Cryptosophy

What is love? The various speeches in this dialogue attempt to answer this question, culminating in Diotima's claim that love is the desire to eternally contemplate and behold the form of beauty. Socrates then teaches his friends that philosophy supplies the means to do so. In this episode of Cryptosophy, Max and Doyle search for wisdom in one of Plato's most famous dialogues.

The Nicomachean Ethics is a deep psychological account of the role of emotion, virtue, and society in the pursuit of the good life. In this podcast, Max and Doyle reflect on Aristotle's virtue ethics and discuss how it contrasts with the popular morality of today's world. Of all the text discusses thus far on Cryptosophy, both Doyle and Max agreed that this text above all other should be read continually.

In this podcast, Doyle interviews Max, inquiring about his life and trying to learn as much as he can from him. At Cryptosophy, we believe that all persons are sources of hidden wisdom if only you have the patience to ask the most important questions and really listen to them. Max shared details of his religious tribulations, encountering Nietzsche, and writing his undergraduate thesis on Wittgenstein.

In this episode, Max and Doyle are joined by Nate, a self-proclaimed Platonist, to dive deep into the last half of the Republic. The messianic power of philosophy to save and direct us is a key take away from the text and this discussion.

Plato's Republic is often one of the first texts of philosophy that novices encounter. Unfortunately, sometimes first-time readers miss the point. The secret of the Republic is the narrative arc beginning with the first word of the dialogue. In this episode, Doyle and Max are joined by JP for a discussion of the first half of the dialogue.

Oedipus Rex is upheld by Aristotle as the archetype of Greek tragedy. In this episode, Max and Doyle reflect on the three surviving Theban plays by Sophocles: Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone.

In this episode, Max and Doyle reflect on the first of the three great tragedians: Aeschylus. The Oresteia is the only surviving complete trilogy of 5th-century Greek tragedy. The trilogy is composed of the Agamemnon, the Libation Bearers, and the Eumenides. We reflect on the nature of sin and tragic missing the mark--particularly on the phenomenon of repeating the sins of our forebears. We discovered that only by abdicating the 'eye for an eye' sense of justice can we overcome the sins of our past and move forward.

Doyle and Max going deep on the metaphysical and psychological significance of Hesiod's account of creation. We also did a bit of compare/contrast with the myth of creation in Genesis.

Finishing up our discussion of Homer's Iliad.

The first episode of Cryptosophy! Max and Doyle sketch their project--working through the Great Books of the Western tradition, starting with Homer's Iliad.