This week on The Literary Life podcast, Angelina and Thomas wrap up our series on An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde. In sharing thoughts on Act 4, Angelina and Thomas consider whether Wilde's satire works well here at the end, as well as expanding more on the ideas of "the angel in the house" and women's suffrage during this time period. Today they are also joined by Atlee Northmore to discuss film adaptations of this work.

To view the full show notes for this episode, please visit https://theliterary.life/255/. 

Welcome to this special preview episode of The Literary Life Podcast! In this episode, our hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks share the books and topics you can look forward to in the upcoming 2025 season of the podcast. This episode was recorded live with the Patreon supporters for our December All Fellows Eve. In addition to giving a taste of what to expect in the coming year, they also look back at the past year and touch on a few favorite books covered in 2024.

In this coming year we plan to have several new “Literary Life of…” interviews, as well as several topical episodes discussing ideas such as classical education, the literary tradition, and what to do when you don’t like the characters in a book. Listen to the full episode to hear what new books you can look forward to reading with us in 2025!

For complete show notes and links to all the books mentioned, please visit https://theliterary.life/254/. 

We are back on The Literary Life podcast this week with a continuation of our series on An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde. Today Angelina and Thomas cover Acts 2 and 3 of the play, including some more background on this literary period, starting off with some background of the comedy of manners and satire. They discuss a wide range of topics touching on the ideas in this play, as well as covering the key plot points in these two acts.

To view the full show notes for this episode including book links, commonplace quotes, and more, please visit https://theliterary.life/253/. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life Podcast and a new series on Oscar Wilde’s play An Ideal Husband. This week hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks will give an introduction to Oscar Wilde and the time period in which he wrote this play, then discuss Act 1. They discuss the cultural pendulum swing that happened in the Late Victorian period into the Edwardian era, as well as the Aesthetic Movement as it relates to literary development. As they begin the discussion of this play itself, they talk about how Wilde wrote his plays not just for the stage but also to be read. Thomas and Angelina talk a little about each character who is introduced in this first act and make some notes about the elements also found in Greek plays.

To view the full show notes including links to any previous episodes and books mentioned in this episode, please visit our website at https://theliterary.life/252/. 

This week on The Literary Life Podcast we are pleased to bring you a conversation hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks had with Dr. Jason Baxter, author of the new book Why Literature Matters from Cassiodorus Press. You can find out more about Dr. Baxter and his other books at JasonMBaxter.com. Together they discuss how this book came about and the importance of knowing who your audience is. They share some hopes for this book to reach those who don’t understand why literature is still worthwhile in our current culture. Angelina brings up the challenges of reading in this fast-paced, consumeristic age. Jason uses metaphors of gardening and learning a piece of music to think about reading and understanding as a process requiring time and perseverance.

Please visit our website for complete show notes including commonplace quotes, book links, and this week's poem at https://theliterary.life/251/. 

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast! Due to a scheduling conflict, this week we are re-airing a previous episode with Dr. Jason Baxter, author of the new book Why Literature Matters from Cassiodorus Press. Angelina Stanford, Cindy Rollins, and Thomas Banks sit down for a special conversation with Jason Baxter. Jason is a speaker, writer, and college professor who writes primarily on medieval thought and is especially interested in Lewis' ideas. You can find out more about him and his books at JasonMBaxter.com.

Our hosts and Jason discuss a wide range of ideas, including the values of literature, the sacramental view of reality, why it is important to understand medieval thought, the "problem" of paganism in Lewis' writings, and how to approach reading ancient and medieval literature.

To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/250/.

Welcome back to The Literary Life podcast and the wrap up of our series on Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Today Angelina and Thomas cover the second half of the poem, beginning with some more discussion about the Romantic poets and what they were trying to do through their work. They talk at some length about the importance of imagination and fantasy in response to the focus on realism and science. After this, Thomas reads aloud some of the most important passages in this section of the poem. Angelina brings up the importance of understanding Deism in relation to Romanticism.

To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/249/.

On today’s episode of The Literary Life, Angelina and Thomas discuss the first half of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner. They review some of the ideas covered last week, particularly Romanticism and the harkening back to the medieval tradition in contrast to the Neo-Classicism that preceded this period. Thomas sets up the plot with an explanation of the “frame tale,” then reads several of the opening stanzas, pausing frequently for commentary and discussion with Angelina. They talk about the symbolism of the albatross, plus so much more!

To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/248/.

On The Literary Life podcast this week, Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks begin their newest series, this time discussing Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner. First, Thomas and Angelina speak to the question of different editions of this poem, then they dive into the background on Coleridge, William Wordsworth, and the lyrical ballads. They discuss the artistic and cultural moment in which Coleridge is writing, particularly the Romantic period in literature. Angelina talks about the Romantics and why they used so much medieval language and used allegory so heavily. She shares some examples of the writers in this vein seeking to rediscover and return to ancient tradition and stories. Thomas also considers Coleridge as a poet and a person. Finally, they give some helpful information and tips for those approaching this text for the first time.

To see all the books and get the full show notes for today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/247/.

Today’s episode of The Literary Life podcast is one in our “Best of The Literary Life” series. This week’s remix is a conversation from 2019 between Angelina Stanford and Cindy Rollins in which they discuss Dorothy L. Sayers’ essay “Are Women Human?“ They explore the ideas that Sayers wrestles with in the essay, including: the Victorian view of women, the significance of the industrial revolution, the human need for meaningful occupation, and the early feminist movement and women’s suffrage.

Angelina and Cindy also discuss the history of women’s work inside and outside of the home and how they have been impacted by industry and our production-consumption culture. They take a fascinating look at the effects of the Enlightenment on women in the modern western world, as well as the problem of over-generalization and categorizing people according to classes. Finally, Cindy and Angelina highlight the importance of asking yourself the question: “Who am I supposed to be as a mother and a woman?”

To see all the books and links mentioned in today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://www.theliterary.life/246/.

Today on The Literary Life podcast, hosts Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks wrap up their series on Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers. To begin the conversation, Thomas shares his reaction on finishing this book. Angelina then dives into her discoveries of Alice in Wonderland references throughout all of Sayers' detective books. They talk about how the cricket game relates to the whole story arc, review the descent and parody imagery ideas from last episode, and look at Lord Peter's arrest and its significance in the form of the romance. More topics they cover in these final chapters include the ascent imagery, Tallboy's confession, the act of justice in the detective novel, and how the ending of this book is actually quite fitting. We hope you have enjoyed this series and will be picking up more Sayers novels soon!

To see all the books and links mentioned in today's episode, visit our website for the complete show notes here: https://theliterary.life/245/.