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David Runciman

The History of Ideas Podcast
with David Runciman

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A bi-weekly podcast exploring the history of ideas from politics to philosophy, science to fiction.

Latest episode

What’s Wrong with Political Philosophy? Learning from Max Weber

8 February 2026

00:00 / 01:04

In the third part of our series David and Paul Sagar explore what the German writer and sociologist Max Weber can teach us about the pitfalls of political life and political philosophy. Why is doing politics so hard? Why is it so hard to know what to do for the best when all the options are bad ones? How can we still do our best when the only means at our disposal is violence? And where does all this leave the prospects for lasting political change?

Next Time: Learning from Bernard Williams and Judith Shklar

You can find out everything you need to know about this podcast – who we are, what we do, plus merch, events and full lists of our episodes and PPF+ bonus episodes on our website https://www.ppfideas.com

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More episodes

What’s Wrong with Political Philosophy? Learning from Adam Smith

4 February 2026

00:00 / 01:04

What’s Wrong with Political Philosophy? Learning from Aristotle

1 February 2026

00:00 / 01:04

Talking Geopolitics with Helen Thompson: The Weirdness of American Power Part 2

28 January 2026

00:00 / 01:04

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