Suicide and Redemption: James Sunderland’s Quest for Meaning in Life in the Streets of Silent Hill 2 Franlu Vulliermet Silent Hill 2 tells the story of James Sunderland, who returns to Silent Hill after receiving a letter from his dead wife, Mary, telling him she is awaiting him there in “their special place.” Following James,…
A philosophical exploration of Joker and the meaning of the iconic antagonist’s murderous escapades A diabolically sinister but clownish villain, Joker is a symbolically rich and philosophically fascinating character. Both crazed and cunning, sadistically cruel but seductively charming, the Clown Prince of Crime embodies everything opposed to the positive ideals of order and justice defended…
Beyond Human Nietzschean Reflections in Ridley Scott’s Alien: Covenant Mitchell Provow To ground this exploration, we begin by considering Nietzsche’s reflections on creation and kinship from Twilight of the Idols (1889): “‘Why so hard?’ The kitchen coal once said to the diamond ‘After all, are we not close kin?’” This is a profound reflection on…
The essay below originally appears as Chapter 8 of Joker and Philosophy. You Get What You F****** Deserve Greg Littmann Joker: “What do you get when you cross a mentally ill loner with a society that abandons him and treats him like trash?…You get what you fucking deserve.” [Shoots Murray] There’s something satisfying about watching Joker…
The essay below appears originally as Chapter 1 in Taylor Swift and Philosophy. Is Taylor Swift a Philosopher? Catherine M. Robb After being awarded an honorary doctorate by New York University (NYU) in 2022, Taylor Swift gave a commencement speech for the graduates. During her speech Taylor spoke of the exciting challenge of figuring out who…
D&D and Philosophy A Philosophical Analysis of Intelligence and Wisdom Justin Kitchen Dungeons and Dragons is a tabletop roleplaying game that anyone can play using a pencil, paper, dice, and their imagination. During the game, players navigate their characters through a fantastic world to fight monsters, investigate mysteries, solve puzzles, delve into political intrigue, and hunt…
The essay below appears as Chapter 3 of The Last of Us and Philosophy. “He Who Fights with Monsters” Inner-Circle vs The World in The Last of Us Dylan Skurka Ellie: If you don’t think there’s hope for the world, why bother going on? I mean, you gotta try, right? Joel: You haven’t seen the…
The essay below appears as Chapter 2 of The Last of Us and Philosophy. Justifying Joel: In Defense of Love and Favoritism Daniel Irwin and William Irwin “To me, he did the right thing for him,” video game and show co-creator Neil Druckman said in an interview with Todd Martens of the Los Angeles Times.…
Did Joel do the right thing when he saved Ellie? Are those infected by the Cordyceps conscious? Are communities necessary for human survival and flourishing? Should Ellie forgive Joel? Is Abby’s revenge morally justified? Is Ellie’s? The Last of Us franchise includes two of the best video games ever created and the critically acclaimed HBO series.…
Listen to Catherine Robb, co-editor of Taylor Swift and Philosophy, podcast discussion of Taylor.
The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series 