The History of Literature

Latest Episodes:

446 Percy Bysshe Shelley - The Early Years Sep 29, 2022

Show notes

Jacke takes a look at the early years of Percy Bysshe Shelley, from his idyllic childhood, to his rebellious student years, to his experiments in free love, radical politics, and Wordsworthian poetry. Works discussed include "Queen Mab," "Hymn to Intellectual Beauty," "Alastor, or the Spirit of Solitude," "Mont Blanc," "Mutability ["We are as clouds that veil the midnight moon"], and "To Wordsworth."

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Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at www.thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature.

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445 What Would Cervantes Do? (with David Castillo and William Egginton) Sep 26, 2022

Show notes

As the author of what is generally considered the first and perhaps greatest novel of the modern era, Miguel de Cervantes and his masterpiece Don Quixote belongs on every shelf. But as two scholars point out in their new book, What Would Cervantes Do? Navigating Post-Truth with Spanish Baroque Literature the lessons to be learned from Cervantes go beyond issues of plot and character. In this episode, Jacke talks to Professor David Castillo and Professor William Egginton about using the example of Cervantes to better understand the role that the humanities can play in dissecting and combatting the forces of disinformation.

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444 Thrillers on the Eve of War - Spy Novels in the 1930s (with Juliette Bretan) Sep 22, 2022

Show notes

The British spy novel was well established long before Ian Fleming's creation of James Bond in the 1950s. And while it came to be identified with the Cold War, thanks to Fleming and subsequent writers like John le Carré, thriller aficionados continued to look back to earlier authors for novels with a different set of stakes. In this episode, Jacke talks to scholar and journalist Juliette Bretan about the issues at work in the spy novels of the 1930s. With Europe in flux, what were the protagonist spies busy doing? And how did those reflect the passions and fears of their creators? Authors discussed include Graham Greene, Christopher Isherwood, Rex Warner (The Wild Goose Chase, The Professor), Eric Ambler (The Dark Frontier, Uncommon Danger, A Coffin for Dimitrios) and Geoffrey Household (Rogue Male).

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443 Updating Bloom's Canon (with Bethanne Patrick) Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

In 1994, Harold Bloom's magnum opus The Western Canon took up the critical cudgels on behalf of 26 writers declared by Bloom to be essential. In this episode, Bethanne Patrick (aka the Book Maven), literary critic and host of the new podcast Missing Pages, joins Jacke to propose some additions to Bloom's narrow list.

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442 Prince, Emperor, Sage - Bābur and the Bāburnāma (with Anuradha) Sep 15, 2022

Show notes

The warrior and leader known as Bābur (1483-1530) had the kind of life one might expect from the descendant of Timur (Tamburlaine) on his father's side and Genghis Khan on his mother's. Elevated to the throne at age 12, and thrown into a world of battles and defeats, he eventually founded the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. In his quieter moments, he wrote his memoirs (also known as the Bāburnāma), an astonishingly sensitive portrait of life, leadership, and the natural world. Generally regarded as the first Islamic autobiography, the Bāburnāma continues to impress with its observation and insight.

In this episode, Jacke talks to Nepali author Anuradha about her new book, The Story of Babur - Prince, Emperor, Sage, in which she retells the Bāburnāma for children, accompanied by beautiful illustrations by Jane Ray.

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441 When Novels Were Novel (with Jason Feifer) Sep 12, 2022

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It's hard to imagine now, but there was a time when reading novels was not a common activity - and then, suddenly, it was. In this episode, Jacke talks to Jason Feifer, an expert on transformative changes in society, to see how the rise of novels (and the backlash against them) follow broader patterns of disruption, adaptation, and the entrepreneurial spirit.

Jason Feifer is the editor in chief of Entrepreneur magazine, a startup advisor, host of the podcasts Build for Tomorrow and Problem Solvers and has taught his techniques for adapting to change at companies including Pfizer, Microsoft, Chipotle, DraftKings, and Wix. He has worked as an editor at Fast Company, Men's Health, and Boston magazine, and has written about business and technology for the Washington Post, Slate, Popular Mechanics, and others. His most recent book is called Build for Tomorrow: An Action Plan for Embracing Change, Adapting Fast, and Future-Proofing Your Career.

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440 Emma's Pick - "A Pair of Silk Stockings" by Kate Chopin Sep 08, 2022

Show notes

Today, Kate Chopin (1851-1904) might be best known for her groundbreaking feminist novel The Awakening (1899). But she was also an accomplished short story writer, publishing in national magazines like Atlantic Monthly and Vogue. In this episode, Jacke provides an annotated reading of producer Emma's latest pick: "A Pair of Silk Stockings" (1897) Chopin's story of a down-on-her-luck woman who receives an unexpected windfall and decides whether to succumb to the temptation of some luxury items.

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439 Poets' Guide to Economics (with John Ramsden) Sep 05, 2022

Show notes

Sure, we know poets are experts in subjects like love, death, nightingales, and moonlight. But what about money? Isn't that a little...beneath them? (Or at least out of their area of expertise?) In this episode, Jacke talks to author John Ramsden (The Poets' Guide to Economics) about the contributions made by eleven poets to the field of economics. What did men like Defoe, Swift, Shelley, Coleridge, Sir Walter Scott, de Quincey, Ruskin, William Morris, George Bernard Shaw, Hilaire Belloc, and Ezra Pound get right? Where did they go wrong?

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438 How Was Your Ulysses? (with Mike Palindrome) Sep 01, 2022

Show notes

In 1922, a writer for the Observer commented: "No book has been more eagerly and curiously awaited by the strange little inner circle of book-lovers and littérateurs than James Joyce's Ulysses." After declaring Joyce to be a man of genius, the writer said, "I cannot see how the work upon which Mr Joyce spent seven strenuous years, years of wrestling and of agony, can ever be given to the public." The objection then, or the fear, was that the book would wreak havoc on the morals of the general population. Today, the concern is not so much with scandal as with difficulty: annotated versions abound, prefaces fall all over themselves to caution readers. Yes, this is difficult. No, you might not finish. Please buy the book anyway. Give it a go.

In this episode, Jacke talks to Mike about the experience he had slow-reading Ulysses online in a community of readers. What were the challenges? What were the payoffs? How was it for him, and for his fellow hashtaggers? It's a question to ask as one might ask someone after a war or pandemic or trip from a dangerous mountain. How was your Ulysses?

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437 A Million Miracles Now - "A Bird, came down the Walk" by Emily Dickinson Aug 29, 2022

Show notes

Responding to a listener email, a heartbroken Jacke takes a close look at Emily Dickinson's astonishing poem "A Bird, came down the Walk."

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Music Credits:

“⁠Handel – Entrance to the Queen of Sheba⁠” by Advent Chamber Orchestra (From the ⁠Free Music Archive⁠ / ⁠CC by SA⁠).

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