James B. South & Rod Carveth 
Mad Men and Philosophy 
Nothing Is as It Seems

A look at the philosophical underpinnings of the hit TV show,
Mad Men

With its swirling cigarette smoke, martini lunches, skinny ties,
and tight pencil skirts, Mad Men is unquestionably one of the most
stylish, sexy, and irresistible shows on television. But the series
becomes even more absorbing once you dig deeper into its portrayal
of the changing social and political mores of 1960s America and
explore the philosophical complexities of its key characters and
themes. From Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle to John Kenneth
Galbraith, Milton Friedman, and Ayn Rand, Mad Men and Philosophy
brings the thinking of some of history’s most powerful minds to
bear on the world of Don Draper and the Sterling Cooper ad agency.
You’ll gain insights into a host of compelling Mad Men questions
and issues, including happiness, freedom, authenticity, feminism,
Don Draper’s identity, and more.

* Takes an unprecedented look at the philosophical issues and
themes behind AMC’s Emmy Award-winning show, Mad Men

* Explores issues ranging from identity to authenticity to
feminism, and more

* Offers new insights on your favorite Mad Men characters,
themes, and storylines

Mad Men and Philosophy will give Mad Men fans everywhere
something new to talk about around the water cooler.

Table of Content

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: ‘I Think We Need to Salute That!’

Introduction: ‘A Thing Like That’.

PART ONE: ‘PEOPLE MAY SEE THINGS DIFFERENTLY, BUT THEY
DON’T REALLY WANT TO’: MAD MEN AND PROBLEMS OF
KNOWLEDGE AND FREEDOM.

1 What Fools We Were: Mad Men, Hindsight, and
Justification (Landon W. Schurtz).

2 ‘People Want to Be Told What to Do So Badly That They’ll
Listen to Anyone’: Mimetic Madness at Sterling Cooper (George A.
Dunn).

3 Capitalism and Freedom in the Affluent Society (Kevin
Guilfoy).

PART TWO: ‘THERE IS NO BIG LIE, THERE IS NO SYSTEM, THE
UNIVERSE IS INDIFFERENT’: MAD MEN AND THE PROBLEM OF
MEANING.

4 Pete, Peggy, Don, and the Dialectic of Remembering and
Forgetting (John Fritz).

5 The Existential Void of Roger Sterling (Raymond Angelo
Belliotti).

6 Egoless Egoists: The Second-Hand Lives of Mad Men (Robert
White).

7 An Existential Look at Mad Men: Don Draper,
Advertising, and the Promise of Happiness (Ada S.
Jaarsma).

PART THREE: ‘AND YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPINESS IS?’: MAD MEN
AND ETHICS.

8 ‘In on It’: Honesty, Respect, and the Ethics of Advertising
(Andreja Novakovic and Tyler Whitney).

9 Creating the Need for the New: ‘It’s Not the Wheel. It’s the
Carousel.’ (George Teschner and Gabrielle Teschner).

10 ‘You’re Looking in the Wrong Direction’: Mad Men and
the Ethics of Advertising (Adam Barkman).

11 Is Don Draper a Good Man? (Andrew Terjesen).

12 Don Draper, on How to Make Oneself (Whole Again) (John
Elia).

PART FOUR: ‘NO ONE ELSE IS SAYING THE RIGHT THING ABOUT
THIS’: MAD MEN AND SOCIAL PHILOSOPHY.

13 ‘And Nobody Understands That, but You Do’: The Aristotelian
Ideal of Friendship among the Mad Men (and Women)
(Abigail E. Myers).

14 Mad Women: Aristotle, Second-Wave Feminism, and the Women of
Mad Men (Ashley Jihee Barkman).

15 ‘We’ve Got Bigger Problems to Worry about Than TV, Okay?’
Mad Men and Race (Rod Carveth).

16 ‘New York City Is a Marvelous Machine’: Mad Men and
the Power of Social Convention (James B. South).

APPENDIX: It’s Not a List of Titles and Air Dates; It’s
an Episode Guide.

CONTRIBUTORS: Some Real Mad Men and Women.

INDEX: Client Files Lifted from Sterling Cooper.

About the author

ROD CARVETH is an assistant professor in the department of
Communications Media at Fitchburg State College.

JAMES B. SOUTH is chair of the philosophy department at
Marquette University. He edited Buffy the Vampire Slayer and
Philosophy and James Bond and Philosophy.

WILLIAM IRWIN is a professor of philosophy at King’s
College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy
and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling
The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles
including Batman and Philosophy, House and
Philosophy, and Twilight and Philosophy.