Skip to content

Episode List - Recent First

33. Epicurean Answers To Academic Questions

Section titled “33. Epicurean Answers To Academic Questions”
  • Episode 332 - Episode 332 - The Stoic Failure To Grasp That Judgment Never Happens In The Senses |
    • Transitions to Book Two, Section 7 of Academic Questions. Roman statesman Lucullus presents the Stoic defense against skepticism: the senses, under good conditions with practice and skill, reliably grasp the truth. The hosts identify the critical Stoic error from the Epicurean perspective: Zeno treats the senses as delivering truth directly through a ‘grasping’ (katalepsis) of the object — whereas Epicurus holds that the senses are never right or wrong but only provide raw data, and that all judgment, without exception, happens in the mind.
  • Episode 331 - Episode 331 - Concluding Book One of Academic Questions |
    • Finishes Book One of Academic Questions (Section 12) and previews Book Two. Arcesilaus launches radical skepticism against Zeno’s kataleptic impression — asserting that not even Socrates’ claim ‘I know that I know nothing’ is certain. The hosts examine the self-defeating paradox: a skepticism so thorough it cannot even assert itself. Cassius argues this collapse of the academy opened the space for both the Stoic and Epicurean responses, with Epicurus having already diagnosed the root error before Arcesilaus fully developed it.
  • Episode 330 - Episode 330 - In Contrast With Epicurus, The Stoics Opt For Virtue At Any Cost And Make Controversial claims About The Senses |
    • Covers Sections 9-10 of Academic Questions. Varro presents Zeno’s Stoic ethics: virtue alone produces happiness; all else is ‘preferred indifferents.’ The hosts contrast this with Epicurus. Zeno’s physics: all things, including the soul and intellect, are material — fire is the fundamental element. Zeno’s epistemology introduces the ‘kataleptic impression’ (phantasia kataleptike) as the criterion of truth. Cassius and Joshua identify the critical Epicurean objection: the Stoics locate truth in the senses rather than recognizing that judgment always occurs in the mind.
  • Episode 329 - Episode 329 - Cracks In The Academy On Ideal Forms and Virtue Lead To The Emergence of Aristotle, The Stoics,And Epicurus |
    • Covers Section 9 of Academic Questions. Aristotle begins undermining Platonic ideal forms; his successor Theophrastus further erodes the doctrine by denying that happiness rests on virtue alone; Strato abandons ethics entirely for the study of nature. Zeno of Citium responds by doubling down on virtue as the only good. The hosts trace the two fracture lines splitting the academy: rejection of ideal forms and rejection of virtue as sufficient for happiness — the context in which Epicurus develops his own answers.
  • Episode 328 - Sensation - While Neither Right Or Wrong - As The Touchstone Of Reality |
    • Covers Section 8 of Academic Questions on the Platonic view of knowledge. Varro explains that the schools agreed the senses originate in knowledge but held that the intellect — not the senses — judges truth, and that true knowledge exists only in the mind’s grasp of eternal ideal forms. The hosts parse Epicurus’ key difference: senses are neither right nor wrong and never deliver opinions; all judgment occurs in the mind working on the raw data sensation provides.
  • Episode 327 - Intelligent Design vs Emergence |
    • Finishes Section 7 of Academic Questions. Varro concludes with the Platonic claim that nature is ‘sentient’ — governed by a divine soul, providence, and necessity. Joshua reads from Plato’s Timaeus on the Demiurge’s creation of the cosmos. Cassius presents Epicurus’ counter-argument through the concept of emergence — that complex properties including life, sensation, and intelligence arise naturally from atoms through void without any intelligent designer, citing David Sedley’s article on Epicurean anti-reductionism.
  • Episode 326 - Who Cares About Infinite Divisibility? And Why? |
    • Continues in Section 7 of Academic Questions on the Platonic view of nature. The hosts explain why infinite divisibility of matter matters philosophically: it is the Platonists’ way of insisting that nothing in this world is eternal, thereby requiring an eternal realm beyond the senses. Joshua discusses Zeno of Elea’s Achilles-and-tortoise paradox and its connection to the denial of motion. Cassius argues that the claim of infinite divisibility is itself a supernatural postulate without sensory foundation.
  • Episode 325 - The False Platonic Division of The Universe Into A Force Which Causes And That Which The Force Acts Upon |
    • Continues in Sections 6 and 7 of Academic Questions. Varro explains the Platonic division of nature into an active efficient principle and passive matter — a division that leads directly to intelligent design and divine providence. Joshua reads extensively from Plato’s Timaeus on the Demiurge as creator. Cassius quotes Nietzsche’s Twilight of the Idols on the Platonic hatred of ‘becoming’ and the senses as a direct precursor to Epicurus’ rejection of any reality beyond this world.
  • Episode 324 - Is Pleasure The Good Or The Enemy Of the Good? |
    • Continues in Section 6 of Academic Questions. The central question: is the good one thing (virtue for the Stoics, pleasure for Epicurus) or three things (mind, body, external goods)? Joshua works through Plato’s allegory of the cave to show why Platonists regard pleasure as a weight dragging the soul away from truth. Cassius explains why Epicurus places pleasure — broadly understood as everything not painful — as the philosophically necessary answer to the problem of the good.
  • Episode 323 - The Pre-Epicurean View: Three Divisions of Philosophy And Three Divisions of Goods |
    • Reviews Cicero’s Academic Questions Section 5, in which Varro presents the pre-Epicurean threefold division of philosophy (ethics, nature, and dialectic) and the corresponding three divisions of goods (mind, body, and external circumstances). The hosts note where Epicurus agrees and where he sharply diverges — especially in rejecting dialectic and basing knowledge on the senses, anticipations, and feelings rather than on logical manipulation of words.
  • Episode 322 - Epicurean Moral Outrage Against Socrates |
    • Continues the Cicero Academic Questions series. Focuses on Colotes’ and Philodemus’ Epicurean criticism of Socrates as an eiron — a hypocrite who professes ignorance while actually concealing confident opinions. Contrasts Socrates’ evasive method with the Epicurean philosopher’s therapeutic duty to speak frankly and guide students toward truth. Joshua discusses the moral outrage needed to resist Socratic and Platonic rejection of the senses.
  • Episode 321 - The Epicurean Criticism of Socrates For Denouncing Natural Science | Discussion
  • Episode 320 - Are the Good Of A Sheep And The Good Of A Man The Same? | Discussion

32. Understanding Epicurus Through Tusculan Disputations

Section titled “32. Understanding Epicurus Through Tusculan Disputations”
  • Episode 255 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 30 – Cotta Argues That Epicurean Gods Are As Despicable As Epicureans Themselves | Discussion
  • Episode 254 - The Skeptic Asks: Does Not Epicurus Undermine Religion As Much As Any Outright Atheist? | Discussion
  • Episode 253 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 28 – How The “Riddle Of Epicurus” Fits Into The Epicurean View Of The Gods | Discussion
  • Episode 252 - Why Reverence The Epicurean Gods? | Discussion
  • Episode 251 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 26 – How Niagara Falls Helps Us Understand The Flux, The Heap, And The Epicurean Gods | Discussion
  • Episode 250 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 25 – The Relationship Of “Images” To All Human Thought – Not Just To “The Gods” | Discussion
  • Episode 249 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 24 – Are The Epicurean Gods Totally Inactive, And Are We To Emulate Them Through Laziness? | Discussion
  • Episode 248 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 23 – Cotta Pushes The “Argument By Design” Against The Epicurean View That All Is Natural | Discussion
  • Episode 247 - Cicero’s OTNOTG 22 – Cotta Continues To Attack The Epicurean View That Gods Are Natural Living Beings | Discussion
  • Episode 240 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 15 - The False Allegation That “General Assent” Was The Epicurean Basis For Divinity | Discussion
  • Episode 241 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 16 - A Common Thread Between The Epicurean View of “The Gods” and “The Good” | Discussion
  • Episode 242 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 17 - Is Truth A Matter Of Logic? | Discussion
  • Episode 243 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 18 - From “All Sensations Are True” to Reasoning By Similarity And Analogy | Discussion
  • Episode 244 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 19 - Zeno’s Paradoxes - Profundity Or Gaslighting? | Discussion
  • Episode 245 - Cicero’s On The Nature Of The Gods - Part 20 - Right, Wrong, Or Incomplete? | Discussion
  • Episode 246 - Cicero’s On The Nature Of The Gods - Part 21 - Examining Epicurean Evidence-Based Reasoning? | Discussion
  • Episode 239 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 14 - The Dishonesty of Academic Skepticism vs. Epicurus’ Commitment To Truth Transcript | Discussion
  • Episode 238 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 13 - Velleius Erupts Against Stoic Fate and Supernatural God-Making | Discussion
  • Episode 237 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 12 - Isonomia And The Implications Of Infinity | Discussion
  • Episode 236 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 11 - Lucretian Support For Velleius’ Views of Epicurean Divinity | Discussion
  • Episode 235 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 10 - Velleius Explains the Epicurean Proleptic View of Divinity | Discussion
  • Episode 234 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 09 - Dealing With Marcus Aurelius And The Epicurean Canonical Basis for Divinity | Discussion
  • Episode 233 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 08 - An Epicurean Attack On The False God Of Stoicism | Discussion
  • Episode 232 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 07 - Velleius Attacks The Platonist And Aristotelian Views Of Gods | Discussion
  • Episode 231 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 06 - How would you live if you were certain that there are no supernatural gods and no life after death? | Discussion
  • Episode 230 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 05 - Velleius Attacks Misplaced Ideas of Divinity | Discussion
  • Episode 229 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 04 - Velleius Continues His Assault On Intelligent Design | Discussion
  • Episode 228 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 03 - Velleius Asks “What Woke The Gods To Create The World?” | Discussion
  • Episode 227 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 02 - Velleius Begins His Attack On Traditional Views Of The Gods | Discussion
  • Episode 226 - Cicero’s On The Nature of The Gods - Part 01 - Introduction | Discussion

29. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections

Section titled “29. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections”
  • Episode 225 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 30 - Cicero Argues That Commitment To Virtue Is A Bar To Pleasure | Discussion

28. Special Reading - The Letter of Cosma Raimondi

Section titled “28. Special Reading - The Letter of Cosma Raimondi”
  • Episode 224 - Letter of Cosma Raimondi Special Reading - The 1429 Letter of Cosma Raimondi - In Defense of Epicurus | Discussion

27. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Part 29

Section titled “27. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Part 29”
  • Episode 223 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 29 - Are Epicureans Undergoing The Exertions Of Life For Nothing More Than A Drop Of Honey? | Discussion

26. Special Episode - The Relationship Between Happiness And Pleasure

Section titled “26. Special Episode - The Relationship Between Happiness And Pleasure”

25. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 17 - 28

Section titled “25. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 17 - 28”
  • Episode 221 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 28 - Cicero Alleges Pleasures Of The Mind Cannot Offset Pain In Epicurean Philosophy | Discussion
  • Episode 220 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 27 - Cicero Attacks Epicurus’ End-Of-Life Decisionmaking | Discussion
  • Episode 219 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 26 - Cicero Continues His Attack On Epicurus’ Position On Pain | Discussion
  • Episode 218 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 25 - Can The Epicurean Not Distinguish Between Greater and Lesser Pleasures and Pains? | Discussion
  • Episode 217 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 24 - Does Luck Control Whether An Epicurean Is Happy? | Discussion
  • Episode 216 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 23 - Why Does Epicurus Say Length Of Time Does Not Contribute To Pleasure? | Discussion
  • Episode 215 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 22 - The Epicurean View Of Happiness | Discussion
  • Episode 214 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 21 - Cicero Argues For Idealized Friendship and Happiness Which Epicurus Rejects | Discussion
  • Episode 213 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 20 - Only Epicureans Define Pleasure As You Do! Why Do You Lie? | Discussion
  • Episode 212 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 19 - Can “Pleasure” Be Defended In The Public Square? | Discussion
  • Episode 211 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 18 - Battle Of The Images | Discussion
  • Episode 210 - Cicero’s On Ends - Book Two - Part 17 - Self-Approval As Pleasure | Discussion

24. Special Reading - Foundations of Epicurean Philosophy

Section titled “24. Special Reading - Foundations of Epicurean Philosophy”

23. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 09 - 16

Section titled “23. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 09 - 16”

22. Special Episode - Lucretius Today 200th Episode

Section titled “22. Special Episode - Lucretius Today 200th Episode”
  • Episode 200 - Lucretius Today 200th Episode: Retrospective, Recap, and Looking To The Future | Discussion

21. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 07 - 08

Section titled “21. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 07 - 08”

20. Interview With Dr. Marcel Boeri - Theory And Practice In Epicurean Political Philosophy

Section titled “20. Interview With Dr. Marcel Boeri - Theory And Practice In Epicurean Political Philosophy”

19. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 03 - 06

Section titled “19. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections - Parts 03 - 06”

18. Special Reading - “A Few Days In Athens” Chapter 16

Section titled “18. Special Reading - “A Few Days In Athens” Chapter 16”

17. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections Parts 01 - 02

Section titled “17. Cicero’s On Ends - Epicurean Sections Parts 01 - 02”

16. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 20-41

Section titled “16. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 20-41”
  • Episode 189 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 41 - Chapter 15 - Extension, Submergence, Revival - 04 | Discussion
  • Episode 188 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 40 - Chapter 15 - Extension, Submergence, Revival - 03 | Discussion
  • Episode 187 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 39 - Chapter 15 - Extension, Submergence, Revival - 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 186 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 38 - Chapter 15 - Extension, Submergence, Revival - 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 185 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 37 - Chapter 14 - The New Virtues 08 | Discussion
  • Episode 184 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 36 - Chapter 14 - The New Virtues 07 | Discussion
  • Episode 183 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 35 - Chapter 14 - The New Virtues 06 - Honesty | Discussion
  • Episode 182 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 34 - Chapter 14 - The New Virtues 05 | Discussion
  • Episode 181 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 33 - Chapter 14 - The New Virtues 04 | Discussion
  • Episode 180 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 32 - Chapter 13 - The True Piety 03 | Discussion
  • Episode 179 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 31 - Chapter 13 - The True Piety 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 178 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 30 - Chapter 13 - The True Piety 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 177 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 29 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 06 | Discussion
  • Episode 176 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 29 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 05 | Discussion
  • Episode 175 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 28 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 04 | Discussion
  • Episode 174 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 27 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 03 | Discussion
  • Episode 173 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 26 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 172 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 25 - Chapter 12 - The New Hedonism 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 171 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 24 - Chapter 11 - Soul, Sensation, and Mind 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 170 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 23 - Chapter 10 - The New Freedom 03 | Discussion
  • Episode 169 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 22 - Chapter 10 - The New Freedom 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 168 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 21 - Chapter 10 - The New Freedom 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 167 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 20 - Chapter 9 - The New Physics 02 | Discussion

15. Interview With Dr. David Glidden - Epicurean Prolepsis

Section titled “15. Interview With Dr. David Glidden - Epicurean Prolepsis”
  • Episode 166 - Interview With Dr David Glidden Lucretius Today Interviews Dr. David Glidden on “Epicurean Prolepsis” | Discussion

14. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 12-19

Section titled “14. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 12-19”
  • Episode 165 - DeWitt Chapter 9 “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 19 - Chapter 9 - The New Physics 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 164 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 18 - Chapter 8 - Sensations, Anticipations, and Feelings 05 | Discussion
  • Episode 163 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 17 - Chapter 8 - Sensations, Anticipations, and Feelings 04 | Discussion
  • Episode 162 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 16 - Chapter 8 - Sensations, Anticipations, and Feelings 03 | Discussion
  • Episode 161 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 15 - Chapter 8 - Sensations, Anticipations, and Feelings 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 160 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 14 - Chapter 8 - Sensations, Anticipations, and Feelings 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 159 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 13 - Chapter 7 - The Canon Reason and Nature 04 | Discussion
  • Episode 158 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 12 - Chapter 7 - The Canon Reason and Nature 03 | Discussion

13. Interview With Dr. Emily Austin - “Living For Pleasure”

Section titled “13. Interview With Dr. Emily Austin - “Living For Pleasure””
  • Episode 157 - Emily Austin Interview Lucretius Today Interviews Dr. Emily Austin - Part Two | Discussion
  • Episode 156 - Emily Austin Interview Lucretius Today Interviews Dr. Emily Austin - Part One | Discussion

12. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 01-11

Section titled “12. DeWitt’s “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Parts 01-11”
  • Episode 155 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 11 - Chapter 7 - The Canon Reason and Nature 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 154 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 10 - Chapter 7 - The Canon Reason and Nature 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 153 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 09 - The New Education 02 | Discussion
  • Episode 152 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 08 - The New Education 01 | Discussion
  • Episode 151 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 07 - The New School In Athens | Discussion
  • Episode 150 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 06 - Development of the School in Mytilene and Lampsacus | Discussion
  • Episode 149 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 05 - The Early Years of Epicurus | Discussion
  • Episode 148 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 04 - True Opinions And False Opinions About Epicurus | Discussion
  • Episode 147 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 03 - True Opinions And False Opinions About Epicurus | Discussion
  • Episode 146 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 02 - The Three Divisions of Epicurean Philosophy | Discussion
  • Episode 145 - “Epicurus And His Philosophy” Part 01 - Chapter 1 - Introduction | Discussion

11. Diogenes of Oinoanda - Excerpts From The Inscription

Section titled “11. Diogenes of Oinoanda - Excerpts From The Inscription”

The EpicureanFriends Forum -