Shows
Orkneyology PodcastThe Orkneyinga Saga ~ with Orkney's Storyteller Tom MuirWARNING: Tonight's chat involves some descriptions of gore and violence, as you might expect with the Vikings.Tom will tell us a few very old family stories by the light of tonight's full moon. We'll look deeply into Orkney's Viking history, as preserved in the Orkneyinga Saga. If you've ever considered reading the sagas, this episode of Ower wi' the Moon will set you up for a more informed first reading. You'll get an overview of the myth, the stories, the culture and the thinking behind these tales, and of course, you'll hear a few rip-roaring...
2025-02-121h 55
HeightsCast: Forming Men Fully AliveThe Formation of a TeacherCharlotte Mason's simple framework for a teacher calls him a "guide, philosopher, and friend." It's a lovely image—but what does that practical application look like? At the Forum Teaching Vocation Conference last winter, Heights teacher Tom Cox unpacked each of these terms citing ancient wisdom and loads of modern classroom experience. Chapters: 6:09 Charlotte Mason and the teacher as guide, philosopher, and friend 7:44 Guide: one who has been there before 10:53 Communicating the "why" 14:18 Philosopher: starting in wonder, ending in wisdom 15:59 A storyteller stirring up wonder 20:01 Friend: beginning with a mutual love of something 22:28 Modeling friendship with fe...
2024-08-1232 min
The Plutarch PodcastAemilius PaullusSend us a textFull Show NotesGreek Parallel - TimoleonImportant PeoplePerseus - A tyrannical Macedonian leader who acts as a foil to Aemilius's virtues. They are like parallel lines running in opposite directions, even down to their family lives. Tubero - An obscure character worth keeping an eye on. Raised in a frugal, Roman home supporting Roman virtue, he rises to a trusted position in Aemilius’s army and continues to be dependable and virtuous. A stark contrast to the many lackeys who attend Per...
2024-06-1259 min
The Plutarch PodcastTitus FlamininusSend us a textFull Show Notes - https://plutarch.life/titus-flamininus/Greek Parallel - PhilopoemenImportant PeoplePhilip V - The second-to-last Macedonian king because the Romans play fair in this generation and allow Philip to remain on the throne even after soundly defeating him in battle twice. Philip also has to give up over-lordship of Greece which allows Titus to declare them free. Antiochus III - Antiochus swoops in when he sees an opportunity and tries to market himself as a liberator for the Greeks. The way P...
2024-04-1148 minThe Plutarch PodcastPhilopoemen - The Last of the GreeksSend us a textFull Show NotesRoman Parallel – Titus FlamininusImportant PeopleEpaminondas – A personal hero of Philopoemen’s; he can imitate him in nearly everything except his calmness (cf. Section 3). Epaminondas sets a high water mark for Theban military and political power which Philopoemen is not able to replicate with Megalopolis.Nabis – Spartan tyrantMachanidas – Spartan tyrant who dies in an epic one-v-one against Philopoemen. Antigonus III Doson of Macedon (263-221 BC) – Second to last Macedonian King, winner of the battle of Sellasia, and...
2024-03-1254 min
The Plutarch PodcastCleomenesSend us a textFull Show Notes for Plutarch's Life of CleomenesRoman Parallel - Tiberius GracchusImportant PeopleAratus - The same Aratus from the last life, but older and more experienced now. Between Aratus, Cleomenes, and Philopoemen, it becomes clear that the Greeks themselves are the architects of their own undoing. None of these three men cooperates with the other and this dissension makes easy target for Antigonus. Megistonoüs - Cleomenes's father-in-law and right-hand man once he takes th...
2024-02-151h 22The Plutarch PodcastAgisSend us a textImportant PeopleLycurgus - ancient lawgiver, whose biography Plutarch also wrote, and to whom everyone refers constantly in this life as the original set of laws they are trying to hearken back to.Leonidas - one of two kings of Sparta (along with Agis, the protagonist of this life) who first secretly and then openly resists and thwarts Agis’s reforms at every turn.Lysander - Not the Lysander who was a contemporary of Agesilaus, but a new Lysander, elected as ephor and one of th...
2024-01-1149 min
The Plutarch PodcastMarcellus and Pelopidas ComparedSend us a textPelopidas Show NotesMarcellus Show NotesHow do these two hasty generals compare? Who had the greater victories? Who had the greater flaws? What lessons are there for us over two centuries later?Support the show
2023-12-2225 min
The Plutarch PodcastMarcellusSend us a textMarcellus - Rome's Sword Against HannibalParallel - PelopidasImportant PeopleArchimedes (sections 15-17; 19)Important PlacesNola - A small settlement near Naples.Tarentum -The Greek colony that had called Pyrrhus over to help them fight the Romans about eighty years before this Second Punic War. They switch sides several times, but their location on the spur of the calf of Italy makes them strategically important for either side. Naples - Originally a G...
2023-12-111h 05The Plutarch PodcastComparison - Fabius and PericlesSend us a textFabius Show NotesPericles Show NotesSupport the show
2023-11-2220 min
The Plutarch PodcastFabius MaximusSend us a textFull Show Notes: https://plutarch.life/fabiusGreek Parallel - PericlesImportant PeopleTerentius Varro - Mastermind of Cannae, survivor of the same battle, much to his shame.Marcellus - The sword to Fabius’s shield. Marcellus, whose life Plutarch also wrote, and Fabius together kept the Romans in their war against Hannibal without shameful or crippling setbacks.Scipio (Africanus) - The young and ambitious general, first succesful in Spain against the Carthaginians, makes a plan to take the war to Af...
2023-11-1157 min
The Plutarch PodcastCamillusSend us a textFull Show Notes for Camillus - Noble Roman DictatorGreek Parallel - ThemistoclesNo Extant Parallel Essay - :(Important PeopleBrennus - Gallic chieftan, unscrupulous and forceful, but without much character development as Plutarch did for other villains (see, for example, Alexander of Pherae's character development in the Life of Pelopidas or Dionysius II's tyrannical character as developed in the Life of Dion). The Common (Ro)Man - Whether volunteering to give your wagon to Vestal Virgins or to take a r...
2023-10-111h 06
The Plutarch PodcastComparison - Coriolanus and AlcibiadesSend us a textSo how do Coriolanus and Alcibiades actually compare? One seems like an angry fireball of revenge, the other a self-serving but talented chameleon. Coriolanus couldn't care less about his reputation, but wants the excellence that lives up to his own standard. Alcibiades can accept anyone's standards of behavior... as long as there is something in it for him. How do these two very different men stand in their similarities and differences? What can we learn for ourselves and apply to our own lives if we ever interact with someone like Alcibiades or Coriolanus.
2023-09-2229 min
The Plutarch PodcastCoriolanusSend us a texthttps://plutarch.life/coriolanusGreek Parallel - AlcibiadesImportant PeopleVolumnia - Coriolanus’s mother and, because his father died young, the woman on whom Coriolanus will pour all his filial piety.Tullus Aufidius - The leader of the Volscians against the Romans. When Coriolanus switches sides, it is Tullus who is eclipsed.The Senate - Yes, the Senate acts as a character in this Life, so much so that they represent those with all the power and control, even though th...
2023-09-111h 17The Plutarch PodcastSummer and Fall Announcement!Check out grammaticus.co/learn to see what I'm offering for the Summer and Fall! In the Fall, we'll return with Season 5: Vices and Virtues in Republican Rome. The lives we'll cover then will be CoriolanusCamillusFabius MaximusMarcellusFlaminiusAemilius PaulusAgis + CleomenesPhilopoemonThe Gracchi Bros. Support the show
2023-06-0205 minThe Plutarch PodcastPyrrhus - Episode 2Send us a textplutarch.life/pyrrhusPyrrhus, tempted to fight in the old Homeric style of one on one, strikes me as a man born in the wrong era. With the rise of the Macedonian phalanx, his tactical brilliance sees some success but his personal appetite for risk and voracious craving for the next adventure over the horizon cause him to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory too many times in his life. From Fabricius to Sparta to Argos, Pyrrhus seems to learn prudence, but only learns that even the Spartans c...
2023-02-1128 minThe Plutarch PodcastPyrrhusSend us a textRoman Parallel - Marius (157-86 BC)Important PeopleDemetrius (337-283) - Neighbor and even, for a time, brother-in-law. Son of Antigonus I and father of Antigonus II, Demetrius rules in Greece, Macedon (for seven years), Asia Minor but was ultimately conquered by Seleucus and imprisoned until he died of his own drinking habit.Cassander (355-297) - Son of Antipater, who had served as regent of Macedon during Alexander’s campaigns and later served as regent after the death of Perdiccas, he did not inherit the Macedonian th...
2023-01-1152 minThe Plutarch PodcastDemetriusSend us a textFull Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/demetriusRoman Parallel: Mark Antony (83-30 BC)Season 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.comKey Vices and VirtuesLuxury or Softness (τρυφή) - At first, Demetrius seems to have control over this vice, but it turns out that it’s a symptom of a larger lack of self-control. Even when he can rein in his appetites for food and sex, he never fully conquers his app...
2022-12-111h 04The Plutarch PodcastPhocionSend us a textFull Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/phocionSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.comRoman Parallel - Cato the Younger (95–46 BC)Phocion was three years old when Socrates died in 399 and then lives through the reigns of Philip, Alexander, and dies under Cassander's takeover of Athens. Though less well-known than his contemporary, Demosthenes, Plutarch wants us to remember him as a political leader who did the best he could with a...
2022-11-111h 04The Plutarch PodcastEumenesSend us a textFull Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/eumenesSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.comKey Virtues and VicesBravery (ἀνδρεῖος) - Eumenes, in spite of being the head secretary, is no pencil pusher. Plutarch wants to emphasize this even from the beginning. His education in and prowess in wrestling impress Philip equally as much as his intelligence. Both become an asset to Philip and then Alexander. On top of that, he's able...
2022-10-1156 min
The Plutarch PodcastAlexander the Great Part 2Send us a textCheck out what I'm up to this summer and fall and see if you can learn some Greek and Latin with me.Full Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/alexanderSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.comKey Virtues and Vices Generosity (μεγαλόδωρος) - When his wealth becomes nearly infinite his generosity keeps pace with it. Many examples given of Alexander’s largesse as he builds his empire. Justice...
2022-09-111h 05
The Plutarch PodcastAlexanderSend us a textCheck out what I'm up to this summer and fall and see if you can learn some Greek and Latin with me.Full Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/alexanderSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.com Important People-Bucephalus - Yes, a horse is an important character! Fiery, hard-working, and lasting till the edge of Alexander's empire, Bucephalus (ox-head) provides an...
2022-08-111h 08The Plutarch PodcastTimoleonSend us a textCheck out what I'm up to this summer and fall and see if you can learn some Greek and Latin with me. Full Show Notes Available at https://plutarch.life/timoleonSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing - Use the coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% off and free shipping at hackettpublishing.comImportant PeopleTimophanes - Timoleon’s brother and the first tyrant we meet in this story. His name, rather fittingly, means "seems honorable."Dionysius II - The tyrant wh...
2022-07-1145 min
The Plutarch PodcastDionSend us a textCheck out what I'm up to this summer and fall and see if you can learn some Greek and Latin with me.Full show notes available at https://plutarch.life/dionSeason 4 is brought to you by Hackett Publishing. Use coupon code PLUTARCH for 20% and free shipping in the US and Canada. Important PeopleDionysius I (the elder) - Tyrant of Syracuse taking power shortly after the Peloponnesian War and reigning until 367 BC. For some authors, he's the textbook tyrant in...
2022-06-111h 03
The Plutarch PodcastPelopidasSend us a textHuman sacrifice, debauched tyrants, and The Sacred Band of Thebes are all woven together in Plutarch's Life of Pelopidas, friend of Epaminondas and great Theban general.Full show notes: https://plutarch.life/pelopidasImportant PeopleEpaminondas - Best friend of Pelopidas and philosopher-soldier-statesman of Thebes, Epaminondas is best known for his work on the battlefield in defeating the Spartans not just once, but nearly every time he meets them in pitched battle. Charon - The major leader of the democratic restoration inside of T...
2022-02-1156 min
The Plutarch PodcastAgesilausSend us a textFull Show Notes: https://plutarch.life/agesilausImportant PeopleAgis II - The Spartan king and older brother of Agesilaus who led Sparta during most of the latter half of the Peloponnesian War. After his death around 398 BC, the Spartans must decide whether his son, whose father could be Alcibiades, has a legitimate claim to the throne or whether they should grant the kingship to Agesilaus. Lysander - Spartan naval commander who conquered Athens and annexed the old Athenian Empire, enriching his friends along the w...
2022-01-111h 03The Plutarch PodcastLysanderSend us a textThis wily Spartan commander defeated Athens, and his authority even eclipses that of the Spartan kings. Did Lysander corrupt the Spartans with luxury?Important PeopleSpartansAgesilausCallicratidasGylippusPersiansCyrusPharnabazusAtheniansAlcibiadesSupport the show
2021-10-1140 minThe Plutarch PodcastAlcibiadesSend us a textAlcibiades fought and strategized for Athens, Sparta, Persia, Athens (again), and Thrace, proving that he fought the entire time only for himself. Was it vanity or pride? Enjoy the first truly negative portrayal Plutarch tries to give, though Plutarch in all his humanity can still defend Alcibiades from his most malicious detractors. Parallel: CoriolanusImportant PeopleSpartans:Agis II - Spartan King at the time Alcibiades defects to the Spartans. Alcibiades advises Agis to occupy Deceleia, preventing the Athenians from accessing their...
2021-09-1148 min
The Plutarch PodcastNiciasSend us a textNicias helps us understand why losers are still worth studying. Like Cassandra, he prophesied for the Athenian people that they could not defeat Syracuse and then when selected as a leader for the expedition, he comes quite close to overturning his own prophecy. See the full show notes here.Parallel: CrassusImportant PeopleCleon - The first demagogue to exert influence after Pericles's death, he prosecuted the war against Sparta fairly succesfully, though at much greater loss of life than Pericles had...
2021-08-1254 min
The Plutarch PodcastPericlesSend us a textCheck out the full show notes here.Pericles brought Athens to its peak, but ended his own life in a plague at the beginning of a long war with Sparta. Support the show
2021-07-1156 min
The Plutarch PodcastCimonSend us a textObscure and under-rated, Cimon gives us a personal look at the time between the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars, also called the Pentecontaetia.Important PeopleAristides - The Athenian politician and general famous for his integrity. Main political rival of the cunning Themistocles.Themistocles - Mastermind strategist behind the tactics of Salamis and the abandonment of Athens Pericles - Athenian politician who will lead Athens into the Peloponnesian War and then die of the plague only a few years later. Important PlacesRiver Strymon - Th...
2021-06-1137 min
The Plutarch PodcastThemistoclesSend us a textThemistocles saved Athens in its darkest hour, yet he dies in the Persian empire, the inveterate enemy of Athens. Is Themistocles a patriot or a traitor?Important PeopleAristides - Themistocles's main political rival and a man he has to recall from exile to help him fight Salamis. Plutarch considers Aristides to be one of the noblest Athenians who ever lived, and so their lives give us two different perspectives on almost the same time period. Eurybiades - The Spartan general in charge of the combined Greek forces a...
2021-05-1147 minThe Plutarch PodcastLessons from the LawgiversSend us a textWe're wrapping season 2 with a bonus episode looking back at Plutarch's Parallels. We discuss the six biographies of the men who laids the foundations for Greek and Roman greatness. We'll also answer a couple questions that come up, like "Why are the comparison essays so much shorter than the biographies?" and "Why compare the Greek and Roman life at all?" Support the show
2021-04-2923 minThe Plutarch PodcastPublicolaSend us a textValerius Publius, aka Publicola, topples the tyrant Tarquin with Brutus and founds the Republic on better justice than the Roman kings had exercised. Like his parallel Solon, his obsession with justice makes him seek the happiness of his own people all the way to his death. Remembering Solon's examples of happiness, does Publicola die a happy man?Parallel - SolonImportant PeopleTarquinius Superbus - The seventh, and last, king of Rome. Thrown out because of his refusal to punish his nephew...
2021-04-1143 min
The Plutarch PodcastNumaSend us a textIt is the happy fate of all good and just men to be praised more after they are dead than when they livedPlutarch, Life of Numa 22Parallel - LycurgusImportant PeoplePythagoras - the Greek philosopher and mystic mathematician who lived on the southern Italian peninsula and started a school of philosophy obsessed with simple living, observation of the created universe, piety to the gods, and justice to all men. Egeria - the second (and supernatural) wife of N...
2021-03-1134 minThe Plutarch PodcastAgoge - Lycurgus Part 2Send us a textThe Agōgē (ἀγωγή) [16-19]Those Laconic Spartans [19-21]Military Maneuvers [22-24]Education never stops [24-25Blessing of scholēFreedom and restraintPolitical SetupHow someone elected to Gerousia [26]Over 60Group of candidates selectedAssembly called, and votes decided by length of shout and volume of shoutBurying the dead [27]NO injustice or inequality in these laws [28]Those who criticize (cough cough: ARISTOTLE + PLATO) for lack of JusticeKrypteia! And treatment of HelotsLycurgus leaves: Spartans are living the laws, established in their hearts and minds [29]Makes Spartans promise never to deviateGoes to Delphi, sacrifices to Apollo...
2021-02-1122 minThe Plutarch PodcastLycurgusSend us a textLycurgus was once asked why Sparta had no defensive wall around its perimeter. He responded, "A city is well-fortified with a wall of men instead of brick."Parallel - NumaImportant PlacesSparta Crete Asia Minor Egypt Important PeopleHomerAlcanderLysanderOutlineUncertain origins: second son of King of SpartaExpected to become king when father and brother deadChemical Abortion or Infanticide?Charilaus born - joy of the people8-month reign as regent incites envyLycurgus Lear...
2021-01-1128 min
The Plutarch PodcastRomulusSend us a textParallel - TheseusOrigin Stories Rome: What's in a name?From Aeneas to Alba LongaRomulus and Remus: ChildhoodLeft to die by a riverWolf and woodpeckerRomulus and Remus: Off to Found a CityRome is for runaways! Open the gates and seize the...day?Location, location, location!Vultures? 6/12? First/Second?Walls and Ditches – death of RemusPlows the circumference: pomerium etym.Rome's Birthday - April 21, 753 BCRoman Customs: More Etymologies and etiologiesLegion v. PopulusPatriciansSenate < >Sabine WomenN...
2020-12-1136 min
The Plutarch PodcastTheseusSend us a textAlthough Theseus never actually existed, Plutarch, in documenting his life, wants to cull important lessons for Greeks and Romans. Just as Theseus wrestles with villains threatening civilization, Plutarch forces his readers to grapple with the role of virtue in politics, or, less abstractly, the role the virtuous man has to play in his polis: i.e. how to be a citizen rather than a subject. This becomes explicit at the end of Theseus's life when he ceases to be a good king and becomes a tyrant, stripping citizenship from the Athenians by returning...
2020-11-1134 min
The Plutarch PodcastCiceroSend us a textWe are not born for ourselves alone; a part of us is claimed by our nation, another part by our friends. De Officiis, I.22Parallel - DemosthenesCicero lived and died as a political failure. In what ways, then, is his failure worth studying. In what ways did he succeed? In many ways, he and Vergil become the teachers of Western Europe all the way down to the present day. Can we declare Cicero a victor in the long-run, or should we study only his failures as...
2020-10-1144 min
FrithcastFrithcast Episode 90 - Storytime - Simba, Prince of DenmarkEpisode 90 – Storytime: Simba, Prince of Denmark
Things we talk about in this episode:
Opening Music:
'Ancient Whispers I' by P C III, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence.
[http://freemusicarchive.org/music/P_C_III/Ad_Astra_Vol_1/03_Ancient_Whispers_I]
Closing Music:
'Round II - The Ancients' by Learning Music, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence
[http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Learning_Music/An_End_Like_This/32_Round_II_-_The_Ancients]
Background fire ambience by inchadney from freesound.org
2020-09-1543 min
The Plutarch PodcastCato the ElderSend us a textWise men profit more from fools than fools from wise men; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the successes of the wise.—Plutarch “Cato the Elder” Para. 9.4Parallel - AristidesSometimes called Cato the Censor or Cato the Elder because he is the great-grandfather of the more famous Cato the Younger who resisted Julius Caesar in the first century civil wars. This Cato (234-149 BC) sets the standard for the old Roman agricultural and military virtues. He may be...
2020-09-1133 min
The Plutarch PodcastDemosthenesSend us a textῥᾷστον ἁπάντων ἐστὶν αὑτὸν ἐξαπατῆσαι: ὃ γὰρ βούλεται, τοῦθ᾽ ἕκαστος καὶ οἴεταιNothing is easier than self-deceit, for what each man wishes, that he also believes to be true.—Demosthenes “Third Olynthiac” 19Parallel - CiceroOUTLINEIntroduces both Cicero and Demosthenes Learned Latin LateA good city for researchWhy stay in a small town?Rise to Political PowerPhilipAlexander and ExileAntipater and the EndImportant PeoplePhilip – Demosthenes strongly resists Philip's incursion into Greek politics until Chaeronea (338 BC)Demosthenes flees the battle of Chaeronea but is still chosen by the Athenians to give the funeral oration.Alexander As Alexander comes to power, Demosthenes' life is spared because of the el...
2020-08-1128 minThe Plutarch PodcastWhy Read Plutarch?Send us a textIn this podcast, I introduce you to Plutarch, the man and the biographer. We answer questions like: Who was Plutarch? An ancient biographer who wrote almost 50 biographies comparing Greek and Roman heroes. While his focus in on virtue, his characters are all human and their vices appear alongside their virtues. Why should I read him? He gives three reasons in three separate biographies! I put them all together here in one place. What's the format of this show? One episode per lif...
2020-07-2726 min
The Plutarch PodcastAristidesSend us a textAristides acts as a great introduction to the wars that made Athens great, the defensive wars against the Persian invaders, occurring between 490 and 479 BC. Plutarch admired Aristides immensely, so he serves as a great introduction to the standards Plutarch holds up for the other leaders he studies.The outline of his life pretty much follows the important events of the Persian Wars:Marathon – 490 BCPolitical Heighteponymous archonostracism (etymology!)Salamis – 480 BCPlataea Disaster – 479 BCAftermathFrom defense to offenseRise of the Delian LeagueI also link the important people to their places:Miltiades is gen...
2020-07-2722 min
The Plutarch PodcastSolonSend us a textSolon was not only the wisest man to be found in Athens, but the most profound political genius of antiquity; and the easy, bloodless, and pacific revolution by which he accomplished the deliverance of his country was the first step in a career which our age glories in pursuing, and instituted a power which has done more than anything, except revealed religion, for the regeneration of society .... By making every citizen the guardian of his own interest Solon admitted the element of Democracy into the State.—Lord Acton, "The History of Fr...
2020-07-2736 min