William Irwin, Series Editor of The Blackwell Philosophy and Popular Culture Series, has impressed me with the scope of subjects covered with the many books he has edited or co-edited in the series.  I’m even more impressed with his work on the series considering that he also is a Professor of Philosophy at King’s College. The series, which the publisher (Wiley) describes as aiming to show: “that philosophy is relevant to your life – and not just for answering the big questions like “To be or not to be?” but for answering the little questions, ‘To watch or not to watch South Park?’ Thinking deeply about TV, movies, and music doesn’t make you a “complete idiot.” In fact it might make you a philosopher, someone who believes the unexamined life is not worth living and the unexamined cartoon is not worth watching.” I first contacted Irwin to discuss last December 2008’s House and Philosophy: Everybody Lies but the interview ended up exploring a lot more than that. My thanks to Irwin for his time.

Tim O’Shea: Did your association with The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series start with your editing of the Metallica edition in the series?

William Irwin: Actually South Park and Philosophy was the first book to appear in the series. But yes, the first book I actually worked on with Blackwell was Metallica and Philosophy, and it’s my favorite because I’ve been a Metallica fan for nearly 25 years. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 4. It’s nice to see them getting their props, and I hope people will take a look at my book to discover their hidden depth.

Read the rest of this entry »