The Literature Lady

There's a secret to unlocking Shakespeare: and this podcast will give you the key! Even though his plays differ from one another in several ways, Shakespeare still uses the same dramatic, language, and thematic devices in nearly all of his plays. Using these literary tools, anyone can learn to understand (and love!) the works of Shakespeare! Join us as we dissect one of his greatest comedies, Much Ado About Nothing.

Ever wonder why Shakespeare is so great and why his work remained popular whereas most Elizabethan literature and drama has not? Ever wonder where Shakespeare got his ideas or how his work differs from his sources? Written for the jovial holiday Candlemas, Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare's greatest comedies. Join us as we compare and contrast Shakespeare's text with his sources, and discover how one man managed to take some terribly bad literature and transform it into a masterful work that stood the test of time.

Enraged at Joseph Swetnam’s misogynist publication, Rachel Speght methodically plots his demise. This brazen young woman uses her wit, intellect, and unusual education to publicly humiliate the man who would become her greatest enemy as she defends the honor of women everywhere. Revenge has never been so sweet…

Meet Joseph Swetnam: fencing instructor and the most famous misogynist of Early Modern London. His tract, The Arraignment of Lewd, Idle, Froward, and Unconstant Women, was a key player in the pamphlet wars on gender that were all the rage in 17th century England. Join us as we discuss the man we love to hate and his writings that are oh so deliciously wicked. (Warning: contains explicit material!)

Take one Medieval chick, throw in some travel, imprisonment, hysteria, sex, visions, and a few famous people and voilà: you have The Book of Margery Kempe. This podcast includes some background history and literary discussion of one of the most controversial female figures in the Middle Ages. (This was created as a supplement to a lecture I am giving to an undergraduate world literature class and is for didactic purposes only.)