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Peter Adamson

@histphilosophy.bsky.social

Professor of Philosophy at the LMU in Munich; hosts podcast about the History of Philosophy... without any gaps. www.historyofphilosophy.net

8,924 Followers  |  1,547 Following  |  653 Posts  |  Joined: 28.09.2023
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Posts by Peter Adamson (@histphilosophy.bsky.social)

Did women do philosophy in the Middle Ages? When we think of the periods in European history when women were able to do philosophy, the Middle Ages may hardly come to mind as providing favourable conditions for this activity.

Upcoming online talk about women philosophers in the middle ages:

www.festival.cam.ac.uk/events/did-w...

#philsky

09.03.2026 15:57 β€” πŸ‘ 16    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Boom tish! I did do that joke in the podcast already but it bears repeating.

09.03.2026 13:10 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
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Theophrastus on First Principles Cambridge Core - Archaeology: General Interest - Theophrastus on First Principles

#openaccess until March 20: a book on Theophrastus on First Principles

www.cambridge.org/core/element...

#philsky

09.03.2026 11:22 β€” πŸ‘ 18    πŸ” 4    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Probably because they know they exist?

09.03.2026 06:35 β€” πŸ‘ 70    πŸ” 11    πŸ’¬ 5    πŸ“Œ 0
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It's a special occasion this week, as we start to look at Malebranche on #HoPWaG! Starting with his solution to the problem of evil.

www.historyofphilosophy.net/malebranche

#philsky #philosophy #podcast #malebranche

08.03.2026 17:04 β€” πŸ‘ 27    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 1

It looks a bit like it could mean the thesis that God does after all play dice?

07.03.2026 13:19 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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PhD-Candidate (4 years) for the project β€œThe Late Scholastic Transformation of Hylomorphism. Philosophical Discussions of Form and Matter in Context, 1400-1600” (TRANSFORM) Intested in core concepts of medieval metaphysics?

Funded PhD position for medieval scholasticism:

www.kuleuven.be/personeel/jo...

#philosophyjobs

07.03.2026 13:19 β€” πŸ‘ 32    πŸ” 17    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

In tomorrow's new #podcast we'll start to look at the author whose name is synonymous with occasionalism: Malebranche!

Though in this first episode I'll be focusing on his theodicy, with occasionalism coming along in the following episode.

#philsky #malebranche

07.03.2026 09:34 β€” πŸ‘ 16    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1
Going to California | History of Philosophy without any gaps Like Led Zeppelin once upon a time I am "going to California" where I'll be giving several talks in late March and early April. Mostly at Berkeley:March 17, 5 pm: The Anatomy of Avicenna’s Philosophy: the Logic of Existence and the Flying ManMarch 21: One-day conference on Grounding in History of Philosophy (I'll be speaking on grounding in Neoplatonism)

And for more info about my talks at Berkeley in the coming weeks you can go here:

www.historyofphilosophy.net/going-to-cal...

#philsky

06.03.2026 19:44 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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PATH+: Peter Adamson: Logic, Language, and Assent in Islamic Philosophy

I'll be speaking at Stanford on March 31, about logic and language in Islamic philosophy! Here's the info:

events.stanford.edu/event/path-p...

#philsky

06.03.2026 19:43 β€” πŸ‘ 22    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Day 5 of #WomenWhoRethoughtTheWorld: philosopher and historian Anna Julia Cooper!

Cooper rethought 19th century ideas of progress to define race and foreground women. To quote bell hooks: β€œone of the first black activists to urge black women to articulate their own experiences.”

#blackhistory

05.03.2026 13:26 β€” πŸ‘ 20    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Ha thanks! I was actually more proud of the title for the episode on the Counter-Reformation: "Don't Give Up Pope"

05.03.2026 15:49 β€” πŸ‘ 9    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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We warmly welcome Theodore R. Brennan @cornelluniversity.bsky.social as #CASFellow. As a specialist in ancient Greek philosophy, he will collaborate with Peter Adamson @histphilosophy.bsky.social. www.cas.lmu.de/de/personen-...

05.03.2026 10:07 β€” πŸ‘ 7    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

A student asked me resources to work on a comparison between virtue ethics in Aristotle and in Sanskrit philosophy. Now, let's bracket the problems of comparison in general.
1/
#Philosophy #philsky #SanskritPhilosophy

05.03.2026 00:18 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
Post image 04.03.2026 22:02 β€” πŸ‘ 21    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1

LMU Munich's Professor of Late Ancient and Arabic Philosophy, Peter Adamson (@histphilosophy.bsky.social), will give a number of talks in California in March & early April. More info here: www.historyofphilosophy.net/going-to-cal... #philosophy

03.03.2026 22:31 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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The Eloquent Peasant & Egyptian Justice The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant is a literary work from the Middle Kingdom of Egypt (2040-1782 BCE) which illustrates the value society placed on the concept of justice and equality under the law...

One of the greatest exemplars #MdwNfr was devoted to #MAat (truth, balance, order, law, morality, justice, breath, life): the Sekhti-nefer-medu (#EloquentPeasant).
www.worldhistory.org/article/1127...
www.britishmuseum.org/sites/defaul...

04.03.2026 15:37 β€” πŸ‘ 6    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

Iβ€˜ll ask if the budget will accommodate that. Oh, and the height of the doors.

04.03.2026 07:12 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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Here is the poster for my public lecture at Berkeley.

03.03.2026 21:37 β€” πŸ‘ 12    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
Going to California | History of Philosophy without any gaps Like Led Zeppelin once upon a time I am "going to California" where I'll be giving several talks in late March and early April. Mostly at Berkeley:March 17, 5 pm: The Anatomy of Avicenna’s Philosophy:...

If you're in striking distance, come see me speaking at Berkeley in California in the coming weeks! Info here on the #HoPWaG blog (I will add more links as I get them):

www.historyofphilosophy.net/going-to-cal...

#berkeley #philsky #philosophy

03.03.2026 21:32 β€” πŸ‘ 15    πŸ” 6    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1
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Podcast The New Voices podcast consists of conversations about women philosophers and individuals from other groups who have been underrepresented in the history of European and Western philosophy: their...

NewπŸŽ™οΈepisode:
Julia Jorati (UMass Amherst) talks about the effects of slavery on enslaved people and the role of those effects in 18th-century antislavery arguments, drawing on voices shaped by lived experience of enslavement and racism #philsky

Listen: www.newnarrativesinphilosophy.net/podcast.html

02.03.2026 17:37 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Yes good question! I think to answer that one needs to turn to other aspects of the Zhuangzi we've discussed: the idea of learning to shift between perspectives (think about the happy fish passage). So the two paths are not just seen from the outside but fully embraced even if they seem to conflict.

01.03.2026 15:34 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
Chinese landscape painting with a sage

Chinese landscape painting with a sage

It's #HoPWaG time again! Today we look at the theme of "wandering" in the Zhuangzi, comparing this to Thomas Nagel's idea of "philosophical absurdity."

www.historyofphilosophy.net/zhuangzi-wan...

#philsky #philosophy #podcasts #daoism #zhuangzi

01.03.2026 10:04 β€” πŸ‘ 40    πŸ” 16    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0
Portrait of Michel de Montaigne

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michel_de_Montaigne#/media/File:Portrait_of_Michel_de_Montaigne,_circa_unknown.jpg

Portrait of Michel de Montaigne https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michel_de_Montaigne#/media/File:Portrait_of_Michel_de_Montaigne,_circa_unknown.jpg

Title page from the first edition of Montaigne's Essais, 1588

Heribert Tenschert Booksellers
https://www.heribert-tenschert.com/inventory-printed-books-1/montaigne-essais-first-edition-1588

Title page from the first edition of Montaigne's Essais, 1588 Heribert Tenschert Booksellers https://www.heribert-tenschert.com/inventory-printed-books-1/montaigne-essais-first-edition-1588

"The souls of emperors and cobblers are cast in the same mold...The same reason that makes us wrangle with a neighbor causes a war betwixt princes."

A timely quotation from Michel de Montaigne, born #OnThisDay in 1533.

#philosophy #essays
#philsky #booksky

28.02.2026 16:31 β€” πŸ‘ 27    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1

Just recorded two episodes tonight: on the French garden (scientific experiments at the Jardin du Roi and the Cartesian philosophy and political ideology shaping formal gardens like the one at Versailles) and on La Rochefoucauld and other "moralists." These will be episodes 493 and 494.

25.02.2026 22:10 β€” πŸ‘ 28    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

β€œAccording to Ubuntu philosophy, which has its origins in ancient Africa, a newborn baby is not a person. People are born without β€˜ena’, or selfhood, and instead must acquire it through interactions and experiences over time.” aeon.co/ideas/descar... #person #identity #philsky #PhilosophySky

24.02.2026 13:41 β€” πŸ‘ 25    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 1
Elucidations Podcast

Last weekend I enjoyed recording two episodes for @bufordrat.bsky.social's excellent Elucidations podcast (elucidations.vercel.app). One episode was on ideas from my book, Evolution and the Machinery of Chance (press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...). #evosky, #hpbio.

24.02.2026 04:18 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 5    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

Oh true, that would have been better. I take comfort in the fact that if occasionalism is true, it wasn't me who did it (or in this case, didn't do it).

23.02.2026 10:09 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
THE IHISTORY OF  PHILISPOHY WITHOUT ANY GAPS
QR code linking to the podcast

QR code linking to the kindle book series (probably Amazon UK )

Kindle book series description:
Classical Philosophy is the first of a series of books in which Peter Adamson aims ultimately to present a complete history of philosophy, more thoroughly but also more enjoyably than ever before. In short, lively chapters, based on the popular History of Philosophy podcast, he offers an accessible, humorous, and detailed look at the emergence of philosophy with the Presocratics, the probing questions of Socrates, and the first full flowering of philosophy with the dialogues of Plato and the treatises of Aristotle. The story is told 'without any gaps', discussing not only such major figures but also less commonly discussed topics like the Hippocratic Corpus, the Platonic Academy, and the role of women in ancient philosophy. Within the thought of Plato and Aristotle, the reader will find in-depth introductions to major works, such as the Republic and the Nicomachean Ethics, which are treated in detail that is unusual in an introduction to ancient philosophy. Adamson looks at fascinating but less frequently read Platonic dialogues like the Charmides and Cratylus, and Aristotle's ideas in zoology and poetics. This full coverage allows him to tackle ancient discussions in all areas of philosophy, including epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of language, philosophy of science, ethics and politics. Attention is also given to the historical and literary context of classical philosophy, with exploration of how early Greek cosmology responded to the poets Homer and Hesiod, how Socrates was presented by the comic playwright Aristophanes and the historian Xenophon, and how events in Greek history may have influenced Plato's thought. This is a new kind of history which will bring philosophy to life for all readers, including those coming to the subject for the first time.

THE IHISTORY OF PHILISPOHY WITHOUT ANY GAPS QR code linking to the podcast QR code linking to the kindle book series (probably Amazon UK ) Kindle book series description: Classical Philosophy is the first of a series of books in which Peter Adamson aims ultimately to present a complete history of philosophy, more thoroughly but also more enjoyably than ever before. In short, lively chapters, based on the popular History of Philosophy podcast, he offers an accessible, humorous, and detailed look at the emergence of philosophy with the Presocratics, the probing questions of Socrates, and the first full flowering of philosophy with the dialogues of Plato and the treatises of Aristotle. The story is told 'without any gaps', discussing not only such major figures but also less commonly discussed topics like the Hippocratic Corpus, the Platonic Academy, and the role of women in ancient philosophy. Within the thought of Plato and Aristotle, the reader will find in-depth introductions to major works, such as the Republic and the Nicomachean Ethics, which are treated in detail that is unusual in an introduction to ancient philosophy. Adamson looks at fascinating but less frequently read Platonic dialogues like the Charmides and Cratylus, and Aristotle's ideas in zoology and poetics. This full coverage allows him to tackle ancient discussions in all areas of philosophy, including epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of language, philosophy of science, ethics and politics. Attention is also given to the historical and literary context of classical philosophy, with exploration of how early Greek cosmology responded to the poets Homer and Hesiod, how Socrates was presented by the comic playwright Aristophanes and the historian Xenophon, and how events in Greek history may have influenced Plato's thought. This is a new kind of history which will bring philosophy to life for all readers, including those coming to the subject for the first time.

Here's a couple of QR codes I created for fans of the podcast/book series.

I thought it might seem a bit weird if I asked young female students to give me their phone numbers so I could share philosophy with them. Instead, they can just take a picture of these QR codes.

09.07.2025 08:05 β€” πŸ‘ 10    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

For example, it formed the basis of the logic curriculum in University of Glasgow when Francis Hutcheson was a student there, albeit "amended by the writings of John Locke and Jean Leclerc".

www.irishphilosophy.com/2016/08/08/h...

22.02.2026 12:38 β€” πŸ‘ 5    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 1