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The Best Episodes of Crash Course Philosophy

Every episode of Crash Course Philosophy ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Crash Course Philosophy!

Hank begins to teach you about Philosophy by discussing the historical origins of philosophy in ancient Greece, and its three main divisions: metaphysics, epistemology, and...
Genre:Documentary
Network:YouTube

Best Episodes Summary

"Cartesian Skepticism - Neo, Meet Rene" is the best rated episode of "Crash Course Philosophy". It scored 8.2/10 based on 8 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 3/7/2016. This episode scored 0.1 points higher than the second highest rated, "What is Philosophy?".

  • Cartesian Skepticism - Neo, Meet Rene
    8.2/108 votes
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    #1 - Cartesian Skepticism - Neo, Meet Rene

    Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 3/7/2016

    This week Hank introduces skepticism, exploring everything from the nature of reality through the eyes of a 17th century philosopher and, of course, The Matrix.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • What is Philosophy?
    8.1/1011 votes
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    #2 - What is Philosophy?

    Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 2/8/2016

    Today Hank begins to teach you about Philosophy by discussing the historical origins of philosophy in ancient Greece, and its three main divisions: metaphysics, epistemology, and value theory. He will also introduce logic, and how you’re going to use it to understand and critically evaluate a whole host of different worldviews throughout this course. And also, hopefully, the rest of your life.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • How to Argue - Induction & Abduction
    8.0/109 votes
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    #3 - How to Argue - Induction & Abduction

    Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 2/22/2016

    We continue our look at philosophical reasoning by introducing two more types: induction and abduction. Hank explains their strengths and weaknesses, as well as counterarguments and the Socratic method.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Locke, Berkeley, & Empiricism
    8.0/108 votes
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    #4 - Locke, Berkeley, & Empiricism

    Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 3/15/2016

    This week we answer skeptics like Descartes with empiricism. Hank explains John Locke’s primary and secondary qualities and why George Berkeley doesn’t think that distinction works -- leaving us with literally nothing but our minds, ideas, and perceptions.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Meaning of Knowledge
    8.0/108 votes
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    #5 - The Meaning of Knowledge

    Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 3/21/2016

    On today’s episode...CATS. Also: Hank talks about some philosophy stuff, like a few of the key concepts philosophers use when discussing belief and knowledge, such as what defines an assertion and a proposition, and that belief is a kind of propositional attitude. Hank also discusses forms of justification and the traditional definition of knowledge, which Edmund Gettier just totally messed with, using his Gettier cases. Many thanks to Index the cat for his patience in the filming of this episode.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Anselm & the Argument for God
    8.0/108 votes
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    #6 - Anselm & the Argument for God

    Season 1 Episode 9 - Aired 4/4/2016

    Today we are introducing a new area of philosophy – philosophy of religion. We are starting this unit off with Anselm’s argument for God’s existence, while also considering objections to that argument.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Existentialism
    8.0/107 votes
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    #7 - Existentialism

    Season 1 Episode 16 - Aired 6/6/2016

    Now that we’ve left behind the philosophy of religion, it’s time to start exploring what other ways might exist to find meaning in the world. Today we explore essentialism and its response: existentialism. We’ll also learn about Jean-Paul Sartre and his ideas about how to find meaning in a meaningless world.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Determinism vs Free Will
    8.0/107 votes
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    #8 - Determinism vs Free Will

    Season 1 Episode 24 - Aired 8/15/2016

    Do we really have free will? Today Hank explores possible answers to that question, explaining theories like libertarian free will and its counterpoint, hard determinism.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Leonardo DiCaprio & The Nature of Reality
    7.9/109 votes
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    #9 - Leonardo DiCaprio & The Nature of Reality

    Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 2/29/2016

    Today Hank gains insight from that most philosophical of figures...Leonardo DiCaprio. In this episode, we’re talking about the process of philosophical discovery and questioning the relationship between appearance and reality by taking a look at Plato’s famous Myth of the Cave. All with a little help from our good pal Leo.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • How to Argue - Philosophical Reasoning
    7.8/1010 votes
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    #10 - How to Argue - Philosophical Reasoning

    Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 2/16/2016

    Before we dive into the big questions of philosophy, you need to know how to argue properly. We’ll start with an overview of philosophical reasoning and breakdown of how deductive arguments work (and sometimes don’t work).

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Aquinas & the Cosmological Arguments
    7.8/108 votes
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    #11 - Aquinas & the Cosmological Arguments

    Season 1 Episode 10 - Aired 4/11/2016

    Our unit on the philosophy of religion and the existence of god continues with Thomas Aquinas. Today, we consider his first four arguments: the cosmological arguments.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Intelligent Design
    7.8/108 votes
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    #12 - Intelligent Design

    Season 1 Episode 11 - Aired 4/25/2016

    Last week we introduced Thomas Aquinas’s four cosmological arguments for the existence of god; today we introduce his fifth argument: the teleological argument, and the ensuing dialogue it initiated.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Compatibilism
    7.8/107 votes
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    #13 - Compatibilism

    Season 1 Episode 25 - Aired 8/22/2016

    As we continue explore free will, today Hank considers a middle ground between hard determinism and libertarian free will: compatibilism. This view seeks to find ways that our internally motivated actions can be understood as free in a deterministic world. We’ll also cover Frankfurt Cases and Patricia Churchland’s rejection of the free-or-not-free dichotomy and her focus on the amount of control we have over our actions.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Karl Popper, Science, & Pseudoscience
    7.7/108 votes
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    #14 - Karl Popper, Science, & Pseudoscience

    Season 1 Episode 8 - Aired 3/28/2016

    The early 1900s was an amazing time for Western science, as Albert Einstein was developing his theories of relativity and psychology was born, as Sigmund Freud and psychoanalysis took over the scientific mainstream. Karl Popper observed these developments firsthand and came to draw a distinction between what he referred to as science and pseudoscience, which might best be summarized as science disconfirms, while pseudoscience confirms. While the way we describe these disciplines has changed in the intervening years, Popper’s ideas speak to the heart of how we arrive at knowledge.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • The Problem of Evil
    7.7/1010 votes
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    #15 - The Problem of Evil

    Season 1 Episode 13 - Aired 5/9/2016

    After weeks of exploring the existence of nature of god, today Hank explores one of the biggest problems in theism, and possibly the biggest philosophical question humanity faces: why is there evil?

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Nonexistent Objects & Imaginary Worlds
    7.0/107 votes
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    #16 - Nonexistent Objects & Imaginary Worlds

    Season 1 Episode 29 - Aired 9/27/2016

    Today we transition between units on language and aesthetics with a discussion of nonexistent and imaginary objects. Is it possible to make true assertions about things that aren’t real? We’ll explore Meinong’s Jungle and the concept of a universe of discourse.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Artificial Intelligence & Personhood
    6.8/107 votes
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    #17 - Artificial Intelligence & Personhood

    Season 1 Episode 23 - Aired 8/8/2016

    Today Hank explores artificial intelligence, including weak AI and strong AI, and the various ways that thinkers have tried to define strong AI including the Turing Test, and John Searle’s response to the Turing Test, the Chinese Room. Hank also tries to figure out one of the more personally daunting questions yet: is his brother John a robot?

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • What Is God Like?
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    #18 - What Is God Like?

    Season 1 Episode 12 - Aired 5/2/2016

    Today we are moving on from the existence of God to look at the philosophical debate surrounding the traditional divine attributes - omnipotence, omniscience, omnitemporality, and omnibenevolence. We are exploring the puzzles that these attributes create as well as some possible solutions to those puzzles, from Aquinas’ ideas of analogical predication, to the work of Eleanor Stump.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Anti-Vaxxers, Conspiracy Theories, & Epistemic Responsibility
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    #19 - Anti-Vaxxers, Conspiracy Theories, & Epistemic Responsibility

    Season 1 Episode 14 - Aired 5/16/2016

    Today we explore what obligations we hold with our personal beliefs. Hank explains epistemic responsibility and the issues it raises with everything from religious belief, to ship owning, to vaccinations.

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  • Indiana Jones & Pascal's Wager
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    #20 - Indiana Jones & Pascal's Wager

    Season 1 Episode 15 - Aired 5/23/2016

    Today we conclude our unit on Philosophy of Religion and Hank gets a little help from Indiana Jones to explain religious pragmatism and Pascal’s Wager, fideism, and Kierkegaard’s leap to faith.

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  • Perspectives on Death
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    #21 - Perspectives on Death

    Season 1 Episode 17 - Aired 6/13/2016

    Today we are talking about death, looking at philosophical approaches from Socrates, Epicurus, and Zhuangzi. We will consider whether it’s logical to fear your own death, or the deaths of your loved ones. Hank also discusses Thomas Nagel, death, and Fear of Missing Out.

    Director: N/A

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  • Batman & Identity
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    #22 - Batman & Identity

    Season 1 Episode 18 - Aired 6/20/2016

    Hank explores different ways of understanding identity – including the Indiscernibility of Identicals, and essential and accidental properties. In what ways does affect identity? In what ways does it not? What does it mean for a thing to persist over time?

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  • Personal Identity
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    #23 - Personal Identity

    Season 1 Episode 19 - Aired 6/27/2016

    Today Hank is building on last week’s exploration of identity to focus on personal identity. Does it in reside in your body? Is it in the collective memories of your consciousness? There are, of course, strengths and weaknesses to both of these ideas, and that’s what we’re talking about today.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Arguments Against Personal Identity
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    #24 - Arguments Against Personal Identity

    Season 1 Episode 20 - Aired 7/11/2016

    How can Daenerys Targaryen help us understand personal identity? Find out as Hank continues our exploration of personal identity, learning about Hume’s bundle theory and Parfit’s theory of survival through psychological connectedness.

    Director: N/A

    Writer: N/A

  • Personhood
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    #25 - Personhood

    Season 1 Episode 21 - Aired 7/25/2016

    Now that we’ve started talking about identity, today Hank tackles the question of personhood. Philosophers have tried to assess what constitutes personhood with a variety of different criteria, including genetic, cognitive, social, sentience, and the gradient theory. As with many of philosophy’s great questions, this has much broader implications than simple conjecture. The way we answer this question informs all sorts of things about the way we move about the world, including our views on some of our greatest social debates.

    Director: N/A

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