Overthink

By: Ellie Anderson Ph.D. and David Peña-Guzmán Ph.D.
  • Summary

  • The best of all possible podcasts, Leibniz would say. Putting big ideas in dialogue with the everyday, Overthink offers accessible and fresh takes on philosophy from enthusiastic experts. Hosted by professors Ellie Anderson (Pomona College) and David M. Peña-Guzmán (San Francisco State University).

    © 2025 Overthink
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Episodes
  • Dark Moods with Mariana Alessandri
    Jan 14 2025

    In a world that has developed a collective fear of the dark, how can we navigate the not-so-positive feelings that we experience? In episode 121 of Overthink, Ellie and David chat with philosopher Mariana Alessandri about her book, Dark Moods. They talk about how the obsession with light fuels toxic positivity, the ways shame amplifies dark moods, and the harmful effects of associating light with good and darkness with bad. Why does society disregard negative emotions? Does the medical field pathologize grief for good reason? And should we strive to make people feel better when they’re experiencing a dark mood? Plus, in the Patreon bonus, they consider the difficulties of experiencing emotions that lie in a gray area, different types of anger, and whether we need to move away from metaphors of light and darkness entirely.

    Check out the episode's extended cut here!

    Works Discussed:
    Mariana Alessandri, Night Vision, Seeing Ourselves Through Dark Moods
    Gloria Anzaldúa, Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza
    William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience
    Plato, The Republic
    Miguel de Unamuno, The Tragic Sense of Life

    Support the show

    Patreon | patreon.com/overthinkpodcast
    Website | overthinkpodcast.com
    Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod
    Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com
    YouTube | Overthink podcast

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    57 mins
  • Disagreement
    Dec 31 2024

    From the holiday dinner table to the Twitter fandom wars, disagreements are inescapable. In episode 120 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk through different types of disagreement (e.g. disagreements online vs philosophical disagreements) and consider why we have such a tough time dealing with those who don’t see things as we do. Is the format of social media platforms to blame for the bad faith disagreements that occur on them? What role do confidence and conviction play in disagreement? Can we have a world without disagreement, or is disagreement an inevitable feature of our social lives? And how can we navigate the “shitstorm” when others refuse to agree with us? Prepare to turn on disagreement mode as you listen to two doctors of disagreement reason their way through it all. Plus, in the bonus, they discuss ways of overcoming disagreement, the failure of our education system, and the importance of community in online disagreement.

    Check out the episode's extended cut here!

    Works Discussed:
    Byung-Chul Han, In the Swarm
    Catherine Elgin, “Persistent Disagreement”
    Mark Fisher, Capitalist Realism
    Kathleen Kennedy, “When Disagreement Gets Ugly, Perceptions of Bias and the Escalation of Conflict”
    Thomas Kuhn, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
    Alex J. Novikoff, The Medieval Culture of Disputation
    Brian Ribeiro, “Philosophy and Disagreement”
    Ludwig Wittgenstein, On Certainty

    Support the show

    Patreon | patreon.com/overthinkpodcast
    Website | overthinkpodcast.com
    Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod
    Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com
    YouTube | Overthink podcast

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    1 hr
  • Driving
    Dec 17 2024

    Have you ever wanted to go on a road trip with the psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan? After listening to this episode, you certainly won’t! In episode 119 of Overthink, Ellie and David talk about the experience of driving and the moral and social dilemmas involved with it. How does driving alter our relationship with time and space? What is the “long distance truck driver problem”, and what does it have to do with animal consciousness? And how should we respond to the rise in self-driving cars? Buckle in and get ready for this ride into the philosophy of driving. Plus, in the bonus they dive deeper into the ethics of self-driving cars, exploring the repercussions hacking could have on self-driving cars. What moral philosophy should be programmed into the self-driving vehicles of the future? And who gets to decide?

    Check out the episode's extended cut here!

    Works Discussed:
    David Armstrong, A Materialist Theory of The Mind
    Kenneth Jackson, The Crabgrass Frontier
    Stamatis Karnouskos, “Self-Driving Car Acceptance and the Rule of Ethics”
    Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Phenomenology of Perception
    Catherine Millot, Life with Lacan
    Lynne Pearce, Drivetime
    William Ratoff, “Self-driving Cars and the Right to Drive”
    Mark Rowlands, Animal Rights: Moral Theory and Practice
    Paul Virilio, Speed and Politics: An Essay on Dromology
    Jamieson Webster, “Riding in Cars with Jacques Lacan”
    Andreas Wolkenstein, “What has the Trolley Dilemma ever done for us (and what will it do in the future)? On some recent debates about the ethics of self- driving cars”

    Support the show

    Patreon | patreon.com/overthinkpodcast
    Website | overthinkpodcast.com
    Instagram & Twitter | @overthink_pod
    Email | dearoverthink@gmail.com
    YouTube | Overthink podcast

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    58 mins

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