Exploring The Greats

Episodes

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  Exploring Plato's Republic Episode 1: Passing Torches 13.08.2026 46m

  This is Episode 1 of Exploring Plato's Republic. To access all following episodes, join the club at exploringthegreats.com In this first episode, we begin Book One, introducing Plato's distinctive use of dialogue. Agnes and Tim explore the competing definitions of justice offered by Cephalus and Polemarchus, and discuss how Socrates challenges each. At the heart of the discussion are questions that will remain throughout the text: What is justice? How does a just person behave? Socrates pursues this question relentlessly. And so will we. Please send all questions and comments to hello@exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring Shakespeare's Othello Episode 1: (Tush,) Never Tell Me 13.08.2026 31m

  This is Episode 1 of Exploring Shakespeare's Othello. To access all following episodes, join the club at exploringthegreats.com In this first episode, John and James set the stage, jumping into Othello’s opening scene and introducing themes that will echo throughout the text, including love, power, and race. They each draw on their unique perspectives as actor and Shakespeare scholar, reflecting on their personal connections to the play, discussing Othello's rich performance history, and providing historical context for what's to come. Please send all questions and comments to hello@exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring Moby-Dick Episode 1: Setting Sail 11.08.2026 47m

  This is Episode 1 of Exploring Moby-Dick with Rob Delaney and Hester Blum. To access all episodes, join the book club at exploringthegreats.com In this first episode, Hester and Rob meet at 25 Craven Street in London, where Melville briefly lived in 1849, to kick off their exploration of Moby-Dick. Bonding over a shared obsession with the novel, they provide some context and summary before diving into the opening chapter, "Loomings." They discuss the novel's humor, narrative style, and enduring legacy, while sharing the personal reading experiences that first reeled them in. Send all questions and comments to hello@exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring Moby-Dick with Rob Delaney and Hester Blum 31.07.2026 1m

  "It is not down on any map; true places never are." Over 21 episodes, join Professor Hester Blum and Rob Delaney as they navigate Moby-Dick, the devastating and hilarious journey of men at odds with the sea and themselves. To sign up and add this podcast to your feed, head to exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Welcome to Exploring The Greats 31.07.2026 1m

  To join a club, head to exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring Shakespeare's Othello with James Shapiro and John Douglas Thompson 31.07.2026 1m

  "O, now, for ever Farewell the tranquil mind; farewell content." Love, betrayal, regret: this is William Shakespeare's Othello. Join Professor James Shapiro and John Douglas Thompson as they examine this Shakespearean tragedy through literary and theatrical perspectives. To join the club, head to exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring The Odyssey with Mary Beard and Charlotte Higgins 31.07.2026 1m

  Join Mary Beard and Charlotte Higgins as they deep dive into this greatest of all stories, sharing their lifetime’s enjoyment of it while putting it in context and unpicking the trickiest bits. The Odyssey, along with its sister text, The Iliad, is often considered the bedrock of western literature. In it are the seeds of the road movie, the family drama, fantasy fiction, the Western, and many more. Journey home with us! To join the club, head to exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Exploring Plato's Republic with Agnes Callard and Tim Blake Nelson 31.07.2026 1m

  What is justice? And how can societies achieve it? These are central questions in Plato's The Republic, a text that steadfastly questions the core tenets of liberalism. Join in dialogue with Professor Agnes Callard and Tim Blake Nelson for 24 episodes as they deconstruct Plato’s crowning achievement, and as a result, the structures and systems that make up human life. To join the club, head to exploringthegreats.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices