In this episode we walk through one of the most heavily cited and plundered poems of all time. "The Second Coming" is an apocalyptic vision that vividly describes the chaos which accompanies the breakdown of human civilization. The poem is most

Episode 7: The Haystack in the Floods by William Morris

Sep 9th, 2019 29m 40s

In this episode I read the unusual and haunting poem, "The Haystack in the Floods," by William Morris. This poem is a 19th Century work by a member of what was called "the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood." We discuss some of the interesting and cult

Episode 6: A Clean Well-Lighted Place by Earnest Hemingway

Jul 29th, 2019 36m 24s

In this episode of the podcast I read the classic short story, "A Clean Well-Lighted Place" by Earnest Hemingway. We talk a bit about Hemingway's intensely interesting life, his mother's penchant for dressing him up as a little girl as a toddle

Episode 5: Terence, This is Stupid Stuff by AE Housman

Jul 11th, 2019 28m 51s

In this episode I read AE Housman's poem, "Terence This is Stupid Stuff," which explores the role of dark-themed poetry and literature. I do a selected close reading to explain a few of the lines that may be obscure to the modern ear. I also pr

Episode 4: Dolce Et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen

Jul 1st, 2019 15m 45s

In this episode I read Wilfred Owen's gut-wrenching poem, "Dolce Et Decorum Est," which he wrote to describe his experiences in the trenches of World War One. We discuss the way in which war poetry contrasted with official government propaganda

Episode 3: Breakfast by John Steinbeck

Jun 21st, 2019 24m 55s

In this episode I read Steinbeck's very short story, "Breakfast," from his collection The Long Valley. We discuss the importance of imagery, or sensory descriptions, in vividly imagined fiction and how the subconscious brain cannot distinguish

Episode 2: Church Going by Philip Larkin

Jun 2nd, 2019 19m 13s

In this episode I read Larkin's most beloved poem, "Church Going." We talk a bit about how Larkin's rather pathetic, pervy character shouldn't diminish the importance or relevance of his work. We then work through this multi-layered piece to ex

Episode 1: An Irish Airman Forsees His Death by WB Yeats

May 26th, 2019 12m 36s

In the first episode I introduce the format of the podcast, and read a wonderful poem by WB Yeats entitled: "An Irish Airman Forsees His Death," which explores the theme of how the totality of a moment can coalesce into a total vastly greater t

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