Solomon & Smith

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In this wide-ranging literary conversation, Jack and Milo sit down with David Constantine — acclaimed poet, short story writer, and one of the leading English translators of German literature — to explore poetry, translation, Goethe’s Faust, Hölderlin, language, education, and the shaping power of reading.

Constantine reflects on his childhood in post-war northern England, the transformative impact of the 1944 Education Act, and the moment he discovered poetry through the work of Wilfred Owen. From there, the discussion moves into his academic journey, learning German, studying at Oxford (Wadham College), and developing a lifelong engagement with German poetry and philosophy.

A major focus of the conversation is Goethe’s Faust — its moral ambiguity, the contrast between Part I and Part II, irony, redemption, and why the second part remains less popular in the English-speaking world. Constantine offers deep insight into Faust as a character, challenging romanticized interpretations and examining questions of responsibility, power, and human contradiction.

The interview also dives into the art of literary translation:

✔️ How to translate rhyme, meter, and musicality

✔️ When to prioritize meaning versus sound

✔️ Why “foreignness” in translation can be productive

✔️ Translating Hölderlin’s difficult syntax and estranged language

✔️ The creative limits and freedoms of poetic form

Along the way, the conversation touches on Blake, Keats, German Romanticism, classical meters, modern language education, cultural change, AI, and the future of human creativity — making this a rich discussion for students, writers, translators, and lovers of literature.

If you’re interested in poetry, philosophy, German literature, translation theory, or the enduring legacy of Goethe and Hölderlin, this episode offers rare depth and personal insight from one of today’s most respected literary translators.

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00:00 Introduction Milo and Jack

03:52 Opening discussion on Constantine's childhood

24:42 Faust

50:58 Hölderlin

1:02:18 The Greek Anthology

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What does it take to translate the entire Hebrew Bible — and what happens when it happens almost by accident?

In this long-form conversation, we speak with Robert Alter, legendary literary scholar and translator of the Hebrew Bible, about language, beauty, storytelling, and the strange path that led him to complete one of the greatest translation projects of our time.

Alter reflects on how he began translating Genesis as an experiment — never intending to translate the whole Bible — and how one book quietly led to another until the entire project was complete. Along the way, we explore how biblical narrative works as literature, why repetition in the Bible often carries deep artistic meaning, and how characters like King David evolve across time in ways that resemble the modern novel.

We also discuss:

• Why translation is a creative and literary act

• What makes the Hebrew Bible one of the great works of world literature

• How language shapes meaning and rhythm in translation

• The relationship between the King James Bible and modern translations

• Biblical poetry, sound, and alliteration

• Nabokov’s Pale Fire and the role of commentary and interpretation

• Why ancient texts still speak powerfully to modern readers

Robert Alter is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature and Hebrew at UC Berkeley and the acclaimed translator of The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. His work has reshaped how readers encounter the Bible as a literary masterpiece rather than only a religious text.

If you’re interested in literature, philosophy, translation, biblical studies, or deep conversation, this episode offers a rare window into the mind of a remarkable scholar.

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Philosopher and theologian David Bentley Hart joins Milo and Jack for a wide-ranging long-form conversation on screens, smartphones, cinema, dreams, Gnosticism, and the spiritual consequences of modern technology. We explore Hart’s latest fiction collection Prisms and Veils, the nature of illusion and reality, prophetic dreams, David Lynch, Kurosawa, memory palaces, and what it means to live in an increasingly virtual world.

In this discussion, David Bentley Hart reflects on how digital screens shape consciousness, attention, and the soul — comparing smartphones to “magic mirrors,” demonic distractions, and modern forms of Gnostic illusion. Drawing on theology, philosophy, literature, and film, the conversation ranges across:

• The spiritual and psychological effects of smartphones and algorithms

• Cinema as a dream-world and modern myth-making

• Gnosticism, illusion, and layered realities

• Dreams, prophetic experience, and the porous boundaries of consciousness

• Memory palaces and the architecture of the mind

• David Lynch, Kurosawa, Hitchcock, and cinematic transcendence

• The themes of Hart’s fiction collection Prisms and Veils

• Culture, attention, modernity, and technological acceleration

We also touch on Hart’s early influences, favorite films and authors, childhood cinematic obsessions, and how imagination mediates reality itself.

This episode is ideal for viewers interested in philosophy podcasts, theology discussions, metaphysics, media theory, film analysis, digital culture, and long-form intellectual conversation.

This is a relaxed, exploratory conversation rather than a formal interview — expect digressions.

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