Go

          

Best Philosophy Audio Online

Best Philosophy Audio Online

Top 25 Free Philosophy Resources

We've put together a list of the top 25 free philosophy audio books, lectures, & podcasts available online. For the past three years we've featured dozens of free philosophy resources as part of our Free Resource of the Day Emails. From these resources we've selected the top 25 free philosophy audio books, lectures, and podcasts. You can check them all out by clicking the link below:

Top 25 Free Philosophy Audio Books, Podcasts, & Lectures

And here are the top 5 resources from this list:

1. Existentialism in Literature and Film Podcast

This is a full college course from the University of California-Berkeley entitled "Existentialism in Literature and Film". The "Existentialism in Literature and Film" course, taught by professor Hubert L. Dreyfus, cuts right to the roots of existentialist thought, looking at the works of Kierkegaard and Nietzsche, and examining Dostoyevsky's Brothers Karamazov in depth. It's an excellent philosophy course and it's free!

2. Plato - The Republic Podcast

The Republic by Plato is one of the most influential works of philosophy in history. In the form of Socratic dialogue, Plato's teacher and protagonist Socrates sets out to find an answer to the question: "What is justice?". Along the way Socrates discusses the ideal city-state and his theory of forms, which includes his famous allegory of the cave. This podcast contains all eleven books of The Republic unabridged. It is read by the professional British narrator Patrick Horgan and is available on MP3 download.

3. The Value of Philosophy by Bertrand Russell

Listen to the ideas of the great 20th century philosopher Bertrand Russell on "The Value of Philosophy", which comes from the final chapter of his 1912 book The Problems of Philosophy. In the essay he lays forth his conviction that although philosophy cannot come to any certain answers regarding the questions it asks, these questions are important in that they enlarge our views of the universe beyond the narrow viewpoints of practical men, who are concerned solely with the material world. The piece is well read by Paul Sunderland. You can now download this excerpt directly from LearnOutLoud on MP3!

4. The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli

ejunto.com is a site which features free mp3 downloads of historical and philosophical audio books (it's named after Benjamin Franklin's literary club called The Junto). They currently feature a free unabridged recording of The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli. This political philosophy classic describes how political leaders can obtain and maintain power. It is well narrated by Andrew Julow and available on MP3 download from ejunto.com.

5. Self Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Self Reliance is perhaps Ralph Waldo Emerson's most famous essay. This version, narrated by Brian Johnson from Zaadz, is both thought-provoking and inspirational. Ralph Waldo Emerson pushes the listener to break free of the dependence on society and the masses of man and to rely solely upon oneself. Always pushing us to follow our own nature & intuition, Emerson denounces those who allow themselves to be victims of society or history. He wants great men to rise from the limitations of cultural institutions and stand as giants casting shadows over the ages. Throughout the essay there is wisdom loaded in every sentence and it can be listened to again and again. Download this free classic audio book on MP3 directly from LearnOutLoud.com.

Classics of Western Philosophy: Volume 4

LearnOutLoud.com is pleased to present a new audio book for the month of April: Classics of Western Philosophy: Volume 4.

Volume 1, Volume 2, and Volume 3 have all been very popular, and with Volume 4, we continue our efforts to provide an overview of the philosophical ideas that have shaped our world. Here are the selections included in this volume:

  • On Benefits by Seneca
  • The Ethics by Baruch Spinoza
  • Essays, Moral and Political by David Hume
  • The Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant
  • The Critique of Practical Reason by Immanuel Kant
  • The Age of Reason by Thomas Paine
  • The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
  • The History of Philosophy by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

    Download this 2 1/2 hour audio book today.

    Classics of Western Philosophy: Volume 4

    The Giants of Philosophy

    The Giants of Philosophy series covers major philosophers and philosophies from throughout history and around the world. We are now offering a number of them on audio download at over 50% off the CD list price. The programs are authored by academics and historians and narrated by actors Charlton Heston & Lynn Redgrave.

    Each program is presented within a historical context and dramatized with "multiple voice" excerpts from relevant writings of the time along with numerous excerpts of the philosopher's own writings. These audio programs are just about the most entertaining and engaging way to learn about philosophy. To browse the titles narrated by Charlton Heston click below:

    Giants of Philosophy Titles Narrated by Charleton Heston

    And to browse the titles narrated by Lynn Redgrave (along with some other titles she narrates) click below:

    Giants of Philosophy Titles Narrated by Lynn Redgrave

    Here are the titles in The Giants of Philosophy series that we currently feature:

    Aristotle

    Avicenna and Medieval Muslim Philosophy

    Arthur Schopenhauer

    Baruch Spinoza

    Bertrand Russell and A. N. Whitehead

    Confucius, Lao Tzu, and the Chinese Philosophy

    David Hume

    Descartes, Bacon, and Modern Philosophy

    Friedrich Nietzsche

    Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel

    Immanuel Kant

    Jean-Paul Sartre

    Plato

    Soren Kierkegaard

    St. Augustine

    St. Thomas Aquinas

    Twentieth Century European Philosophy

    Voltaire and Rousseau

    William James, Charles Peirce, and American Pragmatism

    Learn from the Giants of Philosophy today!

    Philosophers in 90 Minutes

    You can now download the popular Philosophers in 90 Minutes series by British writer and academic Paul Strathern. In these audio programs Strathern is able to take on the most complex and profound philosophers in history and distill their life and ideas into 90 minutes. These programs serve as superb introductions to many of the great philosophers and Robert Whitfield provides masterful narration to them all. Here you can browse all 20 of the philosophers featured in the series:

    Philosophers in 90 Minutes Series

    And here they all are:

    Aristotle in 90 Minutes

    Confucius in 90 Minutes

    Descartes in 90 Minutes

    Dostoevsky in 90 Minutes

    Garcia Marquez in 90 Minutes

    Hegel in 90 Minutes

    Heidegger in 90 Minutes

    Hume in 90 Minutes

    Kafka in 90 Minutes

    Kant in 90 Minutes

    Kierkegaard in 90 Minutes

    Marx in 90 Minutes

    Nietzsche in 90 Minutes

    Plato In 90 Minutes

    Rousseau in 90 Minutes

    Sartre in 90 Minutes

    Schopenhauer In 90 Minutes

    Spinoza in 90 Minutes

    Thomas Aquinas In 90 Minutes

    Wittgenstein in 90 Minutes


  • --> LearnOutLoud.com E-Magazine No. 099 - April 7th, 2009