Classical Stuff You Should Know
Episodes
192: Waiting for Godot
08 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nothing to be done.
191: Atlas Shrugged and the Therapeutic Man
01 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, drawing three books together, Graeme leads us through a discussion about Atlas Shrugged in light of the Therapeutic man . . . and Ras...
190: Herodotus IV: Cambyses "The Passable"
22 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this installment of Thomas's series on the Landmark Herodotus, we talk about the reign of Cambyses, who gave bad gifts, had bad spies, and couldn't...
189: Leibniz and the best of all possible worlds
15 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Leibniz's theory of the best of all possible worlds helps to explain the problem of evil in Theism. "Oh nuh uh" says Voltaire. He wrote Candide in res...
188: Four reasons why classical education can't happen
08 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss David Hicks's (yep, THAT David Hicks, the one who wrote "Norms and Nobility") article "Is Classical Education Still Possib...
187: Atlas Shrugged: BECOME A TITAN OF INDUSTRY
01 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged," a character gives a two-hundred-page-long speech on objectivism, her philosophy. Hey, if you're looking for an ethos t...
186: The Tao Te Ching
18 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is our first real venture into eastern philosophy. The Tao Te Ching is from the 4th century BC, and lemme tell ya, I've never wanted to be simple...
185: Causation
11 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we ponder the four causes and unravel the mysteries of the universe. Well, Thomas does. We ruffle his feathers while he does good wor...
184: Advice from a Deep Friar
30 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes you have feelings. Romeo is one such person who has feelings. Graeme, inspired by a previous episode, ponders on whether Romeo is an existen...
183: Existentialism is a Humanism
23 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Existence precedes essence. If you don't know what that means, you're making a statement about how all men should be, you non-existentialist, you. DID...
182: Herodotus III: Egypt and Water Horses
02 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Continuing on in the Landmark Herodotus, we get to a chapter which earns him the moniker, "Father of Lies." Overstating it a bit, don't you think?
181: Great Expectations
26 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss Charles Dickens's "Great Expectations." But you know, if you keep your expectations low, it's harder to be disappointed. I...
180: Herodotus II: Cyrus the Virus
12 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this second episode on the Landmark Herodotus, we discuss the exploits of Cyrus the great. You can look forward to: baby swapping, kid kingdom, and...
179: The Enchiridion, by Epictetus
05 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The writings of Epictetus are some of the only stoic manuscripts that survive. The Enchiridion is his essential handbook for the budding acolyte of St...
178: Foil
28 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
A literary foil is something in the story that exists to highlight the characteristics of the protagonists. COULD IT BE that literature is a foil for ...
177: How to Solve the Trolley Problem
21 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Trolley problem presents a perfect study case from which to look at different ethical viewpoints. But . . . come on. You know you'd pull the lever...
176: The Communist Manifesto
14 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 1848, a small group of social philosophers publish a little pamphlet with big wings: The Communist Manifesto. This podcast is about that thing.
175: Sir Gawain and the Decent Film
07 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk about the differences in theme and construction between the recent (pretty solid) film about Sir Gawain and the Green Knight a...
174: Herodotus, History, and Happiness
31 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Herodotus put together a pretty stellar history, and the Landmark version is a stellar translation of it. In this episode we discuss the book and seve...
173: The Happy Equation
24 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Arthur Brooks, a researcher of happiness at Harvard, has distilled his research about happiness into a simple equation. Want to know how to be happy? ...
172: Intro to the Epics
17 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid are all part of one story. That story was common knowledge for the Greeks, but mostly unknown to us moderns. This episo...
171: A Retrospective from the Ombudsman of Fun
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas has recently left his position as the Dean of Student Life at Veritas. These are the things he's learned.
170: John Donne and a Crash Course to Poetry
06 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
A.J. has always struggled with his views of poetry as a genre. He might have finally sorted it out with the help of John Donne.
169: Kierkegaard's "Fear and Trembling"
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Kierkegaard faced the absurdity of the universe, the absurdity of faith, and held both in tension. In this episode we explore his book "Fear and Tremb...
168: The Tempest
22 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Shakespeare's "The Tempest" is a bit of a mystery of a play, especially since nothing really happens.
167: How We Got the Book of Common Prayer
17 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Book of Common Prayer is for those of us who don't always know what to say. So . . . all of us. Thomas gives us a little history, then a quick run...
166: Machiavelli's "The Prince" 2: Pie Fortress
08 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This is the second half of A.J.'s series on Machiavelli's "The Prince." It addresses how a prince can establish a reputation. We also chat about pie.
165: The Great Divorce
01 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"The Great Divorce," by C.S. Lewis, recounts a bus trip to heaven. We discuss the Problem of Evil in the perspective of the book.
164: Euclid and his "Elements"
25 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Euclid's "Elements" was the math text for over a thousand years. We all try to do a proof, and we end up with something looking like an Eiffel Tower.
163: Machiavelli's "The Prince" or "How to kill friends and influence people."
18 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Machiavelli was a statesman that wanted back into the good graces of the Medici. It half worked. This is a discussion of the work that was supposed to...
162: Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen
11 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jane Austen is a delight, and her novel Pride and Prejudice is no exception. In this episode, we review the book and talk about what it takes to chang...
161: Rodin's Gates of Hell
04 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
160: Modern Maths
27 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"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 someth...
159: Satan in Despair, from Milton's Paradise Lost
20 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 li...
157: The Intellectual Life
06 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Even smart people need a little direction sometimes (except for Graeme, who is perfect always), and The Intellectual Life by A.G. Sertillanges helps u...
156: The Faust and the Furious 2: Mopey Ol' Stiff
30 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
155: The Cathars, or "Helios's Acolytes of Love"
23 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
154: Herding cats the right way according to Milton
16 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 tha...
153: The Faust and the Furious 1
09 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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 bi...
152: Bamboozled by "A History of Private Life"
02 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"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 th...
151: Is the Bible Busted?
26 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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...
150: The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus
19 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Christopher Marlowe was a contemporary of Shakespeare's, and he wrote poorly. Specifically, he wrote eponymous play for this episode. Not only that bu...
149: Perelandra
12 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
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)
05 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Bubble Bubble, Toil and Trouble, Graeme discusses witches' stubble. Tells to Burg and 'splains to Bees, That's all that we do this week. Okay, so ...
147: 'Sall Good
29 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 t...
146: A Defense of Christmas
22 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 sh...
145: Planting the Seeds of Poetry and "The Fall of Rome"
15 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
144: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
08 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 a...
143: Purgatoryhohoho
01 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
142: Purgatorybro
24 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 ...
141: Camus's "The Myth of Sisyphus"
17 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
140: Till [The Romantics] Have Faces
10 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
139: Purgatory, Yo
03 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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, S...
138: The Stranger
27 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we finish discussing man's tendency to let our mimetic rivalry escalate into scandal, leading to an eventual sacrificial scapegoat. Ho...
136: Crime and Punishment
13 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 th...
135: Pastoral Theology and the Classical Tradition
06 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 to...
134: I See Satan Fall Like Lightning
29 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 h...
133: Don Quixote
22 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
132: The Poetic Edda 2: An Otter Named "Otter"
15 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 bro...
131: Intellectus for the Rest of Us
08 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 m...
130: Why English teachers ARE liars
01 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
129: The Poetic Edda: "Odin's Pickled Head"
25 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 h...
128: Antonio Gramsci
18 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 t...
127: Plato X - "Er Goes to Hell"
11 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 na...
126: Patronage
04 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
125: Plato IX: Tyrone
31 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
123: Purgatorio: not just what a happy, Italian cat says
17 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 f...
122: Plato VIII: Aaron, Timmy, Ollie, Dmitri, and Tyrone
10 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In book eight of Plato's Republic, Socrates discusses the degradation of an Aristocracy into more mediocre forms of government. Spoiler, democracy is ...
121: The Ballad of The White Horse, or "Black Beauty II, The Prequel"
03 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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...
120: Climbing Parnassus Two: Electric Boogaloo
25 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas leads us further up the mountain as we discuss "Climbing Parnassus" by Tracy Lee Simmons. Greek and Latin, he argues, are the organizing princi...
119: Plato VII: Math till you're thirty.
18 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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.
04 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this actually good episode, Graeme talks about readings of poetry. How do you balance a traditional reading with your own experience? With scales, ...
116: Plato VI: Philosophers are Wasters and Charlatans
28 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
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 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas guides us through "Climbing Parnassus," a defense of classical education and . . . uh . . . THE ELITE?
Advent
03 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
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 Classica...
113: Knights Templar, Part III: Friday the 13th. For serious.
19 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is the final episode in the Templar trilogy, and we finally find out what happened to those rascally Templar. Basically, they became the illumina...
112: The Republic V: Plato and the Battle Children
12 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Plato just keeps getting weirder. This chapter seems to be an aside addressing something he glossed over earlier: having women and children in common....
111: Harold Bloom, Clearly a Gardener
05 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The recent passing of Harold necessitates a bit of a memorial from the Classical Stuff boys. In this episode we discuss Harold's legacy, anxiety, and ...
110: The Republic, Book IV
29 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is the fourth installment of our series on Plato's Republic. In this one we finally get to the meaning of justice. We also feel bad for some of t...
109: Divergence, Convergence, and Wisdom
22 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Thomas reads from "A Guide for the Perplexed." We discuss how seemingly contradictory viewpoints are sometimes not so contradictory.
108: The Knights Templar, Part II, or "It's Pronounced 'Kinnigget'"
15 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We continue our long journey toward Jerusalem with the Templar. In this episode: Assassins who would vote in favor of the "legalize it" legislation, l...
107: The Knights Templar, Part I
08 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Knights Templar weren't always the folks running our governments and engineering the weather. Once upon a time, they were holy mercenaries.
106: St. Francesco
01 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
St. Francis lived a colorful life, one full of passion, boldly stated vows, and animal congregations.
105: The Republic, Book III
24 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is the continuation of the series on Plato's Republic. Book III is where Plato goes a little off the rails. Got a terminal disease? Might as well...
104: Commonplace
17 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The commonplace book is a compendium of knowledge gleaned from years of reading, but it has to start somewhere.
103: Something They Will Not Forget
10 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we discuss Josh Gibbs's excellent book, "Something They Will Not Forget." Check it. It's pretty solid.
102: The Republic: Book 2
03 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the continuation of A.J.'s series on Plato's Republic.
101: Mimesis, Kind of
27 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Graeme teaches us about the notion of teaching through mimesis, which is that knowing the soul of the learner and teaching through ex...
100: Enneagrammar
20 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas takes us further into the Enneagram, and teaches us about all the extra information that comes with the Ennegram that makes it useful for pract...
99: The Eight Tempting Thoughts
13 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is a little history of the seven deadly sins and the seven virtues. I know we've hit this topic before, but . . . uh . . . here it is again.
98: "Herman Who?" LIVE!
06 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
It's Paideia week at Veritas, which means we get to record a live podcast. Graeme is at the helm for this one, and we discuss hermeneutics.
97: Augustine, The Great Hippo Lord
30 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we review the life and heresies of Augustine of Hippo, who's apparently far more relatable than OTHER saints I could mention.
96: The Republic: Book 1
23 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is the first episode of a series on Plato's Republic. I swear it's not as boring as it sounds. We'll see how far we get before A.J. gets distract...
95: Discipline
16 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Romans thought much of discipline, and we can learn from them a good way to balance the Folly we talked about last episode.
94: The Praise of Folly
09 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Desiderius Erasmus is a great name, and he wrote a satire in which the goddess Folly gives an extemporaneous speech in praise of herself. It's great. ...