Bolo from Poland and Sophie from Morocco join Alyssa for our discussion of Andrzej Sapkowski’s Baptism of Fire, Chapter 2. Very important bits include: examining different aspects of war, judging Geralt’s actions as admirable or reckless, inverting circumstances for the next phase of life, Sapkowski’s masterful dialogue, doing specific good, an enjoyable parade of nothing really, and the big pile of poop jokes we missed.

• [0:00] Cold Open
• [0:47] Introduction
• [2:05] Guest Introductions
• [8:32] Chapter Recap
• [10:21] Overall Thoughts
• [12:42] ‘Half Century of Poetry’ Opening
• [17:39] Geralt’s New Stage of Life
• [21:47] Geralt’s Goals and Milva’s Skepticism
• [28:03] Indifference to War
• [32:47] Rebuilding After Hardship
• [37:06] Unbridled Altruism and ‘Specific Good’
• [40:52] Humor and Levity
• [48:47] Closing Thoughts
• [52:36] Outro
• [53:15] End Credits

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