Episode 1: Ressentiment

In this episode of Daybreak, we delve into the troubling psychological condition Nietzsche termed ‘ressentiment’, a condition involving toxic, vengeful anger. The discussion considers a paper by Andrew Huddleston, which considers several real-world examples of ressentiment including the Isla Vista tragedy of 2014 and the Charlottesville rally of 2017.

Joining us in the studio, Andrew develops Nietzsche’s framing of ressentiment into a modern, free-standing theory and unearths its relevance for contemporary social dynamics. With Andrew Cooper, Eileen John, and Timothy Stoll, Andrew discusses the hidden forces that shape grievance, power struggles, and transformation in our world today. Here’s a link to Andrew's paper.

Episode 2: Hegel's Master-Slave Dialectic Unpacked

In this episode we chat with Joe Saunders to tackle one of philosophy’s most enduring and provocative ideas: Hegel’s master-slave dialectic. Central to Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit, the master-slave dialectic captures the struggle for recognition, the dynamics of power, and the evolution of self-consciousness through conflict.

In his talk at the Warwick Post-Kantian Seminar, Joe explores what is morally wrong with the master’s dominance over the slave. Tune in for an engaging examination of Hegel’s philosophy and its far-reaching implications for human relationships, societal structures, and political life. Here's a link to Joe's research.

Episode 3: Heidegger's Artwork Essay

What does it mean for a painting, a sculpture, or even a building to disclose Being? In this episode of Daybreak, we consider Heidegger’s claim in The Origin of the Work of Art that art is a way of revealing truth. Our guest, Jensen Suther, unpacks Heidegger’s vision of art as an ontological event.

In his talk at the Warwick Post-Kantian Seminar, Jensen explores how Heidegger’s ideas challenge conventional notions of artistic representation and why they still matter for philosophy, culture, and artistic practice today. Here's a link to Jensen’s research.

Episode 4: Beauvoir Beyond Existentialism (available 14 April)

Simone de Beauvoir is often placed in the shadow of Sartre, read first and foremost as an existentialist first. But what if we’ve been missing something crucial? In this episode of Daybreak, we uncover Beauvoir’s critical phenomenology—a method that doesn’t just describe experience but interrogates the structures of power, embodiment, and oppression that shape it.

This episode explores a recent paper by Johanna Oksala, “The Method of Critical Phenomenology: Simone de Beauvoir as a Phenomenologist”. With Tobias Keiling, Clarissa Müller-Kosmarov, and Andrew Cooper, Johanna identifies how Beauvoir reworks phenomenology to account for gender, freedom, and lived experience in ways that surpass Husserl and Heidegger. What does it mean to approach philosophy as both description and critique? And why is Beauvoir’s method still urgent today? Here's a link to Johanna’s paper.

Episode 5: Schopenhauer and the Frankfurt School (available 21 April)

In this episode of Daybreak, we explore the intriguing connection between Schopenhauer’s radical pessimism and the Frankfurt School’s critique of modernity. Drawing from Schopenhauer sobering vision of existence as “hell on earth”, thinkers like Benjamin, Adorno, and Horkheimer developed a powerful critique of capitalism, ideology, and social domination.