Our Numinous Nature
Our Numinous Nature is a traveling podcast in search of profound stories focused on regional flora & fauna, folklore & history with a penchant for the mysterious. We’ll be hearing from folks with a deep connection to the land, from herbalists to hunters, folk artists, paranormal investigators, & living historians. The hope is to reach the soul of these people & places through tales of profundity & awe. Find a comfy log and join us at the sonic campfire.
Our Numinous Nature
POE PART II: THE BLACK CAT & OTHER TALES OF MYSTERY & THE MACABRE | Curator | Chris Semtner
Chris Semtner is an artist, author, lecturer & curator at The Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia. In Part II of our Edgar Allan Poe podcast, we begin with an archival recording of "The Black Cat." Then we pick back up where we left off, with "the imp of the perverse” and exploring the psychology of the criminal mind through his villainous characters. After describing a prophetic scene about shipwreck & cannibalism from Poe's only novel, Chris explains the literary genres beyond horror that Poe founded or advanced: the detective story, science-fiction, and perhaps the southern gothic. We then turn back to the biographical, with Poe's death and his mysterious last few days on the streets of Baltimore. From African-American hoodoo to spiritualist mediums, we hear what the paranormal was like in his time, and end on modern sightings of his ghost.
Check out The Poe Museum and Chris' books.
1954 archival reading of Poe'sThe Black Cat performed by Marvin Miller
1939 archival reading of Poe’s The Raven performed by Nelson Olmsted
Music:
"The Raven"
Written & Performed by The Ivy League Trio
"Quiet Mysterioso; Diver's Dream; Four Cuts"
Written & Performed by The Crawford Light Orchestra
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Contact: herbaceoushuman@gmail.com