Paul Krause - Gulliver's Travels, Misanthropy, and Satire (6x2)

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

#OptimisticCurmudgeon2021 #Podcasting Education

22:08

Host Francesca Amiker sits down with directors Joe and Anthony Russo, producer Angela Russo-Otstot, stars Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt, and more to uncover how family was the key to building the emotional core of The Electric State . From the Russos’ own experiences growing up in a large Italian family to the film’s central relationship between Michelle and her robot brother Kid Cosmo, family relationships both on and off of the set were the key to bringing The Electric State to life. Listen to more from Netflix Podcasts . State Secrets: Inside the Making of The Electric State is produced by Netflix and Treefort Media.…

about a year ago 1:01:23

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Paul Krause, editor in chief of Voegelin View, joins Josh for this season's Great Books discussion on Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels. Krause situates Swift in his moment in time, and explains the depths of satirical insight Swift applies to questions of human nature. What do the Houyhnhnm, Yahoos, Brobdingnagians, Lilliputians, Laputans, and commentators on Aristotle show about human nature? Did Jonathan Swift hate humanity? Find out in this episode!

88 episodes

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

Paul Krause - Gulliver's Travels, Misanthropy, and Satire (6x2)

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

published about a year ago

MP3•Episode home

88 episodes

#OptimisticCurmudgeon2021 #Podcasting Education

All episodes

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

1
Marriage, Contraception, and Modernity: A Conversation with Dr. Michael Ward on C. S. Lewis and THS (8x4) 57:33

8 days ago57:33

57:33

Dr. Michael Ward discusses his essay in Life on the Silent Planet: Essays on Christian Living from C.S. Lewis's Ransom Trilogy . The conversation focuses on themes of marriage, contraception, and Lewis's cosmological mythology. Lewis predicted so many of our modern ills, and Dr. Ward's research helps us reckon with the woes of modernity. Dr. Ward walks us through the history of contraception within Protestant theological consideration, and then traces Lewis's engagement with those ideas in Abolition of Man and That Hideous Strength. Link to Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis - https://www.amazon.com/Planet-Narnia-... Link to After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis's Abolition of Man - https://www.amazon.com/After-Humanity... Link to Life on the Silent Planet: Essays on Christian Living from C.S. Lewis's Ransom Trilogy : https://www.amazon.com/Life-Silent-Pl... Sponsor Link Many thanks to the C.S. Lewis Institute for sponsoring this episode! Check out their Fellowship here: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/fell... The C.S. Lewis Institute Fellows Program offers a year of intensive discipleship that leads to significant life-change. Unlike many discipleship programs, the Fellows program focuses on discipleship of both heart and mind. It involves Bible Study, classic readings, lectures, group processing, personal spiritual mentoring and accountability – all in the context of a small group of like-minded believers. This year-long program is designed for those who want to live as fully committed disciples of Jesus Christ and make an impact for Him in the world.…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

1
Lewis, Love, and Lear: A Conversation with Dr. Sarah Waters (8x3) 54:18

15 days ago54:18

54:18

Dr. Sarah Waters explains Lewis's love for Shakespeare, and the conversation focuses on King Lear as an inspiring source source text. She traces Lewis's use of Hamlet and King Lear, with an eye towards the theme of love in Lewis's thought. Waters proves that the better we know Shakespeare, the more easily we see what Lewis is doing. Follow Dr. Waters on X at @srawaters Resource mentioned in the show: "Lewis, Lear, and The Four Loves " in An Unexpected Journal (Dec. 14, 2022): https://anunexpectedjournal.com/lewis-lear-and-the-four-loves/ Sponsor Links America's Christian Credit Union - https://americaschristiancu.com/personal/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Life on the Silent Planet - with Rhys Laverty (8x2) 1:04:31

22 days ago1:04:31

1:04:31

Rhys Laverty, Senior at Ad Fontes, Senior Managing Editor at Davenant Press, and Director of Communications at the Davenant Institute, describes his work on Life on the Silent Planet: Essays on Christian Living from C.S. Lewis's Ransom Trilogy . Rhys explains the need for a volume of literary essays on Lewis's Ransom Trilogy, his experience beginning to read Lewis seriously, and then explains three approaches to pleasure highlighted in Perelandra. The Ransom Trilogy, Rhys argues, has direct bearing on helping Christians follow Christ more closely. Mentions in episode: Life on the Silent Planet Amazon purchase link: https://shorturl.at/QM68d Davenant Institute: https://davenantinstitute.org/ Follow Rhys on X here - https://x.com/RDLaverty Sponsor Links America's Christian Credit Union - https://americaschristiancu.com/personal/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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The Re-Enchanting Inklings, with Dr. Josh Herring (8x1) 28:57

27 days ago28:57

28:57

Josh Herring introduces Season 8 of The Optimistic Curmudgeon as a themed season around the idea of re-enchantment as modeled by the Inklings. He argues that the most important move Conservatives can make in this moment, when the Right is ascendant, is to rediscover how to tell excellent stories. C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Owen Barfield remind us that through stories we rediscover the complexity of reality. Sponsor Links America's Christian Credit Union - https://americaschristiancu.com/personal/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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The Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation - with James Orr (7x10 - season finale!) 1:14:41

12 weeks ago1:14:41

1:14:41

Dr. James Orr discusses his friendship with Sir Roger Scruton, his work with the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, philosophy, and theology. It's a marvelous conversation that covers a breadth of topics. Enjoy! Topics of conversation include: - Islam and the West - The Face of God - Fighting Communists by teaching philosophy in Hungary - Scrutopia - CS Lewis, friendship, and The Four Loves - Architecture and "Building Better, Building Beautiful" - Wine, terroir, and place - The origin story of the Roger Scruton Legacy - The relationship between Sir Roger and practical politics - Performing Sir Roger's opera! - Scruton's ecology - JD Vance's VP debate - The impact of overturning CHEVRON on the EPA - Jordan Peterson winning the Scruton Prize - Is Jordan Peterson a conservative? Is he a Christian? Thoughts on He Who Wrestles with God? - How do function and essence relate in the perception of beauty? - Protestants and beautiful churches - Why have the Scruton lecture become the Oakeshott lectures? - Just how many books did Sir Roger write? Find James Orr on X at @jtworr . Check out the work of the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation here: https://www.scruton.org/ Thank you to America's Christian Credit Union for sponsoring this episode! Be sure to check out their website here: https://americaschristiancu.com/every/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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God and Science - with Spencer Klavan (7x9) 1:01:13

13 weeks ago1:01:13

1:01:13

Spencer Klavan of @YoungHereticsShow discusses his newest book, Light of the Mind, Light of the World. Does science actually support the idea of a godless universe? What happens to the universe when an intelligent mind is present? Why is a classicist writing a book about science? We get into all these questions, and a fun digression on theology, hermeneutics, and #evolution. Great conversation! Link to buy the book: https://shorturl.at/d7bNF…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

1
Choosing to Have Children and Defying the Birth Dearth - with Catherine Pakaluk (7x8) 1:19:16

16 weeks ago1:19:16

1:19:16

Dr. Catherine Pakaluk tells the story behind her book Hannah's Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth. The birth rate decline is not a result of policy changes, and cannot be fixed by policy. Dr. Pakaluk conducted a qualitative studying to discover why women choose to have large families. She describes her findings, and tells some of the stories from her research. There is a clear cost of having children, and the turning point for mothers came in seeing each child as a gift and being open to the gift of another child. This was a great conversation! This episode is sponsored by the Acton Institute and their podcast, Acton Line. Acton Line is a weekly interview podcast from the Acton Institute featuring a wide variety of guests whose work and expertise help to move us toward a free and virtuous society. From theology and philosophy to economics and law, church and state to business and culture. Acton Line brings the Acton Institute’s unique synthesis of piety and technique to every sphere of life. For engaging and illuminating conversations that connect good intentions with sound economics subscribe to Acton Line on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify or anywhere else you listen to fine podcasts. Links: Hannah's Children: https://shorturl.at/RfSKH The Acton Institute: https://www.acton.org/ Acton Line: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_ufxTLt-Fs&list=PL2YhagjmWvB8HoOCzJ-tY-Y1CVqdC8wgn…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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America's Nuclear Future - with Emmet Penney (7x7) 1:04:22

17 weeks ago1:04:22

1:04:22

Emmet Penney discusses America's failing electrical power grid, the possibilities of a nationwide network of nuclear power plants, and the way those power plants would restore dignity to the American workforce. Penney has opinions on which nuclear model should be template - listen to find out! We also briefly discuss his journey out of the Democratic Party, and hopes for what a Trump administration can do. We recorded this well before the 2024 election. #nuclear #energy #politics #crisis #Electricity #TrumpAdministration This episode is sponsored by America's Christian Credit Union - check them out here: https://americaschristiancu.com/every/ Emmet's Substack: https://nuclearbarbarians.substack.com/ Follow Emmet on X here: https://x.com/nukebarbarian…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Educational Entrepreneurship - With Bob Luddy (7x6) 37:19

19 weeks ago37:19

37:19

Bob Luddy, founder of Captiveaire, St. Thomas More Academy, Franklin Academy, Thales Academy, and Thales College, defines and discusses the "educational entrepreneur." He explains the role eduction plays in changing culture, the significance of finding the right people for leadership roles, and the value of persistence in building an organization. At the close of the episode, Bob explains why he wanted to found a college. Making entrepreneurs is in one sense impossible, but the conditions for entrepreneurship involve immersion in liberal education and vast experience in business. That's what Bob wants Thales College to be. #entrepreneur #reader #liberalarts #Business #college #highereducation #wisdom #virtue Links: https://www.thalescollege.org/ https://captiveaire.com/ Bob's autobiography, An Entrepreneurial Life - https://tinyurl.com/ywmyx3zz Bob's latest book, The Thales Way - https://tinyurl.com/mtnvbfhd…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Money and the Deep State - Tyler O'Neil (7x5) 53:01

22 weeks ago53:01

53:01

Tyler O'Neil discusses his forthcoming book The Woketopus: The Dark Money Cabal Manipulating the Federal Government . Covid policy, education, budget funding, the LGBTQ+ agenda, and teachers' unions that have broken American education - Tyler explains the many ways the deep state has corrupted the constitutional governance of America. Tracing the money forms quite the map, and is the key to seeing influence. #administrativeState #conservatism #DeepState #Education #LGBTQ+ #draintheswamp #Project2025 Pre-Order here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DFVK74TZ/ref=tsm_1_fb_lk This episode is sponsored by America's Christian Credit Union - check them out here: https://americaschristiancu.com/every/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Transhumanism, P**n, Loneliness, and Big Tech - With Emily Jashinsky (7x4) 51:20

23 weeks ago51:20

51:20

Emily Jashinsky of Unherd discusses the unique challenges pornography and big tech pose to our culture; she suggests that the loneliness epidemic is directly connected to these problems. Transhumanism as a rejection of the natural goodness of the body fits directly into our cultural malaise. Join Emily and Josh for a great conversation about the problems facing the 21st century and the hope that remains! Emily hosts Undercurrents, which can be found here: https://unherd.com/undercurrents/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

1
Forming the Moral Imagination - feat. Sean Hadley (7x3) 1:28:41

24 weeks ago1:28:41

1:28:41

Dr. Sean Hadley discusses the effects the key texts of literature have on the moral imagination: Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, Vergil's Aeneid, Dante's Divine Comedy, Spenser's Faerie Queene, Milton's Paradise Lose, Sophocles' Oedipus Cycle, The Song of Roland (Anon). Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, Shakespeare's The Tempest, and Lewis's Till We Have Faces. Enjoy this discussion of the formative power great books have on the imagination! Sean's Substack - A Southern Knickerbocker - https://hadleyonfire.substack.com/ This episode is based on the following two Substack articles: https://hadleyonfire.substack.com/p/10-books-for-the-classical-imagination https://hadleyonfire.substack.com/p/10-books-for-the-classical-imagination-b4c We are grateful for the sponsorship for this episode provided by the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal. Check out their website here: https://www.jamesgmartin.center/ The James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal educates citizens and decision-makers to improve higher education. The Martin Center is dedicated to promoting knowledge over credentials, restoring genuine liberal learning, and ensuring that public investment in higher education provides value to students, taxpayers, and society. A recent report from the Martin Center explores Great Books programs across the country. This report is designed for students who desire a deep and broad understanding of the Great Works of Western civilization. It will direct them to almost 50 colleges and universities that offer a substantive education in “the best which has been thought and said.” These programs invite students to become participants in a centuries-long conversation that begins with Plato, Aristotle, and Homer and extends to Dante, Shakespeare, and Jane Austen. The report can be downloaded from the Martin Center’s website at go.jamesgmartin.center/GREATBOOKS or here: https://www.jamesgmartin.center/2023/04/preserving-the-canon-great-books-programs-at-americas-colleges-and-universities/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Ministry in a Hostile World - Urie Brito of the CREC (7x2) 57:49

25 weeks ago57:49

57:49

Ministry in the negative world is often difficult. Pastor Urie Brito explains his story of getting into ministry, why he loves the CREC (Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches), and details the argument of his latest book, The War of the Priesthood: An Exposition of the Armor of God. Towards the end of the episode, Uri explains why he is willing to go into overtly political spaces, and what role he sees pastors playing in shepherding their flocks through political seasons. With shoutouts to Meg Basham's Shepherds for Sale, National Conservatism, and New Saint Andrews College, this is a conversation you don't want to miss! Links: https://kuyperian.com/ https://drbrito.substack.com/ https://www.amazon.com/War-Priesthood-Exposition-Armor-God/dp/1956611053/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2F1G8L1GG6A9Q&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.TWyZnRucm4iTkcGaxE49DeDJe-nzptqCL2b1bhAACeA.tX2QE5DsVTG0FuCVCHs8HC3F-0Rg5jHqHJB9ZZvnMr0&dib_tag=se&keywords=war+of+the+priesthood+uri+brito&qid=1728404845&sprefix=the+war+of+the+priesthood+%2Caps%2C204&sr=8-1 https://crechurches.org/…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

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Beauty and Aesthetics: Mike Young (7x1) 1:05:15

26 weeks ago1:05:15

1:05:15

Dr. Michael Young discuss beauty, Roger Scruton, and aesthetics as a natural desire of the human soul. Our longing for beauty signifies our desire for something higher, something more meaningful to the human condition, than mere utility. We were made for more! This conversation was inspired by Roger Scruton's book Beauty: A Very Short Introduction. #beauty #aesthetics #philosophy #thegoodlife #moralimagination #rogerscruton #scruton…

The Optimistic Curmudgeon

1
SECCE - Kristen Rudd: Stop Leaving your Students in Hell, or Read the Whole Comedia! 47:40

34 weeks ago47:40