The Inklings Variety Hour

Poetry Thursday: "On the Circuit," by W.H. Auden

Was Auden an Inkling?

No. No, he wasn't.

But have we played him reading a stanza of this poem (in which he mentions Williams and Tolkien) every week we've published an episode?  

Yes. Yes, we have.

So here's the whole thing in full, for the sake of sweet context.

Again, I am absolutely stealing the pattern of Poetry Thursdays from the wonderful Daily Poem podcast by Goldberry Studios.  Listen to it and be enlightened, if you like this sort of thing.

Next time: We wrap up our Silver Chair discussion!

The Silver Chair, Part 4: How to Cook For Forty Giants

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This week, Chris is joined by a panoply of first-time and returning guests, such as Eric Geddes, Jonathan Geltner, Joseph Weigel, and Glencora Pipkin, to talk about The Silver Chair, Chapters 7-9.  Hopefully you'll find our many digressions refreshing and stimulating--not irritating and uncomfortable, like so many irregular trenches carved into a hill.

Among other things, we discuss:

• Whether we're more afraid of heights or depths (we'd love to hear from you on this question).
• Chris feels vindicated that Lewis had trouble finding a name for this book.
• The V-structure (see Planet Narnia) of The Silver Chair
• The Faerie Queene and the fringes of England and Narnia
• Sources, and Eric's hypothesis about "Narnia and the North"
• Education and The Silver Chair
• Loss of Agency Resulting from Comfort
• The Nature of Dreams
• The Children's Cascading Epiphanies!
•  Humor and Tension in Harfang
• "It's a Cookbook!"
• "It's only cannibalism if your meal was hnau."
• Education as instilling virtue

Here's a link to Jonathan Weigel's podcast, "Men with Chests": Men with Chests on Apple Podcasts

Here's a link to Jonathan Geltner's substack, blog, and books.

 

This Thursday: A poem!  By one of the Inklings, probably!  You'll know when I do!

Next week: Finale of The Silver Chair!

 

Poetry Thursday: "The Birth of Language," by C.S. Lewis

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As always, feel free to email us at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com!

Welcome back to Poetry Thursday.

Here's something from the planet Mercury for you all!

Also, the show now has an Instagram--follow us @inklingsvarietyhour

Feel free to let me know if there are poems by Inklings you'd really like to hear.  

We'll be back Tuesday with more of The Silver Chair!

In the meantime, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Happy Easter to you! Cristos Anviat!

 

The Silver Chair, Part 3: Glum and Glamour

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If you'd like to reach out to us or suggest ideas for an episode, email us at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com.  We'd love to hear from you.

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Chris resumes his conversation with Jonathan Geltner and Eric Geddes about the first half of Lewis' fourth Narnia book, The Silver Chair.

Among other things, we discuss:

• A bit more of Chapter 4, "Parliament of Owls."
• Rilian's Predicament: Oedipal or just Literary?
• Puddleglum: Origins
  • Fred Paxford
  • John Studley's Bad Translation of Hippolytus (16th Century, OHEL)
  • Geographical
  • Literary American "Indian Guides"
• English dourness, Thorin and Company, and Dickens
• Rock Giants at Play in The Silver Chair and The Hobbit
• Jill and Eustace: Pilgrims or T-r-r-r-r-avelers?
• The Ever-r-r-r-Glamorous Art of R-Trilling
• Parallels with Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Other Romances, such as:
  • Lanval, by Marie de France
  • Sir Orfeo (based on Orpheus but with Fairies--here's Tolkien's translation)
• Post-script: Arthurian Torso

Thanks to Jonathan Geltner and Eric Geddes for a great conversation. Follow Jonathan's work at his blog and his substack, and buy his book.

 

This Week's Poetry Thursday: C.S. Lewis' "The Birth of Language."

 

Next Tuesday: Joined by Joseph Weigel from the Men with Chests podcast, we'll discuss civilized giants!  And maybe we'll even get to the Underworld. Stay tuned!

 

Coming this Season:

Perelandra, more podcast crossovers (Thinklings, Men with Chests), Arthurian Torso, "The Golden Key," Inkwell Chronicles: Race to Krakatoa, Lewis and Tolkien and a whole lot more. 

Poetry Thursday: "The Sparrow's Skull," by Ruth Pitter

Welcome again to the new "Poetry Thursday" feature of The Inklings Variety Hour.

This week, we're reading a poem by Ruth Pitter, someone who was not an Inkling but knew C.S. Lewis and a few of the other Inklings.  I had Don W. King on the show to talk about her, and you can find that interview here.

You can find the poem I read here, by the way.

And here's a book of Pitter's poetry.

I hope you enjoy--if you do, please leave a five-star review on iTunes so that others will be more likely to find the show.

Also, please feel free to write me at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com if you have ideas for poems you would like to hear read on the show.

The idea for the format of Poetry Thursday is ripped pretty shamelessly from The Daily Poem, which is a great podcast.

 

The Silver Chair, Part 2: Owlectric Boogaloo-whoo

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Chris' wife, Glencora, joins him to talk about chapters 3 and 4 of The Silver Chair. Among other things, we discuss:

• The Signs and Sudden Quizzes
• Muppet Silver Chair (not really a thing, but it should be)
• The Many Types of Narnians
• Knowledge, Experience, Recognition
• Meditation in a Toolshed
• The Nature of Wisdom?
• Chaucer's Parliament of Fowls and other ancient/medieval works referenced in Chapter 4...also Keats.
• Fetching green caps that say "Oui"

Hopefully you'll enjoy this episode, which is slightly more lighthearted and relaxed than usual.  Also, happy birthday to Glencora!

If not, I'll be back with Eric and Jonathan next week to talk about Puddleglum!

 

Next: 

• Poetry Thursday: "The Sparrow's Skull," by Ruth Pitter

This Season:

Shows on their way include:

• Interview with J.D. Peabody about The Inkwell Chronicles: Race to Krakatoa
• C.S. Lewis and World War I
• Interview with Connor Salter about Bill Gresham
• George MacDonald's "The Golden Key"
• Owen Barfield
• Perelandra
• Arthurian Torso
• And quite a bit more. Stay tuned and let me know what else you'd like to see.

 

Apologies for any sound problems on this one!  We were in the same room, and I am not a professional sound guy.

Poetry Thursday: "Imram," by J.R.R. Tolkien

We're trying a new thing this season--each Thursday, I plan to release a brief recording of a poem by one of the Inklings. 

This is more or less directly inspired by the excellent podcast, The Daily Poem by Goldberry Studios, so check it out and subscribe if you want more of this sort of thing.

The poem this week is "Imram," by J.R.R. Tolkien.

You can find a text of the poem here.

You can find it reprinted in Sauron Defeated in the History of Middle Earth Series.

Do you have a favorite poem by one of the Inklings (or someone associated with them in some way) that you'd like to hear read on the podcast?  Feel free to shoot me an email if so, at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com

As always, give us a five-star rating if you want to encourage us to keep doing what we do.

See you Tuesday for The Silver Chair, Part 2!

The Silver Chair, Part 1: Signs and Blunders

Please leave a five-star review of this podcast if you enjoy it. 

We'd also love to hear from you--feel free to send us an email at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com.  

Welcome to Season Four!  

Chris is joined by Eric Geddes and author Jonathan Geltner to discuss Chapters 1 and 2 of the fourth book in the Narniad (is that what we're calling that now?), The Silver Chair. 

Among other things, we discuss:

• How we're all graduates of Experiment House now
• The school Experiment House was maybe sort of kind of based on
• The real means of getting into Narnia this time (is it the door or Aslan's breath?)
• Aslan's Country as Eden/The Terrestrial Paradise, and Pole and Scrubb's very literal Fall
• The role of the four signs and memory
• Knowledge, experience, and recognition
• The name of the book
• Silverchair (who were, as it turns out, fans of Narnia)

Things we didn't discuss but I'd planned to:

• The Door in the Wall, a beautiful fairy-story by H.G. Wells

Next:

• I'll be releasing brief recordings of poetry by the Inklings each Thursday. This coming Thursday, it'll be "Imram," by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Next Week:

• My wife Glencora and I will discuss Chapters 3 and 4 of The Silver Chair. Never fear--we will get to Puddleglum the following week!

This Season:

Shows on their way include:

• Interview with J.D. Peabody about The Inkwell Chronicles: Race to Krakatoa
• C.S. Lewis and World War I
• Interview with Connor Salter about Bill Gresham (Joy's ex) and his most important novel-turned-movie, Nightmare Alley
• George MacDonald's "The Golden Key"
• At last: Owen Barfield!
• Arthurian Torso
• Perelandra
• And quite a bit more. Stay tuned, and feel free to let me know what else you'd like to see.

An Inklings Christmas Carol (Part 3 of 3)

The last (weirdest) part of Chris' "An Inklings Christmas Carol." 

Oh, didn't realize it was still Christmas, did you? Well, it is, but it's getting close to Epiphany, time of magi and revelations.  

Happy Twelfth Night!

Thanks again to Sørina Higgins and her talented authors' circle, of which I am a part. Feel free to join us.

Write me at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com if there are specific things you'd like to see in Season 4 of The Inklings Variety Hour!  

I plan to kick things off with a discussion about The Silver Chair. I'd like this discussion to be with a group of enthusiasts rather than scholars, per se. So please email me if you'd like to join in.

An Inklings Christmas Carol (Part 2 of 3)

Enjoy, and have a Merry Christmas!

Part 3 will post in a week or so (which is, by the way, still Christmastide).

Thanks to Joe Hoffman, Ed Powell, and Sørina Higgins for their talents and help.

Apologies for the occasionally poor audio quality.  We did the best we could!

Email me at inklingsvarietyhour@gmail.com. If you like the show, I'd love to hear from you.