The Classic English Literature Podcast: Recent Episodes
Matthew McDonough
A look at English literature through a historical lens with an eye toward seeing how literature can give meaning to our ordinary lives.
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In the early 18th century, the public press came to dominate English writing. Pamphlets, newspapers, and periodicals fed the appetite for news and commentary of an ever-hungrier reading public. Richard Steele and Joseph Addison were the great innovators of the periodical essay, a quintessentially English genre of writing.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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On this trip, we're looking at the conventional candidate for the first modern novel in English. Defoe's story of a resourceful man shipwrecked on a desert island is so much more than a ripping yarn: it speaks to the rise of a literary vernacular language, the values of an increasing bourgeois and expansionist society, and of spiritual awakening. Come aboard!
Text: https://ia600207.us.archive.org/26/items/cu31924011498676/cu31924011498676.pdf
Additional Music:
"Theme from Emergency!" by Nelson Riddle. https://archive.org/details/tvtunes_206
"The Ballad of Gilligan's Island" by Sherwood Schwartz. https://archive.org/details/tvtunes_275
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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For you today, Trick or Treaters, a discussion of what some critics assert is the first modern ghost story in English: Daniel Defoe's 1705 "The Apparition of Mrs. Veal."
The text: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/36587/36587-h/36587-h.htm
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Well, I probably should have done this episode earlier, since it might have been good for it to precede our other discussions of Resto comedy. But I made a last minute decision and included a second play, which kind of threw off the old chronology. But it's good all the same!
The Man of Mode by George Etherege: https://coldreads.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/the-man-of-mode.pdf
The Way of the World by William Congreve: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1292/1292-h/1292-h.htm
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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For our second episode on John Dryden, we'll talk about two of his plays which marked an innovation in the tragi-comic romance: Marriage a la Mode and Amphitryon. We'll discuss the "split-plot" play, the exorcising of Restoration political anxieties, and why we sometimes mock that which we cherish.
Additional sound clip from Monty Python's Flying Circus.
Text of Marriage a la Mode: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/15349/15349-h/15349-h.htm#page_231
Text of Amphitryon: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/47679/47679-h/47679-h.htm#Page_1
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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Once hailed as the towering literary figure of the Restoration age, John Dryden is little known now by the general reader. Let's take care of that with a close look at his most enduring works, the poetical satires Mac Flecknoe and Absalom and Achitophel.
Mac Flecknoe text: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44181/mac-flecknoe
Absalom and Achitophel text: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44172/absalom-and-achitophel
Mea culpa: At one point in this episode, I make reference to Dryden's "tasteless" satiric attacks. I know, of course, that I should have said "distasteful." I am dreadfully embarrassed by this mistake and I sincerely apologize to all listeners who were horrified and offended at my imbecilic misuse of the noble English tongue. I vow to do better.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Since they wrote in 17th century Massachusetts, poets Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor are often overlooked in surveys of English literature. Today, though, we'll bring them back into the fold as we look at how their puritanical religious beliefs engaged with the pastoral and metaphysical poetic traditions that celebrated "Arcadia," that vision of unspoiled Nature.
The Works of Anne Bradstreet:
https://archive.org/details/worksofannebrads00brad/page/n7/mode/2up
The Works of Edward Taylor: https://archive.org/details/poemsofedwardtay00tayl
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Charles II reopened the theatres in 1660 and inaugurated the second golden age of the English stage. Today's show looks at one of the bawdiest plays to come from the period, a "comedy of manners" whose clever use of language points to the reality of style over substance.
The Country Wife text: https://theater.lafayette.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/59/2021/03/The-Country-Wife.pdf
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today marks the anniversary of one of the most mythologized battles in Anglo-Irish history: the Battle of the Boyne. In July of 1690, King William III soundly defeated James II and secured Ireland's Protestant supremacy while sowing the seeds for centuries of violent conflict. The battle also marks the debut of one of Ireland's most prominent writers, Dr. Jonathan Swift, whose poem "Ode to King William" celebrates the Orange victory.
Text of "Ode to King William": https://www.online-literature.com/swift/poems-of-swift/3/
Text of “Written for My Son to His Master, on the Anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne": https://www.eighteenthcenturypoetry.org/works/pba35-w0450.shtml
Additional Music:
"Derry’s Walls": Sam Wilson and the Loyalists, 1963
https://archive.org/details/lp_no-surrender_sam-wilson-the-loyalists/disc1/02.06.+Derry's+Walls.mp3)
"Boyne Water": Stuart Eydmann, 2020
https://ia601700.us.archive.org/13/items/raretunes-eydmann-boyne-water/RaretunesEydmannBoyneWater.mp3
"Awake The Trumpet's Lofty Sound": Heroic Music For Organ, Brass And Percussion; New England Brass Ensemble; CBS Masterworks (MS 6354), 1962
https://archive.org/details/lp_heroic-music-for-organ-brass-and-percussio_e-power-biggs-new-england-brass-ensemble
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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As Americans celebrate Independence Day, I'm here once again to remind them of the debt American independence owes to English literature and history. Stick in the mud. Today, we look at a genuinely weird poem that allegorizes the Glorious Revolution of 1688 (an event that would lay the groundwork for the American Revolution nearly a century later) as a cup of tea. So, pour yourself one -- milk first or last, doesn't matter to me -- and enjoy the show!
Text of "Panacea": https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A63046.0001.001/1:7?rgn=div1;view=fulltext
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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In today's chinwag, we'll explore a candidate for the first novel in English by the first professional female writer in English: Oroonoko by Aphra Behn (1688). It's the story of an African prince and his beloved, who are betrayed into slavery and do not live happily ever after. The novel seems a modest heroic romance, but I think Ms. Behn has a more complex project up her sleeve . . . .
Full text of Oroonoko:
https://pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca/oroonoko/chapter/the-history-of-the-royal-slave/
Additional music:
"James Bond Theme Song" from The Internet Archive
https://archive.org/details/tvtunes_6995
"Jeopardy Theme Think Music" from The Internet Archive
https://archive.org/details/tvtunes_29826
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today we look at the diary, a form of writing that became extraordinarily popular over the course of the 1600s. We'll especially look at famous diarists such as John Evelyn and Samuel Pepys, who not only chronicle details of their personal lives, but also give first hand accounts of the dramatic history of the period: the Restoration of the Monarchy, the Great Plague, and the Great Fire of London.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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I'm back before you even had a chance to miss me!
Today, a bit of a genealogy of a now little read mock epic -- Samuel Butler's Hudibras -- which takes Chaucer and Spenser and Jonson and Cervantes, mixes them all up into a gloopy goo, and sprays it all over lemon-sucking Puritans!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Put on your comfortable shoes and grab your walking stick because today we're embarking on the most famous allegory in the English language: John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress from 1678. We'll cross plains, endure temptations, descend valleys, fight monsters, and ford rivers in our quest for the Celestial City! Along the way, we'll talk about how this most Puritanical of texts is, ironically, deeply indebted to the ideas of the preceding religions it rejects. Last one there's a rotten egg!
An apology: please do forgive the plosives on this episode. Reckon I got too near the microphone's pop filter. I shall work on my technique in future.
Link to The Pilgrim's Progress:
https://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/sdg/bunyan/The%20Pilgrim's%20Progress%20-%20John%20Bunyan.pdf
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
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The political upheavals of 17th century England demanded new answers for old political questions: what is the purpose of government, how is power legitimated, and who may wield it? Philosophers Thomas Hobbes and John Locke reasoned from the same premises, but arrived at rather different conclusions. Balancing those conclusions is the primary task of liberal democracies to this day.
Texts:
Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes: https://gutenberg.org/files/3207/3207-h/3207-h.htm
"Second Treatise on Government" by John Locke: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/7370/7370-h/7370-h.htm
Leviathan frontispiece: https://www.worldhistory.org/image/18182/leviathan-frontispiece/
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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We often think of science fiction as a particularly modern genre of storytelling, born of the science and technology of the electronic and digital age. But speculative fiction goes back centuries, back to the beginning of what we now call the Scientific Revolution of the 1600s. On today's show, we look at two of the foundational books in the genre: Francis Godwin's The Man in the Moon and Margaret Cavendish's The Blazing World. May the Force be with us!
Links to Texts:
The Man in the Moon: https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/46591/pg46591-images.html
The Blazing World: https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/51783/pg51783-images.html
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Which is better: the life of ascetic contemplation or one of passionate sensuality? Let's see what the last great poet of the Stuart era, Andrew Marvell, has to say about that.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Here's another episode in our foundling series "Out of Time." Today, I correct an oversight from our 15th century literature discussions and survey the very earliest surviving tales of the outlaw and all-around-swell-guy Robin Hood! Let's jump in the Wayback Machine!
Here's a link to the Robin Hood Project at the University of Rochester, where you can find the texts we're discussing today and a wealth of other resources! https://d.lib.rochester.edu/project/robin-hood/about.html
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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We return to Milton's magnificent octopus today with an eye toward evaluating the epic's success according to its own mission statement: "to justify the ways of God to men." How does Milton approach the great theological problems of evil and suffering, divine foreknowledge, and free will?
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
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Sexy Satan, what have you done? You made a fool of every one!
On this episode we tackle the rather thorny question of Paradise Lost's charismatic protagonist (?) or antagonist (?) or antihero (?): the hottest guy in Hell. Why does an epic on the cosmic history of Christianity, written by a radical Puritan, present us with so commanding and appealing a character?
Additional music: "Gonna Fly Now (Theme from Rocky)" by Bill Conti. https://archive.org/details/rocky_202111/1976+-+Rocky/01.+Gonna+Fly+Now+(Theme+from+Rocky).mp3
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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In 1638, John Milton -- whom many see as perhaps the (second) greatest poet in English -- produced what many think to be his first major poem: the pastoral elegy "Lycidas," written to memorialize the tragic death of a college classmate. Ah! But it's so much more than that!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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The original "War on Christmas"! This year's stocking stuffer looks at England's Christmas ban from 1647 to 1660 and at a rather quirky pamphlet entitled "The Examination and Trial of Old Father Christmas." Season's greetings, Litterbugs!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today we have a slightly different kind of show -- literary analysis takes a bit of a back seat to historical context. We'll look at the turbulent period between 1625 and 1660, when England went to war with itself over the roles of the monarchy and of Parliament. We'll look at primary historical documents as well as a little poetry to get a sense of the state of the nation as it begins its rise to a world power.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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This Subcast episode marks the American Thanksgiving holiday by looking at two early accounts of the celebration by Pilgrims William Bradford and Edward Winslow and then turns to that great hymn of thanksgiving -- Psalm 107 -- from The Bay Psalm Book, the first book published in what would become the United States. We'll also look at what's called the "Puritan Plain Style" of composition, a marked departure from the ornate literature of its Anglican contemporaries.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today we look at the love children of John Donne and Ben Jonson, a group of monarchist soldiers during the English Civil War. Collectively known as the Cavalier Poets, they are numerous. We'll look at some representative poems today by Robert Herrick, Thomas Carew, Richard Lovelace, and the ill-fated and unfortunately named Sir John Suckling.
Additional music:
"Consort for Brass" by Kevin MacLeod
"La Violetta" by Claudio Monteverdi; perf. The Boston Camerata, dir. Joel Cohen
"In Town Tonight" by Reginald Dixon; perf. Eric Coates
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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This year's Halloween Subcast episode looks at James Shirley's meditation on Death. I hope you love it!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
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Let's head into the Fortune Theatre for a performance of one of the most innovative and deceptively complex comedies of the English Renaissance. The Roaring Girl, or Moll Cutpurse explores the fluidity of social identity by the protagonist's use of clothing and language.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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We'll get a bit philosophical today and look at the English language's greatest influence on the scientific revolution: politician, philosopher, and scientist Sir Francis Bacon. His Essays and "The Four Idols" from Novum Organon are our focus.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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This is the first of what I'm calling the "Out of Time" episodes, an embedded series of Subcast shows that fill in gaps I may have missed along the way. Today, we fly our Out-of-Time-Machine all the way back to the 8th-century to see how the Danish invasions left an indelible mark upon English language and literature. Pack your battle-axe!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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Here's a short episode to answer a special request by a loyal listener! Let's dive a little deeper into the various versions of Shakespeare's Hamlet that have come down to us!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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I had not thought to do an episode on the English country house poetry of the 17th century, but was recently reminded of their place in the survey of early modern literature, so here's a look at that peculiar subgenre.
In this show, we'll look at Aemilia Lanyer's "A Description of Cooke-ham" and Ben Jonson's "To Penshurst."
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Let's head back to the theatre for a really blood-soaked tragedy! And while we're at it, let's think about the intersection between art and social criticism.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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Poet and priest John Donne's work seems to transcend its early 17th century moment and feels as fresh and alive to us as anything written today. In this episode, we look at the following texts:
"The Bait"
"Elegy 19: To His Mistress Going To Bed"
"Batter my heart"
"Death, be not proud"
"The Flea"
"A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning"
"Meditation 17" from Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions
Additional music: "You Can Leave Your Hat On" by Randy Newman. Sail Away. Reprise Records. 1972. Accessed as public domain through the Internet Archive.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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Today, we'll wrap up our Jonsonian mini-series by looking at some his lyrics, including poems from the 1616 Works and songs from his plays. If you'd like to read along, just ask Uncle Google to serve up these titles:
"On Something, that Walks Somewhere"
"On My First Daughter"
"On My First Son"
"Song: To Celia"
"Still to be Neat"
Additional music from Internet Archive:
"Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes" perf. Paul Robeson, 1938.
"In Town Tonight" by Eric Coates, perf. Reginald Dixon.
What It's Like To Be...
What's it like to be a Cattle Rancher? FBI Special Agent? Professional Santa? Find out!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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It's Independence Day here in America, so today's show takes the opportunity to look at some of writing of early English colonists in New England and how their ideas contributed to the national ethos that would emerge in the coming centuries.
Additional music from Internet Archive:
"Stars and Stripes Forever." John Philip Sousa. perf Twentieth Century Fox Orchestra
"The Love Boat Theme." perf Jack Jones
Comic Boom - Comics in Education
An education podcast exploring the use of comics in education. Each episode I’ll be...
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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We'll finish our look at Ben Jonson's comedies today with perhaps his most well-regarded efforts: Volpone, or The Fox and The Alchemist.Additional music: "In Town Tonight" by Eric Coates, perf. Reginald Dixon. From the Internet Archive.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today, I look askance at two plays by Ben Jonson, whom many see (not me, though) as the greatest English playwright bar Shakespeare: Every Man In His Humour and Every Man Out of His Humour. These have become the paradigmatic examples of the 17th century "comedy of humours."
Thank you to the Internet Archive for providing public domain recordings of The Benny Hill Show and Fawlty Towers theme songs.
I Hate Talking
A podcast about talking, etymology, frustrating topics, current events, and more.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Today, we take a historical survey of the Bible in English, from early partial translations and paraphrases in the 7th century through the magnificence of King James I's Authorized Version of 1611.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
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Today we look at Aemelia Lanyer's pioneering and influential work, "Eve's Apology in Defense of Women" from 1611's Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum.
The Happy Writer with Marissa Meyer
Authors, from debuts to bestsellers, chat about books, writing, publishing, and joy.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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For our final episode focusing on Shakespeare, we look at his sonnets, arguably the most famous collection of lyric poems in the language.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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For our (probably) final episode on Shakespeare's plays, we sail through The Tempest, a late romance which has attracted historical and psychoanalytical interpretations, but stands out for many readers as perhaps a play in which a version of Shakespeare himself appears as the protagonist.
Audio clip from The Tempest ; 2004 Naxos AudioBooks. Taken from The Internet Archive
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
To mark the Easter holiday, we return to George Herbert, Jacobean poet and priest, and his most famous work, the pattern poem "Easter Wings."
Here's a link to an image of the poem:
https://clinicalpsychreading.blogspot.com/2016/03/easter-wings-george-herbert-15931633.html
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
While most people know Shakespeare as a playwright, he saw himself as a poet in the quite traditional sense. Today, we'll look at his two major narrative poems: Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece.
clip from "Mrs. Robinson" by Paul Simon; perf. by Simon and Garfunkel. 1968. Taken from We Got Good at It: A Wrecking Crew Anthology 1962-1971. The Internet Archive.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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The Tragedy of King Lear, while considered by many as Shakespeare's greatest play, is also his most devastating. In this episode, we consider what Lear has to say about the meaning of human suffering.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
In this episode, we look at how our current concerns with identity politics intersects with those of Shakespeare's plays which portray sexist, racist, or anti-Semitic material.
Fair warning: this episode will deal with language and tropes that some may find uncomfortable
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Is Shakespeare's darkest tragedy a cautionary tale about ambition? a bit of Jacobean mythmaking? Or is it the portrait of a deeply committed marriage gone catastrophically wrong?
With apologies for all the appalling accents . . . .
Performance Clip: Macbeth with Orson Welles, Fay Bainter, and the Mercury Acting Co. Mercury Text Records. From the Internet Archive (archive.org)
Additional Music: "The Rout of Moy" perf. Albannach. 2006. From the Internet Archive (archive.org)
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Shakespeare's Hamlet has not been out of production for over four centuries and its profound examination of the human condition continues to capture the hearts and minds of people the world over. Join me in Elsinore as we think about what some have called the greatest drama in history -- perhaps even the greatest literary achievement of all time!
Margaret Atwood's "Gertrude Talks Back" can be found here: https://lucylit.weebly.com/uploads/6/1/5/6/61560063/margaret_atwoods_gertrude_talks_back.pdf
Hamlet recording: Hamlet with Richard Burton and the Broadway Cast; Columbia Masterworks DOS 702 (1964). Taken from the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/lp_hamlet-richard-burton-and-the-broadway-c_richard-burton-hume-cronyn-alfred-drake-ei
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year! Here's a little subcast episode on poet Nahum Tate's "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks," the first Christmas carol sanctioned by the Anglican Church around the turn of the 18th century.
Recording: "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night" THE B.B.C. CHORUS; Berkeley Mason Writer: Nahum Tate (Traditional Christmas Carol); (Text: (1696); Tune: "Winchester Old" 16th Cent.)
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
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Is political violence ever justified? Who decides? And what ethical systems can evaluate the justice of such acts? Today, we look at the ethics driving the characters of Shakespeare's The Tragedy of Julius Caesar.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Welcome to the Subcast! On today's bonus episode, I give a little poddie-training on perhaps the most significant publishing event in English literature: the presentation of the First Folio of Shakespeare's plays.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
In this episode, we'll look at two women who are generally regarded as among the greatest female characters ever written: Rosalind from Shakespeare's As You Like It and Beatrice from his Much Ado About Nothing. Their wisdom, intelligence, and emotional depth challenge Renaissance gender assumptions and inaugurate a line of deep-feeling, wise-cracking female characters down to our own day.
Excerpts from "As You Like It" c. 1964 The Shakespeare Recording Company and "Much Ado About Nothing" c. 1960 The Dublin Gate Theatre; both downloaded from the Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/audio)
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
17th-century poet and priest George Herbert offers a playful poem reminding us to strive for gratefulness. I am, myself, very grateful for all the support you all have offered me. Thank you so much!
Additional sound: "Mahna Mahna" from The Muppet Show (1977). Downloaded from Internet Archive.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
In today's discussion, we take a look at the character of Henry, Prince of Wales, who will become King Henry V in the group of plays including Henry IV, parts 1 and 2, and Henry V, sometimes called "The Henriad."
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Trick or treat! Here's a bone-us episode on Robert Herrick's "The Hag," about a witch's night ride with the Devil!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Here's a good one for the Halloweeny season: Christopher Marlowe's most famous play. A scholar sells his soul to the Devil for ultimate knowledge and power!
Correction: In this episode, I misidentify the author of "The Devil and Tom Walker" as Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is, of course, Washington Irving.
Extra musical selection from "Faust" by Charles Gounod, perf. Orchestra And Chorus Of The Théâtre National De l'Opéra.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Does Romeo and Juliet even need an introduction? Well, this time on the poddie, we'll look at the play's tragic lovers through the lens of the Renaissance sonnet, how that poem style's postures shapes the action, making character fate.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
Shssshh! Drift off into Shakespeare's most rhymy and least rational play! Today, it's The Dream!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
We're here! Finally, our first Shakespeare play episode. Today, we'll look at The Tragical History of King Richard III.
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
My thanks and appreciation to all the generous providers!
You may be surprised at how the rivalry between these early Elizabethan theatrical superstars played out! Betrayal, torture, assassination; this is tabloid-worthy stuff!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
Oooh, you're in for a bloody one today, dear listener! Perhaps the most popular revenge tragedy in the 16th-century: Kyd's Spanish Tragedy. Wildly infamous, wildly influential, wildly excessive -- just wild! It inaugurates the fashion for revenge tragedy that will dominate theater for the next decades, and paves the way for Shakespeare's Tragedy of Hamlet.
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Perhaps the first great play of the Elizabethan stage, Marlowe's Tamburlaine the Great is relentless and ruthless. How are we to understand a bloody conqueror and tyrant? What does Marlowe mean by this spectacle of his success? We'll look at those questions today!
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A bonus episode on the Subcast looks at the early modern English theatre, the culture and atmosphere of Elizabethan playgoing, as a prologue to our multi-episode discussion of the great English dramatists of the age, and for all time!
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This week on the poddie, we discuss a lesser known -- but by no means a lesser quality -- Elizabethan pastoral by Richard Barnfield called "The Affectionate Shepherd." In sophisticated, learned verse, Barnfield highlights the homoerotic elements (not always so) latent in classical and early modern bucolics, which I think a heroic feat in for a 16th century writer.
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If you listen to much modern American country music, you notice that many of the songs conjure up an idealized vision of small-town rural America, distinct from (and presumably superior to) life in urban areas. The fact that many of these songs are written in large cities like Nashville points to a kind of constructed nostalgia.
This is very like the vogue for pastoral poetry in 16th century England. We'll look at two famous poems: Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" and Ralegh's "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd."
Here's a link to a page that will direct you to the many replies and parodies of these poems: https://comelivewithmeballad.com/replies-parodies/
2 sisters + (NYC x Dominican) Bred = Vibes + Bops
Tune into season 1 for talks on code-switching, boundaries, caregiving, shadow work + more
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Today we'll look at the most famous tale from Spenser's epic The Faerie Queene: Book I "The Legend of the Redcrosse Knight." We'll discuss its allegorical and neoplatonic dimensions while doing a quick drive-by of a passage from Mutabilitie Cantos.
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As Americans mark Independence Day, I wanted to out that the shift in Western thinking that eventually produced a document like the Declaration of Independence began with a doctrine of the 16th century Protestant Reformation and its influence on Tudor political thought.
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Some say he is the first real poet of the English Renaissance. Whatever that may mean, Edmund Spenser certainly looms large in 16th century English literature. In this first of two episodes, we will look at his paradoxically traditional and innovative lyric poetry, especially The Shepheardes Calendar, Amoretti, and "Epithalamion."
Finally! A Book Club You'll Love
LIT Society is the hilarious weekly show that'll make you fall in love again with reading!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify
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While the political history of Queen Elizabeth I (r. 1558-1603) has been well-rehearsed, fewer listeners may be aware that she was also a devilishly accomplished poet and rhetorician. In this episode of the Subcast, we look at her most important poems -- "When I was fair and young," "On Monsieur's Departure," and "The Doubt of Future Foes" -- as well as note her stirring 1588 speech to the troops at Tilbury.
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Though he spent only a brief period as a courtier of Elizabeth I, Sir Philip certainly cut a dashing figure. He also dashed off one of the most influential works of literary theory in English. Andhe was quite the dab hand at versifying. Today, we look at Sidney's Defence of Poesie,"Ye Goatherd Gods" from Arcadia, and sonnets from Astrophil and Stella.
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Sir Thomas More's 1516 book inaugurated a new genre of English literature: the utopian fantasy. But More's own life, combined with the text's irony and narrative layering, make this a more complex prescription than you might think!
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Today we do a quick look at some of the poetry of Henry Howard, the Earl of Surrey, who is credited with the development of the English sonnet and of blank verse. We'll look at "The Night Piece," "Love that Doth Reign," and “Alas, so all things now do hold their peace."
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
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Firmly in the Tudor Renaissance now, literati! Today, we'll look at Sir Thomas Wyatt, the first major poet of Henry VIII's court. He brought back the iambic pentameter line and developed the English sonnet. We'll look particularly at "They Flee from Me" and "Whoso List to Hunt."
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As we move our discussions toward 16th century Tudor literature, we look at a key transitional figure: John Skelton. His virtuosic versifying introduces the English Renaissance and we'll hear "To Mistress Margaret Hussey" and take a deep look at "The Book of Phillip Sparrow."
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To mark the coronation of Charles III, I present to you a 15th century coronation poem written for Henry VI by John Lydgate. God Save the King!
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Let's have a look at perhaps why Chaucer, in his "The Miller's Tale," alludes so often to the incipient mystery plays of the late 14th century.
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Hi, folks! In a few weeks or months, we'll be coming to Shakespeare, and looms so large in literature that I'm unsure how exactly to approach him in the podcast. Please email me or message me on social media with any suggestions or preferences you may have. I'd love the advice! Thanks!
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If, as it's often said, William Shakespeare is the greatest writer in the English -- perhaps, indeed, in any -- language, then where did his most famous genre come from? Today, we look at the very earliest English plays, the birth of English theatre. We will consider "The Second Shepherd's Play," "The York Crucifixion," and "Everyman."
Make People Better Podcast
Science fiction is becoming science fact. In 2018, the team behind this podcast...
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Sir Thomas Malory's hernia-making masterpiece Le Morte D'Arthur is the subject of part 4 of our sporadic mini-series The Matter of Arthur. Because it's such a massive work, and because its versions of the Arthur legends are the most well-known, this episode will largely focus on Malory's deft use of the Lancelot and Guinevere love affair as necessary for his romantico-tragic vision.
The Good, The Bad & The AI
Want to level up with artificial intelligence, or just ready up for the robot apocalypse?
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Here's a nice little egg in your Easter basket! I look at William Dunbar's Easter hymn "Done is the Battle" from around the year 1500. I hope you enjoy the show, and I hope your Easter, Passover, Ramadan, and spring rites are happy and blessed!
Cheers!
Additional Music: Consort for Brass by Kevin MacLeod
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
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Today on the Subcast there's a brief explainer on the Great Vowel Shift, the most significant change in English since the Norman Invasion. We're beginning to move into Modern English!
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Today we look at the literature of female mysticism in the English 14th and 15th centuries, particularly the landmark texts Dame Julian of Norwich's Book of Showings and Margery Kempe's The Book of Margery Kempe, which are not only profound religious statements but the earliest voices of women in the English language.
Special thanks to Jessica Orluck for her advice and assistance!
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A Subcast episode looking at four of the most influential philosophers working in England during the Middle Ages: Anselm of Canterbury, Roger Bacon, John Duns Scotus, and William of Ockham.
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Today we take a look at John Gower, who was once considered the "Father of English Poetry," but who is now largely unknown outside English departments.
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Subscriber-only episode
Episode 2 of the exclusive subscriber-only CEL Subcast! Today we look at a comic poem from the first half of the 15th century: "The Tournament of Tottenham." But who's the joke on?
On Hold Music: "Lounge" by Serge Quadrado
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Subscriber-only episode
Our first Subcast episode! Let's read two Old English poems that treat the female experience in Anglo-Saxon England: "Wulf and Eadwacer" and "The Wife's Lament" -- the only surviving OE poems written in a woman's voice!
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Join Club Literati and get access to exclusive, subscriber-only episodes! Deeper dives into material from the CEL Podcast, studies of less familiar texts, writers from the other nations and cultures of the British Isles, and more!
Become a monthly subscriber and join us at Club Literati for the Subcast!
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What do peasants, poets, and priests write about when a toxic slurry of starvation, deprivation, and taxation spill over into the largest popular insurrection in English history? Find out as we look at the literature surrounding the Great Rising of 1381.
With regards to Contemptua X. Smugly.
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Today we look at Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, an anonymous narrative poem from the late 14th century Midlands. The Gawain Poet is a gifted technician and craftsman as well as storyteller whose technique interlaces disparate strands into an elegant pattern -- imagine a Celtic knot, the monastic Gospel illuminations, or the intricate metalwork of Saxon artisans, and you have the visual equivalent of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, the greatest English Arthurian romance!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
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Have you ever wondered if Chaucer's satirical broadsides against the Church could get him into trouble? Well, seems he may have thought so . . . . or maybe not.
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Alisoun, the Wife of Bath, is perhaps the most psychologically complex character in all of medieval English literature. Bawdy, rebellious, haughty, and rambunctious, the Wife smashes the patriarchy . . . or does she?
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WARNING: Contains strong language.
In this minisode, I look at what would have been considered foul language in the Middle Ages. If you are of a sensitive disposition or a delicate constitution, if you are prone to the vapors or simply upright in your rectitude, mightI suggest that you listen to this episode with your fingers plugged firmly into your ears? It may be helpful to also hum a happy tune.
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On our second episode for Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, we take a deep look at a character that scholars have called "pre-Shakespearean" in his psychological roundness and complexity: The Pardoner.
Additional music: Timbre Milton Intro Remix
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
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A little stocking stuffer of a bonus episode: a couple of Middle English poems taking a look at Mary, the mother of Jesus, at the Nativity. Happy happy joy joy!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
April showers bring May flowers, and May flowers bring pilgrims. No, not those stern po-faced separatists in New England, but a merry fellowship in old England! We come today to Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, the monument of medieval English literature. In this episode, we'll focus on the "General Prologue" to the tales: its satirical project, its narrative structure, and a couple of its characters.
Additional music: "Village Theme" by Gesornoud; "Consort for Brass" by Kevin Macleod; "Medieval Flute" by Carlos Carty
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Email: classicenglishliterature@gmail.com
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If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting it with a small donation. Click the "Support the Show" button. So grateful!
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Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
For us moderns, dreams are personal and interior, bubbling up from the deep chasms of experience, neurochemistry, and cultural symbolism. But for the medievals, dreams were exterior: penetrative, intrusive -- they came from the outside, from beyond. They perhaps were messages from God Himself. On today's episode, we look at two poems about dream visions: the Old English "Dream of the Rood" and (a quick tour of) William Langland's Middle English "The Vision of Piers Plowman."
Support the showPlease like, subscribe, and rate the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, or wherever you listen. Thank you!
Email: classicenglishliterature@gmail.com
Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting it with a small donation. Click the "Support the Show" button. So grateful!
For exclusive content, support the show with a monthly subscription and join the Literati Club. You'll receive links to special episodes on the Classic English Literature Subcast!
Podcast Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Subcast Theme Music: "Sons of the Brave" by Thomas Bidgood, perf. The Band of the Irish Guards
Sound effects and incidental music: Freesounds.org
Nicholas of Guildford's "The Owl and the Nightingale" is one of the earliest examples of "verse contest" poetry in English. But don't expect nuance from these disputants!
Support the showPlease like, subscribe, and rate the podcast on Apple, Spotify, Google, or wherever you listen. Thank you!
If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting it with a small donation. Click the "Support the Show" button. So grateful!
Theme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Perhaps the first great Arthurian romance to be written in England, Marie de France's "The Lay of Sir Lanval" is full of love, lies, secrets, and betrayals. With a bit of faery thrown in.
Support the showTheme Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel, perf. The Advent Chamber Orchestra
Today we start our discussion of what has been called "The Matter of Britain": the tales of King Arthur and his knights. This episode focuses on the earliest writings about Arthur in English: Geoffrey of Monmouth's The History of the Kings of Britain and Layamon's Brut.
Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel perf. Advent Chamber Orchestra
"Running Fanfare" by Kevin Macleod
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This episode is a brief overview of the changes to English language and literature wrought by the Norman Conquest in 1066.
Interstitial Correction: She Who Must Be Obeyed
Music: "Rejoice" (GF Handel) perf. Advent Chamber Orchestra; "Medieval Flute" (Carlos Carty)
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In this short bonus episode, I wish to engage your help! The Anglo-Saxons loved riddles and nearly a hundred survive. Here are four. I'd love to hear your answers!
Often I war with waves, battle the winds,
strive against both at once, meaning to find
the ground wave-covered.
Home is estranged from me—
I am strong of struggle, if stilled.
If I fail, they are stronger than me,
and, tearing me, immediately rout,
wishing to whisk away what I must ward.
I may withstand them, if my tail is tough
and the stones allow me to hold fast
against unrelenting force. Ask what I am called.
__________________________________________________________
A moth ate words. It seemed to me
a strange occasion, when I inquired about that wonder,
that the worm swallowed the riddle of certain men,
a thief in the darkness, the glorious pronouncement
and its strong foundation. The stealing guest was not
one whit the wiser, for all those words he swallowed.
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I saw four wondrous creatures
travelling together; dark were their tracks,
their footprints very black. Swift was their journey,
faster than birds, flying through the breeze,
diving under the waves. Restless it wrought,
a struggling warrior who points out their ways
over decorated gold, all four of them.
__________________________________________________________
I am a wonderful thing, a pleasure
to women, useful to the neighbors—
I am harmless to the villagers,
except to my slayer alone.
My shaft is lofty, I stand over the bed,
shaggy below someplace or other.
Sometimes a churl’s daughter,
proud-minded woman, quite sexy,
dares to grapple me,
molesting me by the redness,
ravishing my head,
affixing me in her fastness.
She feels my forcing
right away, she who
approaches me,
a woman with braided locks.
Her eye will be wet—
____________________________________________________________
Music: "Rejoice" (G.F. Handel) perf. Advent Chamber Orchestra
Text: Muir, Bernard James, ed. The Exeter Anthology of Old English Poetry, 1994.
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They say that not all those who wander are lost. Well, two of the most famous poems of the Anglo-Saxon era are about wandering and seeking. We'll discuss "The Wanderer" and "The Seafarer" from the Exeter Book, which not only take us into the minds of the seekers, but also show us evidence of the tremendous changes afoot as England begins to embrace the Christian religion.
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In this episode, we talk about the first major text in English: the epic Beowulf. In addition to summarizing the tale, we'll also ask why a Christian monk would feel the need to preserve an oral pagan legend by transcribing it: why does Beowulf even exist?
Music: "Rejoice" (G.F. Handel) perf. Advent Chamber Orchestra, "Dies Irae" perf. Dee Yan Key; "Mournful Violin" perf. Cottager
Our first bonus episode! I know it seems early, but I thought it important to put this out there as soon as possible: sort of justify the podcast's existence. . . .
Students often ask me: "Why do we have to learn this stuff?" It's a fair question. To many, it seems useless: reading novels and poetry won't help you be a better engineer or physician's assistant, won't keep you fit -- in fact, one can lead a beautiful life and never have read a sonnet. So why study it?
Oscar Wilde said that a "work of art is useless as a flower is useless." I love that: something may be useless without being worthless. This episode is my reply to students who look for a connection between literature and life.
In this episode, we get a little history about how Germanic peoples from northern Europe came to settle what is now Britain over 1500 years ago. One of these tribes, the Angles, gave their name to this land (Anglelonde = England) and to the language (Anglisch = English). We'll meet the first English historian, the first English poet, and we'll learn about some of the main characteristics of Old English language and poetry!
Music: "Rejoice" performed by The Advent Chamber Orchestra; "Dies Irae" by Dee-Yan-Key; "Sunday Morning in the Great Hall" by Fool Boy Media
Interstitial Announcement: She Who Must Be Obeyed
In this introductory episode, I share my plans for a podcast that takes historical and philosophical perspectives on English literature to show how it applies to our everyday lives!
Music: "Rejoice" by G.F. Handel; performed by Advent Chamber Orchestra
This introductory episode outlines my vision for a podcast that takes a historical perspective on English literature to show how it can give meaning to our everyday lives!