Episodes

8 episodes in this season

Dust and Dreams

68 min

Disintegrating This World

64 min

Constantly Risking Absurdity

68 min

The Prospects of Freedom

76 min

A Renaissance of Wonder

68 min

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Something to Say about Reality

72 min

Murmur of the Absolute

67 min

No Other End of the World

79 min

Ideas of the 20th Century

TV Series

20261h 12m

DocumentaryTalkWar & Politics

Now playing

Something to Say about Reality

Season 2 · Episode 6 · May 29, 2026

In lecture six, we analyze how cultural and political upheavals of the 1960s and 70s—including the Vietnam War and Watergate—generated moral confusion and skepticism about connecting mind to reality. We examine how these crises undermined trust in institutions, leadership, and shared moral frameworks. The lecture then turns to Saul Kripke’s theory of names as “rigid designators,” arguing that language can directly connect us to reality rather than merely to concepts. We also examine Joan Didion’s reflections on morality and self-respect, which suggest that beneath cultural disagreement lies a shared moral core grounded in survival, loyalty, responsibility, and love.

More details

Ideas of the 20th Century

TV Series

20261h 12m

DocumentaryTalkWar & Politics

Now playing

Something to Say about Reality

Season 2 · Episode 6 · May 29, 2026

More details