Episode #234 ... The Unbearable Lightness of Being - Milan Kundera

In this episode of Philosophize This!, Stephen West provides a philosophical guide to Milan Kundera's novel, "The Unbearable Lightness of Being." He explores key philosophical concepts in the book, including the ideas of lightness and heaviness borrowed from Parmenides and Nietzsche's concept of eternal recurrence. West explains Kundera's critique of these ideas, suggesting that both lightness and heaviness have their place depending on the context of one's life. He also delves into Kundera's concept of "kitsch" as it applies to politics and human relationships, as well as the idea of existential codes and how they shape our understanding of concepts like security and intimacy. Finally, West touches on Kundera's "animal test of morality" as a way to assess true human goodness.