The Book Club | PragerU - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

The Book Club: The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer with Catherine Illingworth Apr 19, 2023

Show notes

What makes The Canterbury Tales the most popular work of English literature ever? Penned by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century, this medieval collection of stories depicts a diverse group of characters and covers topics ranging from chivalry and deceit to religious corruption. Michael Knowles sits with Catherine Illingworth to discuss what he describes as “the most vulgar, bawdy, downright often disgusting book I’ve ever read.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Yoo: Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes Mar 21, 2023

Show notes

Life is “nasty, brutish, and short.” That’s why we need a social contract—an exchange of freedom for security to avoid a dog-eat-dog state of nature. At least, that’s what Thomas Hobbes posited in Leviathan. Michael Knowles and guest John Yoo, Professor of Law at UC Berkeley, discuss how Hobbes’s seminal work has shaped political philosophy for centuries.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: The Iliad by Homer with Joshua Katz Feb 22, 2023

Show notes

What can we learn from ancient Greek poetry? A foundational text of Western Civilization—The Iliad by Homer—is one of the oldest pieces of literature still read by modern audiences. Why? Because we recognize ourselves in its timeless themes of war, love, fate, and free will. Ivy League classicist Joshua Katz joins Michael Knowles to discuss this 2,800-year-old poem embodying the human condition.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan with Allie Stuckey Jan 19, 2023

Show notes

Christians have been mocked, humiliated, and persecuted for their faith for hundreds of years. The Pilgrim’s Progress, written by Puritan preacher John Bunyan while he was in prison for holding religious services, is an encouraging reminder that difficulties and hardships are part and parcel with a life of faith. Allie Stuckey joins Michael Knowles to discuss how this seminal 17th-century work can embolden and strengthen Christians to endure the hardships of today. Donate today to help keep PragerU podcasts and videos free! PragerU.com/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud with Stephen Marmer Jan 03, 2023

Show notes

Civilization and Its Discontents by Sigmund Freud—the father of psychoanalysis—explores the perpetual struggle between self and society. Clinical psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry at UCLA Dr. Stephen Marmer joins Michael Knowles for a deep dive into Freud’s anti-utopian work that calls for individuals to take responsibility for themselves. Donate today to help keep PragerU podcasts and videos free! PragerU.com/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville with Pete Peterson Dec 16, 2022

Show notes

Could anyone have predicted the future of America 200 years ago? Alexis de Tocqueville foresaw a society fraught with materialism and “soft despotism" in his classic study of self-governance, freedom, and equality, Democracy in America. Pete Peterson, Dean of the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, and Michael Knowles discuss what we can learn from de Tocqueville’s prophetic words.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy with Inez Stepman Dec 16, 2022

Show notes

What happens if you follow your heart, pursuing love and happiness above all else, devoid of duty or virtue? Nothing good according to Leo Tolstoy, author of Anna Karenina. Inez Stepman, senior policy analyst at Independent Women’s Forum, joins Michael Knowles for a deep dive into this great literary work about fidelity, marriage, and betrayal.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke with Yoram Hazony Sep 30, 2022

Show notes

The American Revolution led to the birth of a new, free nation, while the French Revolution led to blood and terror. What was the difference and what can we learn from history before it’s rewritten or forgotten entirely? Political theorist and Bible scholar Yoram Hazony joins Michael Knowles for a discussion about Edmund Burke’s treatise “Reflections on the Revolution in France.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: The Closing of the American Mind by Allan Bloom with Max Eden Jul 22, 2022

Show notes

Something is deeply amiss in contemporary American culture. Young people have lost touch with reality and have become trapped by moral relativism. Is post-modern education to blame? Education expert Max Eden joins Michael Knowles for an eye-opening discussion of Allan Bloom’s unexpected bestseller The Closing of the American Mind. Donate today to help keep PragerU podcasts and videos free! PragerU.com/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Book Club: Lord of the Flies by William Golding with Lauren Chen Jun 21, 2022

Show notes

In a world without consequences, are humans naturally good or is there darkness within us all? Lauren Chen sits with Michael Knowles to discuss the classic novel Lord of the Flies about a group of British schoolboys who become stranded on a deserted island. Free to behave however they please, the boys reject societal norms and devolve into depravity. If the human impulse for power and groupthink overtake reason, is there any hope for Western civilization?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices