Arts
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The History of Literature #340 – Forgotten Women of Literature 5 – Constance Fenimore Woolson
When she died tragically at the age of 53, Constance Fenimore Woolson was ranked with the greatest female writers of all time, including Jane Austen, George Eliot, and the Brontes. What happened to her reputation after that? Did her friend Henry James sink her reputation as an author and a person? In this episode, Jacke… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #339 – Jack Kerouac
Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) was one of the most famous American writers of the mid-twentieth century. As a key member of a group of writers known as the “Beat Generation,” his works explored the role of the individual in post-war America. His most famous work, On the Road (1957), has sold millions of copies and continues to inspire… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #337 – Oscar Wilde, Ovid, and the Myth of Narcissus (with A. Natasha Joukovsky)
Debut novelist A. Natasha Joukovsky (The Portrait of a Mirror) joins Jacke for a discussion of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Ovid’s myth of Narcissus, the fascinating power of recursions, and a life lived in the worlds of literature, business, and art. THE PORTRAIT OF A MIRROR is a stunning reinvention of the myth… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #336 – Painting the Paintings in Literature (with Charlie Stein)
German artist Charlie Stein joins Jacke for a discussion of art in literature, including her series 100 Paintings Imagined by Authors, in which she and her partner Andy Best use textual clues and historical context to reimagine artworks that are described in great works of literature. You can see examples of their work at charliestein.com/100-paintings-imagined/ In… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #334 – Katherine Mansfield
Born into a well-to-do family in New Zealand, Katherine Mansfield began writing fiction at the age of 10. But it was in England and continental Europe that her writing took flight, as she drew upon Chekhov and the new spirit of Modernism to advance (and perfect) the short story form before dying a tragically early… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #289 – Swann’s Way (Marcel Proust)
Since its first appearance, Marcel Proust’s magnum opus In Search of Lost Time has delighted and confounded editors, readers, and critics. Published in seven volumes over a fourteen-year period, the enormous novel has generally been recognized as both the highest form of artistic achievement and one of the most difficult reading experiences imaginable. In this episode, Jacke… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #257 Shakespeare’s Best | Sonnet 116 (“Let me not to the marriage of true minds”)
Continuing the “Shakespeare on Thursdays” theme for August, Jacke takes a look at Sonnet 116 (“Let me not to the marriage of true minds”), another one of Shakespeare’s most beloved and well known sonnets. What does the poem say about love? How does it fit into the world of weddings? And what does it have… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #216 – The Trials of Phillis Wheatley
In 1773, Phillis Wheatley became the first person of African descent to publish a book of poems in the English language. It was yet another milestone in Wheatley’s extraordinary life, which began with a childhood in Africa, a passage on a slave ship, twelve years in Boston living as a slave, and then her unprecedented… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #214 – Kipling, Kingsley, and Conan Doyle – When Writers Go to War
In early 1900, the paths of three British writers – Rudyard Kipling, Mary Kingsley, and Arthur Conan Doyle – crossed in South Africa, during what has become known as Britain’s last imperial war. In this episode, Sarah LeFanu, author of the new book Something of Themselves: Kipling, Kingsley, Conan Doyle and the Anglo-Boer War, joins… Continue reading
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The History of Literature #213 – Special Quarantine Edition – Gusev by Anton Chekhov
More bonus content! For those of you living in isolation (and those of you who aren’t), Jacke explores the depths of the human condition – as well as its ultimate beauty – with the help of Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) and his short story masterpiece, “Gusev.” Help support the show at patreon.com/literature or historyofliterature.com/shop. (We appreciate… Continue reading
Jacke Wilson 