What's Left of Philosophy

In this episode, we discuss Terry Eagleton’s defense of religion. We focus on his diagnoses of the Enlightenment, modernism, and post-modernism as different kinds of post-religious movements. Post-modernism is the only “truly atheist” one, which is one reason it got along with capitalism so well. We also talk a lot about social and spiritual meaning and their importance to Left wing political projects.
This is just a short teaser of the full episode. To hear the rest, please subscribe to us on Patreon:
patreon.com/leftofphilosophy
References:
Terry Eagleton, Culture and the Death of God (Yale University Press, 2014).
Terry Eagleton, Reason, Faith, and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate (Yale University Press, 2009). 
Christopher Hitchens, God is Not Great (Atlantic Books, 2007).
Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion (Bantam Press, 2006).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN

In this episode, we discuss Brandon Terry’s 2025 book Shattered Dreams, Infinite Hope: A Tragic Vision of the Civil Rights Movement. There is little doubt that in US the Civil Rights Movement stands out as one of the clearest examples of Black politics in the social imagination. How we narrate the Civil Rights Movement tends to shape our expectations of politics and the future. But what happens when the resources of this tradition fall into crisis? What is the future of Black politics in a present increasingly disconnected from the past of the Civil Rights Movement? We work through the exhaustion of a certain form of Black politics in the present, the importance of judgment and historical examples for political action, and whether a tragic disposition can help us avoid naive optimism or paralyzing pessimism when faced with the ruins of our present.
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil | @leftofphilosophy.bsky.social 
References:
Brandon Terry, Shattered Dreams, Infinite Hope: A Tragic Vision of the Civil Rights Movement (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2025).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN

In this episode we talk about Max Horkheimer’s essay “Traditional and Critical Theory”, which serves as a kind of manifesto for the Frankfurt School of Marxist thought. We talk about how he defines these categories, reflect on whether the distinction holds up, and ask ourselves whether we can call ourselves critical theorists in the present. It turns out grasping oneself as part of a historically unfolding social totality is difficult, if you can believe it. 
Special thanks to our friends at the Critical Theory Working Group, who you should check out:
https://ctwgwebsite.github.io/
https://jamescrane.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil | @leftofphilosophy.bsky.social 
References:
Max Horkheimer, Critical Theory: Selected Essays, trans. Matthew J. O’Connell and others (New York: Continuum, 2002).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN

In this episode we discuss Georges Sorel’s 1908 Reflections on Violence. We focus on his central claim that all of socialism is concentrated in the idea or ‘picture’ of the general strike, scrutinizing his claim that the ‘myth’ of the general strike is even more important than its precise concretion. His emphasis on political myth gives rise to questions about his potential irrationalism and the consequent (mis)appropriation of his ideas by fascists. Finally, we address his distinction between the ‘proletarian general strike’ – which is violent and revolutionary – and the ‘political general strike’ which aims to win minor concessions instead of a transformed society.
This is just a short teaser of the full episode. To hear the rest, please subscribe to us on Patreon:
patreon.com/leftofphilosophy
References:
Georges Sorel, Reflections on Violence, ed. Jeremy Jennings (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999).
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN

In this episode, we introduce our new series on “Marxism and Religion.” At political, social, and spiritual levels, the series explores this complicated relationship for a transitioning age. We start with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who is a political and spiritual beacon for many of us and a democratic socialist by another name. Our discussion explores how MLK Jr. continues to shine light on the righteous path to liberation. 
leftofphilosophy.com | @leftofphil | @leftofphilosophy.bsky.social
References:
Martin Luther King, Jr., “Pilgrimage to Non-Violence”: 
https://www.gandhiashramsevagram.org/gandhi-articles/pilgrimage-to-nonviolence.php
Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter From a Birmingham Jail”: 
https://nul.org/news/letter-birmingham-jail
Martin Luther King, Jr., “Loving Your Enemies”:
https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/loving-your-enemies-sermon-delivered-dexter-avenue-baptist-church
Martin Luther King, Jr., “All Labor Has Dignity”:
https://truthout.org/articles/martin-luther-king-jr-all-labor-has-dignity/
Martin Luther King, Jr., “Where Do We Go From Here?”:
https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/where-do-we-go-here
Music:
“Vintage Memories” by Schematist | schematist.bandcamp.com
“My Space” by Overu | https://get.slip.stream/KqmvAN