Contest Announcement!
Enter to win a 2-for-1 package of all TEN courses at Millerman School, by philosophy teacher Michael Millerman!
More than any other question, people ask me, "What books should I read?" Well, here's the answer. Michael Millerman earned his Ph.D in Political Science from the University of Toronto, and has dedicated himself to exploring relationships between politics and metaphysics, ontology, epistemology, and other philosophical fields. His courses provide university-level instruction on the most important books and thinkers of all ages, and do so in a way that makes the most difficult ideas easily understandable.
These courses are NOT simple YouTube lectures. They are in-depth, well-crafted courses that include discussions/coaching with Millerman himself. Each course normally costs between $400-600, and the ten-course package is a $2,500 value.
2-for-1 means that you don't have to go through the courses alone. You can bring a friend!
The Courses
Introduction to Leo Strauss (7 discussions) - This course provides a general introduction to the thought of one of the most original and influential conservative philosophers of the 20th century. Millerman explores everything from Strauss's ideas on Hitler & totalitarianism, to political correctness and the possibility of revelation. A grounding in the influence and thought of Leo Strauss is necessary for anyone wishing to understand the history and politics of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Leo Strauss: On Tyranny (5 lectures + 1 bonus) - This course will help guide you through Strauss's commentary on Xenophon's Hiero and shed light on Strauss's debate with the Hegelian philosopher Alexander Kojeve about the relation between tyranny and wisdom.
Martin Heidegger: Being And Time (4 discussions) - This course is a comprehensive overview of the primary text written by the most significant philosopher of the 20th century, Martin Heidegger. Heidegger is notoriously difficult, but Millerman makes him accessible and illuminating to first-time and repeat readers alike.
Martin Heidegger: Contributions to Philosophy (30 discussions) - Michael Millerman literally wrote the book on this book. This is a very deep course on Heidegger's deepest questions, including his thoughts on the history of philosophy, the end of philosophy, and important predecessors like Plato and Nietzsche.
Plato: The Republic (10 discussions) - What is justice? What is the relationship between justice and law? Is justice possible? What is the purpose of philosophy, poetry, and education? Millerman goes through each of the ten books that make up this classic among classic works of political philosophy.
Alexander Dugin: The Fourth Political Theory (37 discussions) - Millerman explores the work of the man called The Most Dangerous Philosopher in the World, Putin's Brain, and Russia's chief ideological mastermind. Dugin is a highly original political philosopher able to work outside the constraints of mainstream Western political thought, and to explore questions most political thinkers are incapable of asking.
Alexander Dugin: Noomakhia (6 discussions) - This course is a guide to Dugin's many-volumed masterwork. The title Noomakhia, which literally means “war of the mind” [intellect, nous] – and which can also be conceived of as “war within the mind,” “war of minds,” or even “war against the mind” – is intended to emphasize the conflictual nature of logoi structures as well as the multiplicity of noetic fields, in each of which surprises, conflicts, aporias, struggles, contradictions, and opposition lie in wait for us.
Carl Schmitt: Legality and Legitimacy (11 discussions) - Schmitt's incisive criticisms of Enlightenment political thought and liberal political practice remain as shocking and significant today as when they first appeared in Weimar Germany. Unavailable in English until now, Legality and Legitimacy was composed in 1932, in the midst of the crisis that would lead to the collapse of the Weimar Republic and only a matter of months before Schmitt’s collaboration with the Nazis. In this important work, Schmitt questions the political viability of liberal constitutionalism, parliamentary government, and the rule of law. Liberal governments, he argues, cannot respond effectively to challenges by radical groups like the Nazis or Communists.
Rabbi Joseph Soleveitchik: The Lonely Man of Faith (11 discussions) - The Lonely Man of Faith is a timeless philosophical essay by one of the twentieth century's greatest Jewish philosophers. Rabbi Soloveichik probes the inner experience of those who seek both redemptive closeness with God and creative engagement with the world. With characteristic brilliance and eloquence, he delineates the struggle of people of faith to navigate between seemingly contradictory aspects of the human condition: the spiritual and the material, the religious and the scientific, the covenantal and the majestic.
A Philosophical Analysis of Manliness (8 discussions) - What does it mean to be a real man? What have the ancients said about it, and how has the conception of masculinity changed over time? Many of us are uncomfortable even discussing the idea of manliness directly - this course explores the root of that anxiety, as well as the role of masculinity and men in a society run by machines and bureaucracies.
Finally: Six weeks of live support/coaching from Michael Millerman himself. - This is the best part! Many of these books are notoriously difficult, and very hard to digest alone. Millerman has already done the work, and he will be there to discuss the content of the lectures, answer questions, and make sure that you leave the courses with a firm understanding of these important thinkers and ideas.
***BONUS*** - The winner will get a package with all the books covered in this course (except Dugin’s Noomakhia, which isn’t available).
***BONUS x 2*** - I will take one of the above courses (you choose which one) with you, and will discuss it via one-on-one weekly correspondence for 4 weeks, or 6 weeks for Heidegger's Contributions or Dugin's Fourth Political Theory.
How to Enter
To enter for a chance to win this ten-course package, simply purchase a one-year subscription to the Martyr Made Substack between now and the end of the year (December 31, 2021). If you are already a full-year subscriber as of today (November 21, 2021), you can enter for just $25. Simply use PayPal or Venmo to send $25.00 to martyrmade@gmail.com, and put MILLERMAN in the comment/remark block.
Winner will be announced at the end of the year!
I’m torn on this. On the one hand, I find reading almost any political theory insufferably boring and inaccessible. I swear some of these thinkers were aiming to make their work as arcane and obtuse as possible. This is true across the political spectrum.
On the other hand, I would definitely learn a lot and I enjoy arguing with people I disagree with (I’m fairly certain I’d have plenty to fight over with Millerman, even if I’m not all equipped for such a debate).
Just to clarify what this would be, it’s a lectures/reading assignments with Millerman guiding us through by message? Kind of like blackboard online college courses?
U of T? Sounds suspiciously Canadian. I don't trust Canadians.