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Care and Feeding | Slate's parenting show - The “Kids Are Philosophers” Edition

Slate Books

Slate Podcasts

Arts

3.8546 Ratings

🗓️ 2 June 2022

⏱️ 23 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On this episode: Zak and Elizabeth are joined by Scott Hershovitz, author of the book Nasty, Brutish and Short: Adventures in Philosophy with My Kids and the director of the Law and Ethics Program and professor of law and philosophy at the University of Michigan. They discuss why you shouldn’t shy away from big questions, how to foster open mindedness in teens, and perhaps the biggest question of all—what’s a “floofer doofer.”

On Slate Plus, they have a round of graduation-themed Triumphs and Fails. Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on MADAF each week, and no ads. Sign up now at slate.com/momanddadplus to listen and support our work.

Recommendations:

Elizabeth recommends the Sipsey Wilder hip pack

Scott recommends Teaching Children Philosophy

Zak recommends Julie’s Library

Join us on Facebook and email us at momanddad@slate.com to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. 

Podcast produced by Rosemary Belson and Jasmine Ellis.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This episode contains explicit language.

0:04.7

Welcome to Mom and Dad are Fighting, Slate's parenting podcast for Thursday, June 2nd, the

0:09.3

Kids Are Philosophers Edition.

0:12.0

I'm Zach Rosen.

0:12.8

I make a podcast called The Best Advice Show, and I live in Detroit with my family.

0:17.2

My daughter, Noah, is four, and my son, Ami, is one.

0:20.2

I'm Elizabeth Newkamp. I write the homeschool and family travel blog, Dutch Ami is one. I'm Elizabeth New Camp. I write the

0:21.7

homeschool and family travel blog, Dutch Dutch Goose. I'm the mom to three littles, Henry, who's

0:26.6

10, Oliver who's eight, and Teddy who's five and a half. I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado, but this

0:33.2

week I am coming to you from Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.

0:39.3

I'm Scott Hershowitz.

0:44.1

I'm the author of Nasty, British and Short Adventures in Philosophy with My Kids.

0:46.5

I teach law and philosophy at the University of Michigan.

0:52.4

I've got two boys, Rex, who's now 12, and Hank, who's nine, and we live in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

0:58.2

Today on the show, we're going to be talking about, well, the meaning of life, and maybe death too, and the meaning of meaning.

1:01.5

And if the number six actually exists.

1:04.3

Oh, and the nature of truth, too.

1:06.4

And why your kids, as they are now, are very good philosophers.

1:10.4

Probably better than you and I.

1:12.3

And who better to reckon with these heady topics than an actual philosopher?

1:17.3

And full disclosure, his brother happens to be Elizabeth's dad's former law partner,

1:22.0

but that is not why we booked him.

...

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