Educational Media Reviews Online

Philosophers: Debates and Dialogues is a 2011 reboot of a four-part series broadcast on Dutch television in 1971. Each episode begins with series’ moderator Fons Elder providing an identical introduction to social problems then and now, plus a description of the series’ aims. Instructors will want to skip through these several minutes, particularly if a class screens more than one episode. Other material added in 2011 consists of Elder sketching an outline of the debate, then returning to provide commentary at two additional points in the program. This new material has laughable production values. At one point, Elder repeats himself because a motorbike passes. At another, a fly lands on his head. Even so, the prior introduction of main points proves valuable for increasing intellectual comprehension of the sometimes obscure concepts discussed. Viewers may wish subtitles were available for spoken English, as Elder and several guests are non-native English speakers.

The quality of the original 1971 programs depends on the pairing involved, as well as Elder’s ability to move the debate towards fruitful discussion. Of the four debates, the meeting of Noam Chomsky and Michel Foucault is justifiably the most famous. Both thinkers articulate their ideas clearly and respectfully disagree. Other match-ups, such as between Alfred Ayer and Arne Naess, hold less interest, in part because the two debaters begin from radically opposed premises that hinder productive dialogue. The Ayer/Naess debate even devolves towards ad hominem attack, albeit a playful parry rather than the trolling seen in contemporary online debate. In fact, an auxiliary use of this set would be to demonstrate a style of debate that’s nearly extinct in today’s media environment. Schools with faculty interest in either Foucault or Chomsky will definitely want this set in their collection. Classes on the Philosophy of Science will also benefit from the discussion between Sir Karl Popper and his friend, neuroscientist Sir John Eccles.