I’m Self-confidencing in the Rain — The new term at the local university means a faculty meeting followed by a faculty dinner. A dinner in the Czech Republic means beer. Lots of beer. There is often some food involved too. After a few hours eating, drinking, and talking philosophy and politics with my colleagues, it was…

Terry McMullen, host of “What’s the Value?” podcast, interviews me. — Some of the best podcasts are ones made, not by corporations or celebrities, but by real people. One of the best I have found is “What’s the Value?” by Terry McMullen. Terry is a deep thinker who interviews people starting with one simple question — “what’s the value?” What is…

Patience, definitely, but also a few things about the industry. — I am a philosophy professor and writer, and so far, I have published five books and many articles. I have spent the last six months researching ways to market myself and my writing, looking to hire someone as a publicist or marketing consultant. I have read countless articles and blog…

I am sick therefore I am . . . something else. — Over the past two weeks I was laid up with flu. All . . . of those two weeks. I slogged through my days with only enough energy to perform the most basic tasks. I am mostly recovered now. As I lay in bed one day nursing my symptoms, it…

Not Absolutely Nothin’, but . . . — The last Thursday in November means something to some people. Why should it? It’s fine if it does, that’s not my question. Why do we do what we do when we do it and how we do it? That’s my question. Why perform these rituals of life? Philosopher David Hume…

It’s a simple hypothesis: I have the ability to choose freely what actions I will take. Whether that hypothesis is correct — or its opposite is correct, that our choices are determined by external forces — is impossible to prove by reason. Or is it? William James observed that generating…

I wish I felt sadder about it than I do. — I am a philosopher, heart, mind, and soul, so today I am thinking of two philosophers’ ideas. One is Martin Heidegger’s realization that we are thrown into the world. …

“I am I and my circumstances” — Spanish phenomenologist and existentialist José Ortega y Gasset (1883–1955) crafted a philosophy of life from elements taken from John Stuart Mill, William James, Edmund Husserl, and Immanuel Kant. He believed that the purpose of philosophy is to challenge our beliefs and prejudices to open up new ideas that better explain…

I’ll always be American, but … — I was born and raised in the United States. I am an American. I will never not be an American. I left the United States ten years ago today, not out of any negative feelings, but to forge a new future for myself. As time passes, I find myself less…

A moment that was formative for my worldview — My childhood was one of isolation. My father, who died not long ago, was antisocial; he never wanted other people in his house and he never went anywhere other than to work. My mother, bless her, was young and insecure, especially about her young child (me). As she told me…

It Matters How We See Ourselves and Others — Marcus Aurelius was ruler of the Roman Empire at arguably its height of power and prosperity. He nevertheless saw himself as a mere man, one compelled to be Emperor, and in no way greater than the common people. He just happened to be Emperor, and in the power vested in…

People have asked me to write more on the topic of our thoughts. — My article dissecting a claim that all thoughts are illusions, quickly became a big hit. Many people want to delve into the topics of who we are and how we perceive the world. They are very important topics and important to talk about honestly, without cliches or gimmicks. …

…but I’m really talking about the human perceptions of time. — Yes, time. Yesterday, my spouse reminded me that this year is one of those decade-defined anniversaries of my graduation from high school. It honestly had never crossed my mind. I was too busy living in the present. Humans do grant special significance to anniversaries ending with the zero digits. No…

I heard a celebrity spout a mistaken thought and had to respond. — Join Medium with my referral link - Douglas Giles, PhD Read every article from Douglas Giles, PhD (and thousands of other writers on Medium). Your membership fee directly…dgilesphilosopher.medium.com Okay, that headline is unfair because “Buddhism” is not a discrete entity but has many forms. However, that is part of my point. Read on, please.

A thought experiment on how to think about human action. Rough draft based on some of my earlier writings. — We are all individuals embedded in a world. We each have a certain degree of freedom that is limited by the reality that we all share a physical world and a human society. …

By the look of things, not many. — Does Anyone Understand What “Freedom” Means? Janis Joplin didn’t. Anarchists don’t. Trump doesn’t, nor do his followers. Freedom is a word many people use, but few people have any substantial understanding of the meaning of the concept. To mention that fact isn’t cynical or disparaging. The concept of freedom, like…

What is the core of morality? Here are two views that are often left out of discussions of moral philosophy. — Here is yet another article introducing two underdiscussed philosophers who provide valuable insights. Buber and Levinas had no direct interaction that I know of, but their ideas about what morality is have some interesting overlaps. Martin Buber — I and You Martin Buber (1878–1965) was an Austrian Jewish existentialist and interpreter of Jewish spiritual traditions. Buber…

It’s complicated. — How much can you change your life? How much can you change who and what you are? It’s complicated. Let’s insert some philosophy into this topic. Video and text versions below. Reality Exists Between Extreme Viewpoints On the one hand, I get crap from some of my professor colleagues…

My book on using Dasein to understand human behavior. — Did you know that I’m far more than just another pretty face on Medium? I’m a professional philosopher, having taught for over 20 years, and recently started writing books on philosophy. My latest book is Individuals in the Social Lifeworld in which I expand on Martin Heidegger’s concept of Dasein…

Another brilliant philosopher suppressed by academia — Whitehead started off his academic life as a professor of mathematics. With Bertrand Russell, he wrote Principia Mathematica, perhaps the most dense book ever written. But like Ludwig Wittgenstein, Whitehead abandoned Russell’s analytical, reductionist view of the world and became a philosophy professor. In a series of books beginning with…