The Canon Reviewed

Today, we'll turn our attention to the English renaissance as we explore a poem by one of our all-time favorite rogues/reverends, John Donne. Since it's more fun, we'll focus our attention on the rogue half, as we break down Donne's classic, lusty poetic argument, "The Flea." It's wild, wacky, and witty, so please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's get started! Special thanks to Head Librarian...

Today, we finish our look at Shakespeare's Hamlet, one of, if not the, greatest plays of all time! But, does being great equal remaining relevant? Should we still read Hamlet? Well, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about that. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak, Jesse Cunningham, and Jake Frounfelter!!! Music Credits: Ambiment by Kevin MacLeod | https://incompetech.com/

Today we look at Hamlet's soliloquy "How All Occasions Do Inform Against Me." He is finally done with all this waiting, all this inaction. He just needs one more little push. We have lots to talk about, so please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk some Hamlet. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak, Jesse Cunningham, and Jake Frounfelter!!! Music Credits: Ambiment by Kevin MacLeod...

Today, we come to the most famous of Shakespeare's soliloquies, and perhaps the most well-known passage from any literary work! That may be an exaggeration but I'm not sure. But, yes, under the microscope today is Hamlet's brilliant and emotional exploration on life and death, so, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about "To Be, or Not to Be." Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff...

Today, we continue our discussion of Shakespeare's Hamlet, focusing on the soliloquy "Oh, What a Rogue and Peasant Slave Am I." This one's a biggy, to be sure, and we'll see just how it fits in the play dramatically and thematically as we take it apart. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's get started. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak, Jesse Cunningham, and newest Head Li...

Today, we continue our discussion of Shakespeare's Hamlet, focusing on the soliloquy "Oh, that this too too sullied flesh would melt." We'll put it in context, figure out what it means, and then see where and how it fits dramatically and thematically in the play. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire, and let's begin. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!! Music Cr...

It's time to start a new book, and this time we're heading a little deeper into the shelves at the library, as we begin our discussion of Shakespeare's incredible masterpiece, Hamlet! So, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's get to it. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!! Special thanks to the podcast The Hills Have Nerds who recently had me on as a guest...

Today, we'll finish our discussion on Jean-Paul Sartre's No Exit, looking at how the play exemplifies and defines the core tenets of Sartre's brand of Existentialism. And then, let's decide if we think No Exit still belongs in the canon. So, pull up a chair by the fire here, and let's talk about all this. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!! And welcome to our newe...

Today we continue our discussion of Jean-Paul Sartre's one-act play, No Exit . Turns out, it's the ultimate primer for an introduction to Existentialism, a somewhat maligned and misunderstood philosophy. On the table today? Let's just see if we can answer one simple question: Is Hell really other people? Please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about that. Special thanks to Head Libraria...

Time to head back into the shelves and start a new book. Let's see here, not going too deep into the recesses of the library. 1900s, Jazz Age, Modernism, the 40s, France. Ah, yes! Ok. Now, we've gotten philosophical plenty of times on the podcast, talking big ideas and such, but we haven't really talked philosophy. So, how about this, then, the starter text for anyone thinking about diving into th...

Today, we're heading back into the mailbag, continuing a discussion the Canon Reviewed Community started on Discord. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about what we think, nowadays, about Harper Lee's classic -- that Western Canon staple, that fixture of Middle School English classrooms everywhere -- To Kill a Mockingbird! Very special thanks to Gene for beginning the conversa...

Today we're taking a look at 2 poems by one of the best known poets of the Victorian age, Christina Rossetti. We'll see that maybe there's more lingering beneath the surface of a biography, that, perhaps, an artist and her art are very different things, indeed, and that, in the end, there's something very much alive deep down in those metaphorical depths. So, pull up a chair by the fire, and let's...

Today we conclude our discussion of the great English epic Beowulf. Does it hold up? Should we teach the poem in high school? Is it still relevant to our contemporary readers? Well, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about that. Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!! And to contributing writer, Mustafa Unlu!!! Music Credits: Ambiment by Kevin MacLeod | https:...

Today we continue our discussion of the great English epic, Beowulf, as we consider the overall mood and tone of the poem. It seems, out of every victory there comes a shadow, a return to a kind of gloomy foreboding to counter a temporary joy. Please, pull up a chair by the fire, and let's see why that is – let's talk about that! Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!...

Today, we're heading back for a few minutes into the mailbag, but it'll be a bit different this time. For this episode, I'm going to recount three conversations I've been in recently that have gotten me thinking about stuff. Hopefully, it'll generate some conversation as well, and I'll get to hear back from you. So… Pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about some things! Special thanks to He...

Today we continue our discussion of the great English epic, Beowulf , by looking at the poem's softer side, exploring the themes of marginalization and the motivating quality of the outsider status. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk Beowulf . Special thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and Jesse Cunningham!!! Music Credits: Ambiment by Kevin MacLeod | https://incompetech.com...

Summer break is over and it's time to begin another new book, so let's go back to the shelves here in the Library. Ah, here it is. The granddaddy of English literature and literary study, the one that started it all – a thrilling and captivating English heroic epic all about Scandinavians! That's right, it's time to begin Beowulf, so, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's get started. Spec...

Today, let's look more analytically at the poem we started last week, TS Eliot's "The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock." There's a lot to tackle, that's for sure, so please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's dive in! Special Thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak & Jesse Cunningham! Music Credits: Ambiment by Kevin MacLeod | https://incompetech.com/ Music promoted by https://www.chosic.com/free-m...

Today we begin a 2-part examination of one of the single most famous, and important, poems in the English language – T. S. Eliot's "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock." We start by getting a little personal, stepping off the beaten path we normally tread here on the podcast. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire, and let's start talking about this most tremendous work of art. Special Thanks to H...

Today, we'll be concluding our discussion of the Epic of Gilgamesh. Is it still important, does it still matter? Is it worthy of introduction to new readers, or is it just a bewitching relic that remains on the shelves because it's historically interesting? Well, pull up a chair by the fire and let's talk about that. Special Thanks to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak & Jesse Cunningham!!! Music Credits...

Today we continue our discussion of the epic of Gilgamesh by seeing if we can read the text while setting aside our own contemporary moral understanding of things, see if we can free ourselves from the constraints of absolutism, or our beliefs in right and wrong. What can a book whose moral landscape is so different from ours continue to offer us? Well, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let'...

Today, we'll be continuing our discussion of Gilgamesh, this time paying particular attention to the supernatural and mythical elements of the epic. The gods and goddesses play an absolutely central role in the story, but, perhaps more importantly, they establish the archetypes that will populate pantheons for centuries to come. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire, and let's dive into the worl...

Today we'll be looking into the mailbag for the second time, and I'm super excited. Three listeners reached out to share their thoughts about Frankenstein and Walt Whitman, and I can't wait to hear what they have to say. So, please, pull up a chair by the fire and let's open these envelopes. Special Thanks to Nick Loewen, Scott Laverick, and Thew Elliott!!!! And to Head Librarians Jeff Seplak and...

It's time to begin another new book so let's go back to the shelves here in the Library. Ok, this will be perfect. I keep this one up front because I return to it pretty often. It's humanity's first story, a tale of heroes and their downfall, a quest for immortality and the ultimate recognition that our fate is inescapable. So, please, pull up a chair here by the fire, and let's begin our discussi...

We got another poem under the microscope today, this time from one of the earliest and greatest poets from the United States. Yep, we'll be looking at the legend that is Walt Whitman and our poem this week is his metaphorical masterpiece, "Whoever You Are Holding Me Now in Hand." So, please, pull up a chair by the fire, get yourself comfortable, and let's talk Whitman. Super special thanks this we...