Alle afleveringen van Classical Stuff You Should Know – pagina 4 van 6

161: Rodin's Gates of Hell

4 mei 2021 · 1 uur 4 min

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While "The Gates of Paradise" mark one of the first uses of perspective in sculpture, Rodin's "Gates of Hell," made much later in response, chronicle the existential despair of human suffering, so that's great!

160: Modern Maths

27 april 2021 · 1 uur 4 min

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"A Mathematician's Lament," by Paul Lockhart, mourns the way we teach math to children. In many ways, he's right. A.J. will probably still find something to complain about, though.

159: Satan in Despair, from Milton's Paradise Lost

20 april 2021 · 1 uur 6 min

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We all get depressed sometimes. We take a look at when Satan gets the feels in Milton's Paradise Lost.

158: Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise

13 april 2021 · 1 uur 3 min

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Lorenzo Ghiberti sculpted what are perhaps the most famous doors of human history. You can see them in Florence (if you go to a museum), or you can listen to this podcast and see them in your mind's eye. If you want to view them online, we've included a link in the show-notes on our website. Lees meer

157: The Intellectual Life

6 april 2021 · 1 uur

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Even smart people need a little direction sometimes (except for Graeme, who is perfect always), and The Intellectual Life by A.G. Sertillanges helps us all in the disciplines of intellectualism.

156: The Faust and the Furious 2: Mopey Ol' Stiff

30 maart 2021 · 1 uur 4 min

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The rest of Goethe's Faust is flat bananas, and it ends with a devil flirting with Angels. I can't even. (Also, please don't miss my rhyming pun with "Tokyo Drift." I'm convinced puns are extra good if you have to explain them.)

155: The Cathars, or "Helios's Acolytes of Love"

23 maart 2021 · 1 uur 2 min

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Let's talk about gnosticism. Let's talk about heresy. Let's talk about Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie's book, "Montaillou, Cathars and Catholics in a French village, 1294-1324." Let's talk about starting our own cult.

154: Herding cats the right way according to Milton

16 maart 2021 · 1 uur

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As the archangel Michael boots Adam and Eve from Paradise, he gives Adam a vision of the future to, you know, make him feel better. Adam then says that he knows what is right now, and that man only has to obey. Was Milton making a statement about the ways in which we should conduct ourselves in regard to curiosity? I mean, probs. Lees meer

153: The Faust and the Furious 1

9 februari 2021 · 1 uur 2 min

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Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust is a breathtaking German masterpiece of literature written by a rock collector. In this episode, we do the first bit of part one.

152: Bamboozled by "A History of Private Life"

2 februari 2021 · 1 uur 4 min

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"A History of Private Life" is a look at the culture of Rome from the perspective of the commoner. What was it like to be a regular ol' Joe during the time of the Caesars?

151: Is the Bible Busted?

26 januari 2021 · 58 min

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The Bible has passages that are seemingly contradictory. In this episode, Graeme leads us through a case study of one of such contradiction and why it might be exactly what it seems.

150: The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus

19 januari 2021 · 1 uur 1 min

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Christopher Marlowe was a contemporary of Shakespeare's, and he wrote poorly. Specifically, he wrote eponymous play for this episode. Not only that but SPY STUFF?!?

149: Perelandra

12 januari 2021 · 1 uur 1 min

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In this episode we discuss C.S. Lewis's Perelandra and learn how to punch evil in the mouth.

148: Ackbethmay (I'm sitting in a theater)

5 januari 2021 · 54 min

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Bubble Bubble, Toil and Trouble,
Graeme discusses witches' stubble.
Tells to Burg and 'splains to Bees,
That's all that we do this week. Lees meer

Okay, so we talk about Macbeth and how all of the weird stuff that happens with Nature in this book is an inroads into the real themes of the play.

147: 'Sall Good

29 december 2020 · 58 min

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Magbee worries that A.J. is a little too fascinated with evil, so A.J. leaned into it and investigated how we currently think of evil. We follow the train of thought from Augustine to Aquinas. Turns out everything is pretty great.

146: A Defense of Christmas

22 december 2020 · 1 uur 2 min

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Josh Gibbs, a favorite of ours, just put out a new book containing essays on Christmas. We discuss them here. Because Christmas is awesome, and you should awesome too.

145: Planting the Seeds of Poetry and "The Fall of Rome"

15 december 2020 · 1 uur

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In this episodes, we discuss how biography and the artist affect our interpretation, or really, how it shouldn't. We also read W.H. Auden's "The Fall of Rome." It's good I guess.

144: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

8 december 2020 · 1 uur 3 min

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Alright, don't get cross with me. I did a more modern book. It's interesting, though, and we talk a little about LSD, some about busses, and a bunch about gambling. See? It's fun.

143: Purgatoryhohoho

1 december 2020 · 1 uur 3 min

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We've reached the final summit of Purgatory, and lemme tell ya. Things get a little weird in this one. We've got eagles, random giants, a parade, and more!

142: Purgatorybro

24 november 2020 · 1 uur 5 min

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we're nearing the top of the mountain of Dante's Purgatorio with the illustrious Thomas Magbee leading the charge. We talk to some more sinners, walk through some fire, and leave Virgil behind. Plus, fanboy.

141: Camus's "The Myth of Sisyphus"

17 november 2020 · 1 uur 2 min

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First, I get it, I hate the extra s after the apostrophe, but what're you gonna do, the MLA team are a bunch of nut jobs. That said, it doesn't matter anyway. We're all just doomed forever.

140: Till [The Romantics] Have Faces

10 november 2020 · 1 uur 2 min

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Graeme wrote his grad thesis on C.S. Lewis's "Till We Have Faces." Prepare to laugh your way through an episode, because--hoo boy--Graeme's grad paper was a doozy. It's like reading "Modeland" by Tyra Banks, but with less mascara.

139: Purgatory, Yo

3 november 2020 · 1 uur 3 min

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Turns out, purgatory is great for fitness. In this episode, Thomas continues to guide us through Dante's Purgatorio, and we learn about Envy, Pride, Sloth, and Wrath.

138: The Stranger

27 oktober 2020 · 1 uur 1 min

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In Camus's excellent (and refreshingly brief) novel, he embraces the absurd. Also, murder! Days at the sea! A.J. wonders if he's broken at his core!

137: I See Satan Fall Again, or "Lightning Does Strike Twice"

20 oktober 2020 · 1 uur 1 min

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In this episode we finish discussing man's tendency to let our mimetic rivalry escalate into scandal, leading to an eventual sacrificial scapegoat. Honestly, it all seems kinda fun to me.

136: Crime and Punishment

13 oktober 2020 · 1 uur 2 min

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In the middle of Dostoyevsky's excellent book, the main character discusses an article he's written on "The Great Man," so we decide to do the same thing (while adding a little background and summary at the same time).

135: Pastoral Theology and the Classical Tradition

6 oktober 2020 · 1 uur 4 min

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Magbee, a counselor in his own right, discusses Andrew Purves's book. How should one view counseling and brain chemistry, pastoring and sin? It's a toughy, and that's coming from somebody with SAD. Seriously. I have a thing called "S.A.D." that makes me sad. Lees meer

134: I See Satan Fall Like Lightning

29 september 2020 · 1 uur 5 min

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Whenever Graeme likes to say something intelligent, one thing that I apparently love to do is fasten on one small element of his argument and dig my heels in. This week, it's about birds that love each other. The rest of the podcast is a cool thing about psychological readings of scripture. Lees meer

133: Don Quixote

22 september 2020 · 59 min

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Don Quixote is a fun book about an old guy who hates windmills. Or maybe it's an epoch defining work of genius. Or maybe it's a book about the dangers of romance.

132: The Poetic Edda 2: An Otter Named "Otter"

15 september 2020 · 1 uur 8 min

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The second part of The Poetic Edda concerns the exploits of one family of Norse Heroes. Intrigue? Check. Regicide? Check. A pair of shape-shifting brothers, one of whom is an otter that loves munching fish? Double check.

131: Intellectus for the Rest of Us

8 september 2020 · 58 min

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Philosophers always say that the best life is the life of a philosopher, the life of contemplation. I have always disagreed. Listen to Graeme change my mind (this is A.J., by the way).

130: Why English teachers ARE liars

1 september 2020 · 1 uur 4 min

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In this episode, we discuss a psychological reading of Beowulf, and why it fails to approach the text honestly. Weirdly, we all agree. The whole crew. It's strange.

129: The Poetic Edda: "Odin's Pickled Head"

25 augustus 2020 · 1 uur 3 min

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The Poetic Edda are the primary source for most of our information on Norse Mythology. They also happen to be the most heavy-metal myths you've ever heard. Half-corpse god of Hell named "Hel"? Yes, please.

128: Antonio Gramsci

18 augustus 2020 · 1 uur

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Antonio Gramsci was a Marxist, and we see some of his theories finding purchase today. Don't worry, we don't really get political, but we do discuss the ideas themselves.

127: Plato X - "Er Goes to Hell"

11 augustus 2020 · 1 uur 1 min

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In book X of Plato's Republic, he rails on imitative poetry some more, argues for the immortality of the soul, and tells a creepy story about a guy named "Er."

126: Patronage

4 augustus 2020 · 53 min

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In the old'n days, an artist was like a parasite, but a friendly one. You know, like those birds who clean the teeth of alligators. In this episode we discuss the relationship between patron and artist.

125: Plato IX: Tyrone

31 maart 2020 · 59 min

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We're almost there, guys, and this is the penultimate chapter of Plato's republic. This one is all about tyranny. A tyranny named Tyrone.

124: Government Shmovernment

24 maart 2020 · 1 uur

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As a follow up to book IX of the republic, Graeme leads us on a thought journey to the medieval land of government. So strap on your cassock and let's get weird.

123: Purgatorio: not just what a happy, Italian cat says

17 maart 2020 · 1 uur 3 min

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We've done Dante's Inferno before, so Thomas introduces us to his Purgatorio in this episode. Doesn't "Purgatorio" sound like the Italian version of famous horror movie "The Purge"? It isn't, though.

122: Plato VIII: Aaron, Timmy, Ollie, Dmitri, and Tyrone

10 maart 2020 · 56 min

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In book eight of Plato's Republic, Socrates discusses the degradation of an Aristocracy into more mediocre forms of government. Spoiler, democracy is not near the top.

121: The Ballad of The White Horse, or "Black Beauty II, The Prequel"

3 maart 2020 · 56 min

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There's a big ol' white horse made of rocks in the UK, and Chesterton wrote some poem about it or whatever. It's okay I guess. Maybe worth a quick jaw wag.

120: Climbing Parnassus Two: Electric Boogaloo

25 februari 2020 · 53 min

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Thomas leads us further up the mountain as we discuss "Climbing Parnassus" by Tracy Lee Simmons. Greek and Latin, he argues, are the organizing principle for classical education. Also, it impresses people when you can tell them what all those words on the dollar bill mean. Lees meer

119: Plato VII: Math till you're thirty.

18 februari 2020 · 1 uur

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Plato finally gets us to the allegory of the cave. We find out that we're just dudes, dudes in a cave, dudes staring at a wall.

118: What is love? Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me, no more.

11 februari 2020 · 58 min

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Did you know that humans used to be eight limbed creatures that rolled around like silly marshmallows? Yeah, neither did we.

117: Potty. I mean pottery. Wait . . . poetry. Nailed it.

4 februari 2020 · 1 uur 1 min

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In this actually good episode, Graeme talks about readings of poetry. How do you balance a traditional reading with your own experience? With scales, friend. Scales.

116: Plato VI: Philosophers are Wasters and Charlatans

28 januari 2020 · 57 min

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Because of an unexpected illness, A.J. is back on the Plato train till he can get some Mongolian epic ready.

115:After Virtue

21 januari 2020 · 1 uur

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Graeme summarizes the book that is once removed from Lewis's "Abolition of Man": "After Virtue." And I give an awkward intro, as always. Sheesh.

114: Climbing Parnassus

14 januari 2020 · 59 min

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Thomas guides us through "Climbing Parnassus," a defense of classical education and . . . uh . . . THE ELITE?

Advent

3 december 2019 · 4 min

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A house, a play, a baby: three reasons why this advent season we're taking a little bit of a break. We'll be back in January with season 2 of Classical Stuff.

113: Knights Templar, Part III: Friday the 13th. For serious.

19 november 2019 · 59 min

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This is the final episode in the Templar trilogy, and we finally find out what happened to those rascally Templar. Basically, they became the illuminati and Kanye joined. Wait. Just kidding. No he didn't. Ignore that. Shoot. I'm going to answer to Kanye for this. Dang it! I've gotta keep my trap shut. Lees meer