it diverged from Stoicism.
Time Links:
The origins of Epicureanism
Epicurean materialism, and the clash with Christian values
Atomism
Epicureans’ theory of perception
A form of protodarwinism
How early European scientists got influence by Epicureanism
Epicureanism, and the ancient philosophical traditions with no specialization
Epicurean philosophy of life
Pleasure, pain, and death for the epicureans and the stoics
The meaning of “carpe diem”
More sources of divergence between the epicureans and the stoics
Would the epicureans have been utilitarians?
Follow Dr. Wilson’s work!
Follow Dr. Wilson’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/2IK0nLF
Epicureanism at the Origins of Modernity: https://amzn.to/2In0Qpp
Epicureanism: A Very Short Introduction: https://amzn.to/31A2IRI
The Pleasure Principle: Epicureanism: A Philosophy for Modern Living: https://amzn.to/2Km1hBi
Free ebook Metaethics from a First Person Standpoint: https://tinyurl.com/yc7e4oc2