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Books by James South

Westworld and Philosophy: If You Go Looking for the Truth, Get the Whole Thing

Westworld and Philosophy: If You Go Looking for the Truth, Get the Whole Thing, 2018

DESCRIPTION "We can't define consciousness because consciousness does not exist. Humans fancy tha... more DESCRIPTION "We can't define consciousness because consciousness does not exist. Humans fancy that there's something special about the way we perceive the world, and yet we live in loops as tight and as closed as the hosts do, seldom questioning our choices, content, for the most part, to be told what to do next."-Dr. Robert Ford, Westworld Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality? HBO's Westworld, a high-concept cerebral television series which explores the emergence of artificial consciousness at a futuristic amusement park, raises numerous questions about the nature of consciousness and its bearing on the divide between authentic and artificial life. Are our choices our own? What is the relationship between the mind and the body? Why do violent delights have violent ends? Could machines ever have the moral edge over man? Does consciousness create humanity, or humanity consciousness? In Westworld and Philosophy, philosophers, filmmakers, scientists, activists, and ethicists ask the questions you're not supposed to ask and suggest the answers you're not supposed to know. There's a deeper level to this game, and this book charts a course through the maze of the mind, examining how we think about humans, hosts, and the world around us on a journey toward self-actualization. Essays explore different facets of the show's philosophical puzzles, including the nature of autonomy as well as the pursuit of liberation and free thought, while levying a critical eye at the human example as Westworld's hosts ascend to their apotheosis in a world scarred and defined by violent acts. The perfect companion for Westworld fans who want to exit the park and bend their minds around the philosophy behind the scenes, Westworld and Philosophy will enrich the experience of the show for its viewers and shed new light on its enigmatic twists and turns.

Philosophy and Terry Pratchett

Philosophy and Terry Pratchett is the first attempt by philosophers to explore themes in Sir Terr... more Philosophy and Terry Pratchett is the first attempt by philosophers to explore themes in Sir Terry Pratchett's writings. It will appeal to both specialists and fans of Pratchett with serious essays written in a manner accessible to anyone who enjoys, or is curious about, Pratchett's work.

Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing is as it Seems

With its swirling cigarette smoke, martini lunches, skinny ties, and tight pencil skirts, Mad Men... more With its swirling cigarette smoke, martini lunches, skinny ties, and tight pencil skirts, Mad Men is unquestionably one of the most stylish, sexy, and irresistible shows on television. But the series becomes even more absorbing once you dig deeper into its portrayal of the changing social and political mores of 1960s America and explore the philosophical complexities of its key characters and themes. From Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle to John Kenneth Galbraith, Milton Friedman, and Ayn Rand, Mad Men and Philosophy brings the thinking of some of history's most powerful minds to bear on the world of Don Draper and the Sterling Cooper ad agency. You'll gain insights into a host of compelling Mad Men questions and issues, including happiness, freedom, authenticity, feminism, Don Draper's identity, and more.

Takes an unprecedented look at the philosophical issues and themes behind AMC's Emmy Award-winning show, Mad Men

Explores issues ranging from identity to authenticity to feminism, and more

Offers new insights on your favorite Mad Men characters, themes, and storylines

Mad Men and Philosophy will give Mad Men fans everywhere something new to talk about around the water cooler.

Buffy Goes Dark: Essays on the Final Two Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Television

Buffy the Vampire Slayer earned critical acclaim for its use of metaphor to explore the conflicts... more Buffy the Vampire Slayer earned critical acclaim for its use of metaphor to explore the conflicts of growth, power, and transgression. Its groundbreaking stylistic and thematic devices, boldness and wit earned it an intensely devoted fan base—and as it approached its zenith, attention from media watchdog groups and the Federal Communications Commission.

The grim and provocative evolution of the show over its final two seasons polarized its audience, while also breaking new ground for critical and philosophical analysis. The thirteen essays in this collection, divided into the perspectives of feminist, cultural, auteur and fan studies, explore the popular series’ conclusion, providing a multifaceted examination of Buffy’s most controversial two seasons.

James Bond and Philosophy: Questions are Forever

James Bond 007 strode into the human imagination in the novel Casino Royale in 1953 and hit the m... more James Bond 007 strode into the human imagination in the novel Casino Royale in 1953 and hit the movie screens with Dr. No in 1962. He has become one of the best-known personalities, real or imagined, in global history. One out of every four people in the entire world has now seen a Bond movie, and every month thousands of new readers become addicted to Ian Fleming’s original Bond stories.

In James Bond and Philosophy, seventeen scholars examine hidden philosophical issues in the hazardous, deceptive, glamorous world of Double-0 Seven. Is Bond a Nietzschean hero who graduates "beyond good and evil"? Does Bond paradoxically break the law in order, ultimately, to uphold it like any "stupid policeman"? What can Bond’s razor-sharp reasoning powers tell us about the scientific pursuit of truth? Does 007’s license to kill help us understand the ethics of counterterrorism? What motivates all those despicable Bond villains—could it be a Hegelian quest for recognition?

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale

So. If you're kind of killing time between apocalypses or just wondering about the meaning of lif... more So. If you're kind of killing time between apocalypses or just wondering about the meaning of life thing, here's some readage . . . Look, these guys'll I-think-therefore-I-am you into the freaking ground. And the happy is better than shoe shopping. What? If I don't consult the oracle I'll, like, turn to stone? Well, yeah, if not already.

Papers by James South

Pensamiento. Revista de Investigación e Información Filosófica, 2018

En este artículo, me enfoco en las tres cuestiones de la teoría de Suárez del alma separada: el e... more En este artículo, me enfoco en las tres cuestiones de la teoría de Suárez del alma separada: el estatus del alma separada como persona, el conocimiento de sí por parte del alma separada, y la cuestión de la naturaleza del alma tanto como forma del cuerpo y como existiendo fuera del cuerpo. Sitúo su discusión en diálogo con Santo Tomás de Aquino y Cayetano (Thomas de Vio) y expongo los aspectos en que Suárez se diferencia de esos dos pensadores. Finalmente, demuestro cómo su presentación de estos problemas da lugar a una versión filosóficamente probable de la resurrección del cuerpo.

In this article, I focus on three issues in Francisco Suárez’s account of the separated soul: the... more In this article, I focus on three issues in Francisco Suárez’s account of the separated soul: the status of the separated soul as a person, the separated soul’s knowledge of itself, and the question of the soul’s nature both as form of the body and as existing outside the body. I place his discussion in dialogue with St. Thomas Aquinas and cajetan (Thomas de vio) and show the ways he departs from those two thinkers. Finally, I show that his account of these problems makes for a philosophically probable account of the resurrection of the body. KEy WOrdS: Francisco Suárez; Thomas Aquinas; cajetan; separated soul; resurrection of the body; immortality of the soul; sensory knowledge. Algunos temas en la teoría de Suárez del alma separada rESuMEN: En este artículo, me enfoco en las tres cuestiones de la teoría de Suárez del alma separada: el estatus del alma separada como persona, el conocimiento de sí por parte del alma separada, y la cuestión de la naturaleza del alma tanto como forma ...

Willow: Actually, this isn't about you. Although I'm fond, don't get me wrong, of you. The other ... more Willow: Actually, this isn't about you. Although I'm fond, don't get me wrong, of you. The other night, you know, being captured and all, facing off with Faith. Things just, kind of, got clear. I mean, you've been fighting evil here for three years, and I've helped some, and now we're supposed to decide what we want to do with our lives. And I just realized that that's what I want to do. Fight evil, help people. I mean, I-I think it's worth doing. And I don't think you do it because you have to. It's a good fight, Buffy, and I want in. Buffy: I kind of love you. Willow: And, besides, I have a shot at being a bad ass Wiccan, and what better place to learn? Buffy: I feel the need for more sugar than the human body can handle. Willow: Mochas ? Buffy: Yes, please. It's weird. You look at something and you think you know exactly what you're seeing, and then you find out it's something else entirely. Willow: Neat, huh ? Buffy: Sometimes it is. [2] There's much I could talk about in that exchange, but for the purposes of this essay, I'm going to focus on two issues that emerge from this scene. One is Buffy's realization that one can think one knows exactly what one's seeing only to find out it's something else entirely. That, it strikes me, is an important theme of Season 7-indeed the theme that ties the season together. The second theme is foundational for the story I'm going to tell: Buffy seems forever bound to be "Sunnydale Girl." There is no apparent escape. And yet we know, in retrospect, that's not the case. I want us to think about how it is that Buffy did escape Sunnydale.

"My parents taught me a different lesson…. Lying on this street-shaking in deep shock-dying for n... more "My parents taught me a different lesson…. Lying on this street-shaking in deep shock-dying for no reason at all-they showed me that the world only makes sense when you force it to." Bruce Wayne in Batman: The Dark Knight Returns 1 "I made a promise to my parents that I would rid the city of the evil that took their lives." Bruce Wayne in Batman: Dark Victory 2 In Darwyn Cooke's Batman: Ego, we are given an account of a young Bruce Wayne's Christmas day and evening. The day starts nicely enough with gifts, family cheer, and Bruce's excitement over his new Zorro action figure. However, at Christmas dinner, Bruce's father, Dr. Thomas Wayne, receives a phone call updating him on a patient's health. He decides he must go visit the patient and has Bruce ride along with him. The patient dies and as Dr. Wayne is covering the body, Bruce walks into the room and sees the dead body. Back in the car, Bruce expresses his confusion following his first experience with death, and the following exchange occurs: BRUCE: Are you and mom going to die? DR. WAYNE: Well, yes we will, Bruce. Everyone passes on. But not before our time. And that's a long way away. BRUCE: Promise? DR. WAYNE: I promise son. 3

Review of Metaphysics, 2001

International Philosophical Quarterly, 2001

Canadian Philosophical Reviews, 1996

reste insatisfait devant les idees defendues, qui demeurent trop souvent programmatiques. Ce livr... more reste insatisfait devant les idees defendues, qui demeurent trop souvent programmatiques. Ce livre en appelle un autre, qui, on l'espere, pourrait reunir et approfondir les idees de l'auteur sur cet important debat.

The Review of Metaphysics, 2001

The Philosophy of Francisco Suárez, 2012

30 Pine translates adllliniCIIlllm as 'cooperation with,' but that doesn't strike me as quite rig... more 30 Pine translates adllliniCIIlllm as 'cooperation with,' but that doesn't strike me as quite right given Thomas' discussion in the passage from Selltellaa libri De anillla, Book l , lectio 2 and his use of 'instrumentum .' 3 1 See my 'Si ngular and Universal in Suarez's Account of Cognition,' Review of Metaphysics 55 (2002): 796ff.

Investigating the Mysteries of Life (Which Is a Bitch Until You Die), 2014

If a visitor from a long time ago or from a culture far, far away dropped into Neptune, that visi... more If a visitor from a long time ago or from a culture far, far away dropped into Neptune, that visitor would be amazed by the great wealth not just of the Kanes, Echolls, and Casablancas, but also of the Navarros, Mars, and Fennels. They all have more than enough to eat, plenty of clothes, climate-controlled dwelling places with indoor plumbing, and cars and motorcycles to take them wherever they want to go. But it wouldn't take our visitor long to see that, despite the incredible base level of wealth, not everyone is considered the same. There are differences in status, in one's standing in society. Some are at the top, some are at the bottom, and, despite Veronica's description of Neptune as "a town without a middle class," some are in the middle. These differences would likely seem silly to our visitor, who would consider all the Neptunians wildly wealthy. After just a little time in town, though, our visitor would be able to identify the problem plaguing Neptune: status anxiety. Everyone is worried about where he or she fits on the hierarchy of standing and importance. Our visitor wouldn't necessarily have to be human to grasp the importance of status. Some lower primates sort themselves, with alpha males beating their chests, feeding first, and

Medieval Philosophy and Theology, 2001

The task is to show how some part of the world-ourselves and other animals-can become conscious o... more The task is to show how some part of the world-ourselves and other animals-can become conscious of the rest of the world. The danger is that we make the account of the transition from world to mind either too material or too spiritual. If, on the one hand, we give a purely material account of, say, the physical change that a certain visual scene (a tree) forms in the eye of the perceiver, we seem to leave consciousness out of the account. It remains unclear how, by such a physical change, one is meant to get out of the nonconscious physical world. On the other hand, if we give a totally spiritual account, it is not clear that we have given an account of a transition, for it is not clear that we have begun in a thoroughly nonconscious world. 1

Westworld and Philosophy: If You Go Looking for the Truth, Get the Whole Thing

Westworld and Philosophy: If You Go Looking for the Truth, Get the Whole Thing, 2018

Philosophy and Terry Pratchett

Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing is as it Seems

Takes an unprecedented look at the philosophical issues and themes behind AMC's Emmy Award-winning show, Mad Men

Explores issues ranging from identity to authenticity to feminism, and more

Offers new insights on your favorite Mad Men characters, themes, and storylines

Mad Men and Philosophy will give Mad Men fans everywhere something new to talk about around the water cooler.

Buffy Goes Dark: Essays on the Final Two Seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Television

James Bond and Philosophy: Questions are Forever

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale

Pensamiento. Revista de Investigación e Información Filosófica, 2018

Review of Metaphysics, 2001

International Philosophical Quarterly, 2001

Canadian Philosophical Reviews, 1996

The Review of Metaphysics, 2001

The Philosophy of Francisco Suárez, 2012

Investigating the Mysteries of Life (Which Is a Bitch Until You Die), 2014

Medieval Philosophy and Theology, 2001

Graduate Faculty Philosophy Journal, 2005

Buffy Goes Dark: Essays on the Final Two Seasons …, 2008

Buffy the Vampiu SJayds seventh season written by Jane Espenson , provides the viewer with a stor... more Buffy the Vampiu SJayds seventh season written by Jane Espenson , provides the viewer with a story about storytelling in which the show explicitly confronts its own practice of telling stories, and in telling the story of this episode, it suggesrs, I hope to show, thar stories can point to what stands behind the scory; cal l it, for the mome nt anyway, an experience. T he episode opens with the narrative voice of one of the odder characters in the series, Andrew. We are provided w ith parody of Masterpiue Theatre. We see a mishmash of leather books, antique furnitu re, and pop cultural ephemera (Star mzrs action figures). And then Andrew speaks. Oh, hc:Jio. rhere, geode viewers. You caught me catching up on an old favorire. It's wonderful ro get lost in a story, isn't ir? Advemure and heroics and discovery-don't they just rake you away? Come with me now, if you will, gentle viewers. Join me on a new voyage of the mind. A lirdc ralc I Iii«: ro call:

James Bond and Philosophy: Questions Are Forever

" Bond. James Bond." Since Sean Connery first uttered that iconic phrase in" Dr. N... more " Bond. James Bond." Since Sean Connery first uttered that iconic phrase in" Dr. No," more than one quarter of the world's population has seen a 007 film. Witty and urbane, Bond seduces and kills with equal ease--often, it seems, with equal enthusiasm. This enthusiasm, coupled with his freedom to do what is forbidden to everyone else, evokes fascinating philosophical questions. Here, 15 witty, thought-provoking essays discuss hidden issues in Bond's world, from his carnal pleasures to his license to kill. Among the lively topics ...

The Review of Metaphysics, Jun 1, 2002

Ml RANCISCO SU? REZ, THE GREAT JESUIT PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN, has long been recognized as a p... more Ml RANCISCO SU? REZ, THE GREAT JESUIT PHILOSOPHER AND THEOLOGIAN, has long been recognized as a pivotal figure in the development of Western philosophy. His thought is heavily indebted to the medieval philosophical tradition but also bears striking intimations of key themes in modern thought. 1 In this paper I address one of the most controversial questions related to the thought of Su? rez, namely, his relationship to the nominalist tradition. However, I shall do so rather indirectly by focusing not on explicit ...

Philosophy Faculty Research and Publications, 2004

Willow: Deep thoughts? Buffy: Deep and meaningful. Willow: As in? Buffy: As in, I'm never ge... more Willow: Deep thoughts? Buffy: Deep and meaningful. Willow: As in? Buffy: As in, I'm never getting out of here. I kept thinking if I stopped the Mayor or... but I was kidding myself. I mean, there is always going to be something. I'm a Sunnydale girl, no other choice. Willow: Must be tough. I mean, here I am, I can do anything I want. I can go to any college in the country, four or five in Europe if I want. Buffy: Please tell me you're going somewhere with this? Willow: No.(hands Buffy a letter) I'm not going anywhere. Buffy: UC Sunnydale?

History of Philosophy Quarterly, 2002

Book Review of On the Formal Cause of Substance: Metaphysical Disputation XV, by Francisco Suárez, John Kronen, and Jeremiah Reddy

Book Review of The New Map of the World: The Poetic Philosophy of Giambattista Vico by Giuseppe Mazzotta

Book Review of Plato in the Italian Renaissance, by James Hankins

Review of Galileo and the Church: Political Inquisition or Critical Dialogue? by Rivka Feldhay

Philosophy and Theology

Philosophy & Theology is a peer-reviewed journal that addresses all areas of interest to these tw... more Philosophy & Theology is a peer-reviewed journal that addresses all areas of interest to these two ancient disciplines and explores the common ground that joins them. While not a journal of the philosophy of religion, one issue each year includes articles devoted to the thought and legacy of the theologian Karl Rahner. Rahner’s appropriation of diverse theological and philosophical sources provided an innovative conceptual framework that established his reputation as one of the most influential systematic theologians of the Vatican II era.

Renaissance Aristotelianism

Lost Horizon: “No, this is not a disentanglement from, but a progressive knotting into.”

Fifty Years after the Fair: Mad Men Goes to the Dark

Is Fake All That’s Real? Mad Men Winds Down

“There’s a Twinge in My Chest:” Mad Men Goes in Circles

Time and Life”: Everything Must Go

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 20 Years of Paranormal Inspiration

Our amazing Buffy the Vampire Slayer round table today, however, did not. These are Buffy superfa... more Our amazing Buffy the Vampire Slayer round table today, however, did not. These are Buffy superfans that know the show inside and out. That includes our friends from the Traveling Museum of Paranormal and the Occult, Greg and Dana Newkirk, Paranthropology author Jack Hunter, and Marquette University professor James South, who edited the book, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear And Trembling in Sunnydale.

During this conversation to celebrate Buffy the Vampire Slayer‘s 20th anniversary, they go into detail on how the show and characters inspired them to take up paranormal missions of their own!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Turns 20

A radio interview about the 20th anniversary of Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Illuminating Intellect Podcast

Associate professor of philosophy Dr. James South talks about 16th century Jesuit philosophy, Buf... more Associate professor of philosophy Dr. James South talks about 16th century Jesuit philosophy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the common thread that ties them together.

Buffy the Concept Slayer

The problem of evil, the nature of knowledge, the moral demands of duty -- all of them big-time p... more The problem of evil, the nature of knowledge, the moral demands of duty -- all of them big-time philosophical issues and all of them dealt with in one of the most sucessful TV shows of the last decade: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. This week, The Philosopher's Zone heads off to Sunnydale to find out what the vampire slayer has to tell us about the most pressing philosophical questions.

How some ''Buffy'' members live on after the finale

Sarah Michelle Gellar may be putting down her TV stake this month, but Buffy Summers and her demo... more Sarah Michelle Gellar may be putting down her TV stake this month, but Buffy Summers and her demon-dusting legacy will live on – in academia, of all places. ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Philosophy: Fear and Trembling in Sunnydale” (Open Court, $17.95) is the latest highbrow reading of what tenure strivers call the Buffyverse. ”There’s no way for a philosopher not to be provoked by themes that ‘Buffy’ presents,” insists editor James B. South of Wisconsin’s Marquette University. Those subjects include Willow as an Aristotelian Tragic Hero (she’s not), Angel as a Kantian Rational Being (he is), and Buffy and her gang as Marxist heroes, ”the ‘primitive rebels’ of leftist lore and scholarship.” (O-kay.) Amused? So is ”Buffy” exec producer Marti Noxon: ”We do have lofty goals, but there’s also the part where we’re kind of scratching our butts, going ‘Well, that’d be cool!”’

"Buffy Studies"

The genesis of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer began with a 1992 tongue-in-cheek f... more The genesis of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer began with a 1992 tongue-in-cheek film about a high school cheerleader who discovers she's the latest in a long line of young women destined to battle vampires.

The series picked up where the film left off, and became an instant cult classic. In the television version, Buffy lives in the picturesque town of Sunnydale, Calif. — which just happens to sit on top of a portal into Hell. For the past seven years, Buffy has fought blood-sucking vampires, hellhounds and giant snakes, as well as the more typical adolescent demons of school and boyfriends.

From its name on down, Buffy sounds a little silly — but Buffy's fans say the show stretches the boundaries of the medium, and challenges clichés.

Buffy enjoys a special following among academics, some of whom have staked a claim in what they call "Buffy Studies." NPR's Neda Ulaby reports there are serious academic studies on the characters and themes in the series — titles like "Buffy the Vampire Disciplinarian: Institutional Excess and the New Economy of Power."

Now the series is down to its final two episodes (the final episode airs May 20), and the fate of "Buffy Studies" is up in the air. David Lavery, helping to organize the second Buffy Studies Conference in Nashville, Tenn., in 2004, says the end of the series will actually be just the beginning of the debate. "We are at the point where we're developing textual studies of Buffy and debates about what constitutes the actual text of Buffy," he tells Ulaby.

Lavery finds comfort in the words of philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, whose theories are frequently invoked in Buffy Studies. "Nietzsche said the secret of life is to die at the right time — and I think it's true of a television series, too."