Media-eval: A Medieval Pop Culture Podcast

Sarah is once again joined by her mom, Dr. Beth Greenfeld, to talk about medievalism, modernized adaptations, and translations in Maria Dahvana Headley's 2018 novel The Mere Wife - a modern adaptation of Beowulf centering Grendel's mother - and her 2020 translation of Beowulf. Join us as we delve into these texts and to the question of monsters and why they matter.

CW for discussions of PTSD, disordered eating, suicide, and toxic masculinity

Sarah, guest Jessica Bluemke Greiff, and of course Producer Carmen spent FOUR HOURS talking about Robin Hood: Men in Tights. Don't worry; the finished episode is NOT four hours (but it is long). Join us as we get into the myth of medieval chastity belts (that's right - not a real thing!), exotic fruits, and why Rabbi Tuckman is arguably less anachronistic than Friar Tuck.

CW: The film includes gay panic jokes, fatphobic jokes, and ableist jokes, as well as one rape joke, which we discuss in the episode.

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Find Jessica @JessBluemke and on the podcasts Friendly Atheist and Cooper Dooper: A Twin Peaks Podcast for Regular People

Book Recommendation: Albrecht Classen, The Medieval Chastity Belt: A Myth-Making Process

Ollie comes back to the podcast to talk with Sarah about one of his favourite movies, the 1990's classic Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

Does Kevin Costner even try to sound English? Is Alan Rickman in a different movie to everyone else? Is it too long(yes)? We will address all of these topics and more including Sarah's shocking dislike of Christian Slater.

Guest MJ is back to talk with Sarah about another of Tamora Pierce's quartets: Protector of the Small. Join us as we continue to talk lady knights - as well as the real history of women's work in the textile industry and whether King Jonathan is actually just Joe Biden.

As a note, this was recorded as usual well in advance - before the attempted terrorist coup on Wednesday Jan. 6 (and, in fact, before the November 2020 election), which is why it is not mentioned. Media-eval unequivocally condemns all those involved - including the elected officials who encouraged and enabled it.

CW: rape; incest; child abuse; child murder; cat death

With the holiday season comes nostalgia - so today's episode takes a deep dive into Sarah's childhood favorite book series, The Song of the Lioness quartet by Tamora Pierce (1983-1988). Join Sarah and guest MJ as we get into gender roles, representations of nonwestern cultures in fantasy, menstruation and birth control, and the real history of gender fluidity and women dressing as men in the Middle Ages.

Content Warning: episode includes discussion of age/power imbalanced relationships and suicide.

Guest Ben Paul returns to talk Blackadder Series 1! Join Sarah and Ben as they get into alternative histories, the cult of relics (yes, including the foreskin of Christ), and what happened to the real Richard, Duke of York.

CW: The series includes homophobic, fatphobic, misogynistic, and rape jokes; the problematic and at times disturbing nature of this material is addressed in the episode.

Guest Elizabeth Bonnemann is back to talk with Sarah about another Doctor Who serial, The Time Warrior, set in ... the Middle Ages, I guess. Join us as we talk castellans, rotten meat, and unsuccessfully attempt to identify what year it is.

What's the story, Wishbone? It's Joan of Arc! Sarah and guest Rachel Rosing tackle a childhood favorite: an episode of Wishbone in which we. learn that a girl joining a boys soccer team in the 1990s is EXACTLY THE SAME as Joan of Arc leading an army during the Hundred Years' War. Come for the adorable dog in armor, stay for a deep dive into Joan of Arc's trial. This episode was recorded pre-election, so our political digression is an ... interesting time capsule.

It's Halloween and Sarah manages to convince Ollie to talk about a "Horror" movie but they spend more time talking about JK Rowling and The Crimes of Grindlewald.

Listen to the podcast- we watched this movie so you don't have to. :)

Join two thoroughly broken and downtrodden medievalists as Sarah and guest Katherine Hindley struggle through this adaptation of Beowulf - and talk about what makes the original poem worth reading.

Recommendations:

We talk about Seamus Heaney's Beowulf as a great translation - and it is!

I also recommend the new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley, which I had not yet read back when this episode was recorded. It's much more modernized and takes a few more liberties, but it's a really great reading experience.

If you want a better Beowulf adaptation, check out The Thirteenth Warrior (discussed on this podcast!) or, for a slightly different take, John Gardner's novel Grendel or Maria Dahvana Headley's modernized adaptation The Mere Wife.

CW: Brief reference to suicide. References to consent issues. On a lighter note, frequent references to phallic symbolism (blame the movie, not us) that might make this awkward to listen to at work or in front of some family members.