The Troubadour Podcast
"It is the honourable characteristic of Poetry that its materials are to be found in every subject which can interest the human mind." William Wordsworth The Troubadour Podcast invites you into a world where art is conversation and conversation is art. The conversations on this show will be with some living people and some dead writers of our past. I aim to make both equally entertaining and educational.In 1798 William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge published Lyrical Ballads, which Wordsworth called an experiment to discover how far the language of everyday conversation is adapted to the purpose of poetic pleasure. With this publication, he set in motion the formal movement called "Romanticism." 220 years later the experiment is continued on this podcast. This podcast seeks to reach those of us who wish to improve our inner world, increase our stores of happiness, and yet not succumb to the mystical or the subjective.Here, in this place of the imagination, you will find many conversation with those humans creating things that interest the human mind.
The Troubadour Podcast
2. Benito Cereno by Herman Melville (Chapter 1: Ship in Distress)
This is the first reading of the novella by Herman Melville. In part 1 I argued why this remains a classic story we should all read. It may help to listen to my introduction.
Visit troubadourmag.com for a list of important terms, including nautical terms, that may help you to better understand the text.
In the next episode I will give you a summary of this section of the story, and then an exploration of some key themes in the text so far.