Author Archives: davetcourt

Reading Journal 2023: Ultimate Questions; The Story of PhilsophyAuthor: Bryan Magee I paired this with Magee’s The Story of Philosophy. If Philosophy functions as a textbook inviting us to consider philosophy as a means of common wonder rooted in reason, ultimate questions is a heart laid bare autobiography into why Magee values philosophy. One isContinue reading “Reading Journal 2023: Ultimate Questions; The Story of Philosophy”

Film Journal 2023: Master GardenerDirected by Paul Schrader Parallels the plot and structure of Schraders most recent films, almost to the point where you could map whole sequences from one film on to another and have it work seamlessly within that story. There is the man trying to leave a complicated past behind, a journalContinue reading “Film Journal 2023: Master Gardener”

Reading Journal 2023: This Time TomorrowAuthor: Emma Straub I love time travel. I love books about time travel. A book about a father who wrote a book about time travel and a daughter who finds herself caught up in her fathers time travel stories feels tailor made for me. Add to this the fact thatContinue reading “Reading Journal 2023: This Time Tomorrow”

Reading Journal 2023: OutlawedAuthor: Anna North Outlawed is a feminist alternative (neo) western. The setting is early America and barren women are being outcast from society, labeled witches and curses and a blight on society’s need to progress. The book, as is expected positions religion as the backdrop, marrying it to the politics of suchContinue reading “Reading Journal 2023: Outlawed”

Film Journal 2023: Are You There God, Its Me MargaretDirected by Kelly Fremon Craig One of the best coming of age stories to release in a while. Honest and authentic to its core. Perfectly captures what it is to go through puberty with all its uncertainty and struggles, and does so with grace and sensitivityContinue reading “Film Journal 2023: Are You There God, Its Me Margaret”

Film Journal 2023: Fast XDirected by Louis LeterrierWherr to watch: now playing in theaters I have an interesting relationship with the Fast franchise. I mostly ignored it up until the point when we adopted our then 13 year old son back in 2015. Truth be told, navigating life with a kid who doesn’t speak EnglishContinue reading “Film Journal 2023: Fast X”

Someone recently forwarded me this Podcast Episode on music and the emergence of A.I, reflecting on it from a philosophical perspective. It hit on some things I’ve been observing and thinking about lately. The discussion relating to music is, of course, not dissimilar to discussions going on in film. A first point of interest fromContinue reading “AI, The Future, and What it Means to be Human”

A while back I was opened up to the idea that the whole of scripture is ultimately hyperlinking back to Genesis 1-9, and then later on to th Exodus story (which functions as a hyperlink back to Genesis 1-9). I was taught that to properly meditate on the scriptures and the biblical story it involvesContinue reading “Sodom and Gomorrah and The Flood: Parallels in Story and Structure”

Continuing to read in Bryan Magee’s book Ultimate Questions, and came across a common philosophical assertion within philosophy that I continue to find a bit wanting He’s talking about the nature of knowledge in relationship to time and space. More specifically he is dealing with how it is that we can claim to know transcendentContinue reading “Knowledge, Language and the Existence of God”

Film Journal 2023: Love AgainDirected by Jim StrouseWhere to watch: now playing at Polo Park Theater Took a chance on this romantic comedy by the Director of the powerful and engrossing Grace is Gone while everyone else was at the new Guardians. It turns out its pretty charming. It takes a casual approach to theContinue reading “Film Journal 2023: Love Again”