Educating Humans

In the penultimate episode of the Good Books series, Difff and James focus in on two classic pieces of literature. Starting with Shakespeare's Hamlet, they discuss the importance of Shakespeare in the classroom before diving into some of the major soliloquies in the play. From there they move to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein focusing specifically on the hubris of man's desire to 'ascend to godhood' as well as the book's incredible layers of intertextuality.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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Difff speaks with Dr Laura Eidt from the University of Dallas about the new Latin program she is writing for teaching Latin to young children through stories. The conversation covers the reasons for teaching Latin as well as methods for effective instruction. They also discuss the importance and power of narration as a pedagogical approach for classical teachers.

Dr Laura Eidt has taught in the German, Spanish, Comparative Literature, and Humanities programs at the University of Dallas since 2006, and is Director of the Humanities Program and Faculty Advisor for the K-12 Classical Curriculum Team.

You can find out more about the Latin through Stories program here:
https://k12classical.udallas.edu/k-5-latin-curriculum/preliminary-access/

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
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As James and Difff start to wrap up their series on some great books, they discuss two works of cultural criticism that have significantly impacted them. James discusses G.K. Chesterton's Orthodoxy, and in particular the chapter 'The Ethics of Elfland' and its relation to the purpose of classical education. Difff then introduces the topic of acedia in R.J. Snell's book, Acedia and Its Discontents: Metaphysical Boredom in an Empire of Desire. Acedia, the despairing refusal to be one's self and the disgust at human limitation and being, is the modern condition, and combatting it is one of the highest callings of a classical liberal education. 

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff and James speak with Father Stephen David, who is the founder of St John of Kronstadt Academy, a new Orthodox Classical school starting in Brisbane in January 2024. They discuss how Fr Stephen became interested in classical education, and why he decided to start a school, despite having no background or training in education.

St John of Kronstadt Academy has been granted accreditation and plans to start in January 2024. You can find more information at https://www.stjohnacademy.com.au/

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

Why should we study history? How important is it in a classical education?  As part of our Good Books series, we talk about two great historians of the 20th Century, Christopher Dawson & Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Difff bring Dawson's The Dividing of Christendom and The Crisis of Western Education and explains how Dawson masterfully explains how we have arrived at our current point in western civilisation. James then discusses Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago and the importance of understanding the personal stories of people who suffered under communism.

There is also some general chat about the power of history, what's wrong with the way it's often taught in Australian schools, and even some moderately controversial connections between historical awareness and government responses to the pandemic.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

In Anthony Esolen's book Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child, Esolen takes a 'Screwtape-style' approach to explaining the ways the modern society has inadvertently (or perhaps intentionally) been geared towards reducing childhood and blunting imagination. Difff and James discuss this brilliant book by considering how to revitalise our vision of childhood by questioning some of the taken-for-granted assumptions that seem to proliferate in schools and society.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff and James discuss two books specifically about classical education. Difff describes The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education by Ravi Jain and Kevin Clark as a 'one-stop-shop' for anyone interested in the classical education renewal who doesn't know where to begin. It is a great combination of classical and theoretical, and has a foreword by Peter Kreeft thrown in for good measure. James then discusses the importance of awe and wonder in the classroom in Steve Turley's Awakening Wonder: A Classical Guide to Truth, Goodness & Beauty.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

In a bit of a meatier philosophical conversation, Dr Paul Tyson's book Returning to Reality gets a an entire episode dedicated to it. What is Christian Platonism, and what relevance does it have for classical education? Difff and James discuss the importance of a coherent metaphysics in the classroom, and how three medieval metaphysical innovations have impacted modernity. A brief explanation of the univocity of being, voluntarism and nominalism is provided to explain how and why these things have shaped progressive education, and why classical education should reject them.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

What role do virtues play in education? Can virtues be taught?

In this episode of our Great Books miniseries, we get to the meaty stuff - ancient Greek philosophy. James starts with the guy to whom all other philosophical treatises throughout history are footnotes, Plato. He discusses the Republic, with special attention to The Allegory of the Cave. 
Difff then thinks about virtues and the 'end' of what it means to be human - being happy, or the state of eudaimonia. They conclude with the all important nature of Reality, and that wisdom consists of responding rightly to it.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0

In this episode of the Great Books mini-series, Difff & James get philosophical with two very different books. James discusses his Peter Kreeft bonus book, which is The Philosophy of Tolkien: The Worldview Behind 'The Lord of the Rings' which was James' way of smuggling in his favourite fantasy series, but is also a great introduction to philosophy in general. Difff then takes a completely different approach with Friedrich Nietzsche's The Gay Science by unpacking the famous idea of the 'death of God'.

Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.

Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoon
Creative Commons CC BY 4.0