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Freud as philosopher!!!!!!!!!!!!! soooooooooooooo gooooooood. cant wait to read Void. its a void, lord.

I wonder if Doleres from Westworld in Season 1 is a good example of Feminine Impossibility.

это не философия..

I still don’t get the fizzy drink in the can thing. Aren’t you just drinking it because you like the flavour?

This reminds me of an incident recounted in the book Proust's Duchesses: Louis XIV had to have a fistula removed from his anus (pre-anesthesia) and passed out from the pain. But when he awoke, he told his worried court: "The man is suffering, but the king is fine."

Todd, can you name book which is suitable for beginners to study philosophy

Thank you! Excellent breakdown!

Hey I was wondering if you thought love was possible?

Love that for us.

As someone who did a lot of meditation, I think you are misrepresenting at least some of the more traditional forms of meditation found in both Western apophatic mysticism and at least some traditional forms of buddhism. If we accept your definition of alienation, then meditation at least as I studied and practiced it would is nothing other than sitting and ACTIVELY PRACTICING ALIENATION. The idea is that normally we identify with the stream of thoughts, perceptions, and sensations that we experience. In meditation, however, one steps back from that identification, and whatever experience occurs, like the neurotic patient avoiding conscription, one says "That's not it!" By taking the position of the observer of subjective experiences, we undermine the identity of those experiences with the subjective point of observation. The idea is that through meditation, one ultimately comes to recognize that there is nothing but a Void or Gap beneath all subjective identifications. And the next step would be to realize that nevertheless, as we are humans, we will continue to have thoughts and perceptions and sensations but now we can work with them from a space of non-identity and freedom rather than mistaking them as representing some kind of permanent essence. Basically this form of meditation is trying to undermine the idea of soul as some kind of substantial essence representing our true self. There is actually no-thing there that is stable and could serve as the basis for some kind of fixed and substantial identity. However, to be sure, what Zizek refers to as "Western buddhism" does often present meditation in the way you characterize it in your talk.

It does seem to be me to be the case that primary alienation is inaccessible, and that the only way to get beyond overidentification with a predetermined social position (which I consider to be 2nd order alienation) would not involve a return but rather somehow working through the 2nd order alienation so that we actually reach yet a further level of alienation. For me the idea that we could directly get back to primary alienation would still be some kind of fantasy of immediacy of access to what is really just a structural void that is not directly accessible to a thinking, speaking, socially mediated subject.

Hi Todd! Great joke at the start and very interesting way of looking at alienation. I must say that a lot hinges on how one defines alienation, and it's not clear to me that your use is consistent with other important ways of using the term. Anyway, I wonder what you think of the following logic. IF: (per this lecture) primary alienation is the basis of freedom, AND IF (following Marx 1844 ms): the species-being of humans is precisely freedom from any form of predetermined identity, IT FOLLOWS that in the McGowan framework, alienation from species being would actually be a SECOND-ORDER form of alienation, that is, socially imposed alienation from the fact of our constitutive alienation Or to put it in the form of a contradiction: NONALIENATION (as social identity) = ALIENATION (from species-being)

Interesting to note that William James translated Zerrissenheit as “torn-to-pieces-hood.”

If you know about it, do you have any thoughts on the infamous (or maybe just famous) Half Hour Hegel series by Professor Gregory Sadler? Would it be a good companion or would it just be a detriment compared to other secondary sources, or even just reading it by itself?

Absolutely fantastic, thanks again Todd Mcgowan!

...¿Me podrías recomendar la mejor traducción de FENOMENOLOGÍA DEL ESPÍRITU de Hegel en español?... Gracias...

How would you characterize the value added in learning the German? The perspective you have on these other translations seems to have come from your undergoing the ordeal of reading The Phenomenology in the original language. I have heard you say before that translation is a fetish and, as you said in this video, that it is a thankless job. My main concern is that now, for *some* reason, I have a desire to learn German so that I can read Hegel. So: Do you think that it is particular to Hegel's Phenomenology that the value of the original language gives this surplus value to the text? Would one get more out of other texts in German if I can read them in their original language? It's certainly given me pause to consider what the idiom does to the thinking. I've only had limited experience with languages other than English. I suppose I'm asking for you to do a video (someday maybe? Please and thank you.) on the value of learning other languages.

Is alienation ontologically prior to subjectivity?

Todd McG translation when? 🥺

6:37 reminded me of this hilarious/necessary statement from William Blattner’s guide to B&T: "Being: Macquarrie and Robinson insist on capitalizing the word "being." The capitalization does nothing but add an odd sense of mystery and obscurity to Heidegger's language, something that it certainly does not need. Thus, I will throughout write "being" with a lower-case "b."

This sounds like a good critique of 'identity' politics, particularly when woke identitarians see class as just another identity, when in fact it is a social and economic relation. In the UK, the Cass review has highlighted the physical and psychological harm done to vulnerable children who have been persuaded by activists promoting trans ideology that they can overcome their alienation and distress by identifying as a different gender. Gender turns out to be a nebulous phenomena particularly when advocates claim that gender is an internal identity - a kind of gendered soul that can be born in the wrong body. No wonder the whole edifice of trans ideology is starting to collapse. For distressed teenagers with mental health problems, a good place to start would be to embrace lack, dissatisfaction and uncertainty, as Todd advises.

Mr Todd can you do a video on psychosis and foreclosure so that we might be able to understand zizek’s argument?

How is this different from capitalist ideology presenting alienation as freedom?

27:00 Why do you associate this phenomenon with capitalism and not just simply human nature. I think no matter what time or place or circumstance man finds himself in the desire for more will always be present. "Man gets used to everything, the scoundrel." - Dostoevsky

Sacrifice and bliss - Joseph Campbell

"By seeking to create heaven on earth we have created hell on earth." ~U.G. Krishnamurti

Whatever you do pay no attention to the man behind the curtain

really enjoyed this.

The 2050 translation will be talking about dilly dallying with the cringe

Great lecture!!!

I was introduced to the Miller translation but now I love the clarity from the Baillie translation, thanks for the video

Who dey think gonna sublate dem Bengals?

Hello, I was wondering what the verdict was on this question in regards to the Science of Logic? Is it the di Giovanni translation over the Miller? Thanks!

joke was fantastic todd thank you for helping me on my reread of hegel

Ya, Marx wasn't an economist guys. The way you guys talk about consumption you make it sound like capitalism is solving it's own problem.

It would be awesome to see a video about all the books collection you have in your background.

Todd you always wear wild hats, they''re fantastic

Whatever translation Gillian Rose used has always been my guide in regards to Hegel.

Thanks Todd. Watching this later!

Hi Todd, apologies for being greedy but could you recommend a phenomenology reading guide ? What would you recommend to one of your students? Thanks

My takeaway after some reflecting is this: To the family, Gregor died when he transformed. He had only utilitarian value to them. The sister who brings Gregor food is portrayed sweetly, yet even she never even once tries to actually communicate with Gregor to find out if he really is just an insect now or not. Because of his horrible appearance I guess. The mother is the worst hypocrite of them all when she exclaims: "I must see my darling son!" yet cannot do it without fainting immediately. They had ample time to get used to the fact that Gregor is now this bug but still can't get over their utter revulsion of his appearance. If they actually loved him, they would have made it a priority to find out more ways to help and understand him besides just bringing him food and cleaning his room. This really hammers in Kafka's point that to the society at large, human has no inherent value except if they bring some value to it. If you no longer can function in a way expected of you, your life is forfeit and worthless. You are no longer worthy of even humane treatment, and are expected to just die to not inconvenience anyone with your existence. Edit: To clarify, I do not think that Kafka thinks by making this point that it is morally right to discard a human being this way. He was just making the point that this is how society at large sees the worth of a human life.

thank you todd!!!

The positive evaluation of alienation is very interesting, I think also defended by xenofeminists and zizek (identifying with the "plus" of LGBTQ+), and even back with lyotard in libidinal economy, and "difference by itself" in deleuze. All nicely tied together by identifying with excresions and excess in bataille. Nice stuff.

Such a great video thank you so much for this ❤❤

6:31 *extimacy*

You just made my day Todd! Thanks for this 😍😍😍😍

Hey Todd, any chance you have a Letterboxd? Or some other repository for your incredible film analysis/reviews?

Great discussion on and with the topics in the published work.

Thanks for putting this up. I always get so much out of you talking through these concepts.

What is your opinion on illiberal capitalism?