Educating Humans

Join James as he sits down with Prof. Simon Haines, founding CEO of the Ramsay Centre, to discuss a great books education, its history and importance.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Join James as he sits down with Benjamin Lyda from Scriptorium Writing to discuss writing within a classical and liberal arts framework. They discuss both the how and why of teaching writing and argue that writing is not just a technique, but an art that humanises the writer.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Join James as he finishes the mini-series discussing why and how we should seek to save science from the self-desctructive clutches of scientism and reconstitute science within wisdom and recover poetic knowledge as an avenue to science. This episode draws from many key thinkers including Pope John Paul II and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Join James as he sits down with Kenneth Crowther to hear how the first couple months of a student populated Newman College with has gone.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Join James as he sits down with Andrew Kern, the president of the CiRCE Institute, to discuss the place of harmony within the classroom.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Does science need saving from scientism? What is science and what is scientism? How did we find ourselves with the materialist and technocratic vision of science of today? Join James as he discusses these questions in the first of two episodes on saving science from scientismPlease consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Why should we read? In this episode, Difff and James discuss the startling statistics on the decline of reading across the West, as well as the power that developing our reading capacity can hold.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff explains his PhD, The Paradox of Enchantment: Syncretising Meteorology, Humoralism, and Demonology on the Early Modern English Stage. The discussion covers questions of enchantment and the 'discarded image' of the medieval mind, Shakespeare, astrology in King Lear, the role of enchantment in education, the importance of continuing to pursue learning into adulthood, and much more.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

This episode was recorded live at the 2025 Education for Human Flourishing Conference. James was joined by Dr Brian Williams (Templeton Honors College) and Peter Crawford (Institute for Catholic Liberal Education) to discuss poetry and the poetic mode.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In this talk from the Education for Human Flourishing Conference in 2025, Difff discusses the ways that artificial intelligence offers a false promise of restoring the logos, which has been systematically eroded and dismissed over the past millennium. Drawing on history, philosophy, and literature, including C.S. Lewis' That Hideous Strength and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Difff suggests that classical education in the liberal arts is by definition the introduction of students to reality, and as such it connects us to the logos and forms a shield against the false promises of artificial intelligence. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff interviews Sarah Flynn, founder of Logos Australis and The Liberal Arts Project in anticipation of the upcoming National Classical Education Conference: Educating for Human Flourishing.Get your tickets to the conference here.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Joseph Pearce, the critically acclaimed Catholic author and biographer, addressed the community of St John Henry Newman College and the Brisbane Oratory in Formation in May 2025. His topic of 'Shakespeare and Tolkien: Literary Giants and Why the Great Books Matter' spoke to the centrality of the great works of literature in a classical education in the Liberal Arts.You can find out more about Joseph Pearce and his publications here.With thanks to Hartford College for organising Joseph Pearce's tour of Australia.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Dr Simon Kennedy joins the podcast to discuss his book Against Worldview. Critiquing the 'worldview project' as a governing intention of Christian education, Simon proposes an active growth in wisdom as an alternative to an intellectual formation of 'getting the right answers'.  This podcast discusses virtue ethics, church history, sectarian differences in approaching education, and a whole lot more.You can get the book here.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the final episode about Josef Pieper's Leisure the Basis of Culture, we discuss the connection between leisure and worship and why secular holidays don't cut it. We also compare the totally consuming world of work to the one ring to rule them all.Please support St John Henry Newman College by donating at www.newmancollege.qld.edu.auPlease consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Josef Pieper connects our ability for festival and celebration with schole and leisure. If in our schools we manage our celebrations and justify them with key learnings and outcomes, and asses their relative success or failure against a checklist, it's likely our celebrations have become subsumed into the life of work. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In Part 3 of the series on Leisure the Basis of Culture, the discussion is all about acedia and restlessness as the opposite to leisure.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Our series explaining schole continues with part two on Leisure: The Basis of Culture. In this episode focusing on Chapter Two, we question how hard work and effort have come to be seen as the litmus test of successful education, and whether this vision misses out any essential elements that humanise education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Schole is an alien concept for those new to classical education. In the first episode in our mini-series on the book Leisure: The Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper we discuss what it means to contemplate, and the difference between two ways of knowing that were described in the Middle Ages as ratio and intellectus. Pieper's Leisure is one of the foundational books for classical liberal arts education, and it provides a helpful corrective for a modern education that has become obsessed with analysing and deconstructing, and is often at risk of losing the forest for the trees.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In this episode James reads a paper that he prepared recently for a classical education symposium. The paper focuses on the role of beauty in education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

James interviews Dr Scott Crider, Professor of English at the University of Dallas where he has taught for thirty years. His book, The Office of Assertion: An Art of Rhetoric for Academic Essay, is one of James' favourites for teaching academic writing. James and Scott discuss the value of rhetoric, how to teach writing, the power of language, and the way that poetry communicates truth. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In another short FAQ episode, Difff and James discuss why history is such an important and central focus of Classical Education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In this interview, Difff speaks to Dr Hugh Chilton from The Scots College, Sydney. They discuss ways that Scots is rediscovering elements of classical and liberal arts education through reclaiming the reality of teachers as scholars and academics and the positive impact that can have on a school. Hugh then explains the Scots X program that he leads at the college and how it incorporates elements of classical education to think deeply about the best kind of education specifically for boys in junior high school.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

For the first episode of 2025, Difff and James ask why schools should read the 'Great Books'. What even are the great books, and what makes them so great? Schools have to read something (though that's perhaps not universally acknowledged), so what metrics should be used to determine what kinds of books should be read.  And isn't it true that what we call the 'Great Books' are just old, boring and difficult?Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

For our fiftieth episode, and the last for 2024, we interview Andrew Kern, president of the CIRCE Institute. Answering the question of what are the essential components for a classical education, Andrew discusses the four pillars of coherence, the logos, piety and humanity.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Attempting the impossible, Difff answers the question 'What is classical education?' in less than fifteen minutes. This episode aims to be a brief, succinct snapshot, so if you're worried there is a lack of nuance and depth, may I recommend to you the 48 other episodes in this podcast?Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

What is it like to teach in a classical school? As teachers, we are by default telling our students that what we're teaching is worth loving. We're also telling them that learning itself is worth doing. Teachers, therefore, should love learning. But so much of teaching today has become administration and box-ticking.Teaching in a classical school means many things, but one of them is an atmosphere of 'schole'. While it translates literally to 'leisure', our modern definition of this word doesn't do justice to the depth of the original intention. Schole doesn't mean easy or lazy - working in a classical school will be hard work - but the work will be meaningful, and the conversations rich and rewarding.St John Henry Newman College is looking for teachers who are attracted to this vision of education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the final of the four part series about what is wrong with modern or progressive education, Difff and James discuss anthropology. As James KA Smith says, every pedagogy assumes an anthropology.  Without realising it, anthropology - what it means to be human - is the core assumption under-riding all decisions within schooling. When we teach anything, we're implying it is good. If we imply it is good, we imply it is good for humans. If education is about preparing for life, then what we (unconsciously) say is the purpose of education is what we (unconsciously) say is the purpose of life.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Having discussed the metaphysical and epistemological ruptures that have impacted education, Difff & James move to ethics. If all education points students towards some conception of good, what is good? How can we come to understand good, especially in a flattened materialist world which doubts our capacity to know, or relativises reality? Is there any such thing as a value neutral education? And how will all of this lead to the final question about anthropology?Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the second episode asking the question of what is wrong with modern progressive education, Difff & James discuss epistemology - the branch of philosophy that deals with questions of what is knowledge, what is knowable, and how we come to know things.  The implications of a reduced metaphysics are a fragmented and relativistic epistemology. Modern education has inherited the scientific reductionist epistemological view of its surrounding culture, but there are more ways to know things than just analysis, and real meaning is found not in apprehension, but comprehension; not deconstruction but contemplation; not dissecting, but harmonising.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the first of four episodes attempting to detail some of the major differences between classical and modern or progressive education, Difff and James discuss metaphysics. Rather than going after specific particular elements of modern education that are problematic, they approach it from a philosophical perspective, recognising that faulty practice stems from faulty thinking, which usually stems from unspoken assumptions that are incoherent or confused. The first of four philosophical foundations of a school is metaphysics - what the school believes about the nature of reality. After this, episodes will focus on epistemology, anthropology and ethics.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff and James have another amiable argument about a contentious issue in education. This time, we're asking how much say teachers should have over what and how they teach in the classroom?  Does a top-down approach stifle teacher autonomy and creativity and create situations where students are not met where they are at? Or is this just a symptom of poor leadership and structures?  Ultimately, this episode ends up asking the question of idealism versus practicality when it comes to how much teachers should continue to learn.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

What role does the concept of harmony play in education? This episode is a talk that was presented by Difff at the Brisbane Classical Education Conference in June 2024. Focusing on the work of St John Henry Newman, Difff discusses how true education is a harmonising process, designed to conform the soul to reality, and to recognise the natural order in the world and the connection between all things. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff adopts his real name - Kenneth Crowther - and discusses St John Henry Newman College with James. Newman College is a new classical school starting in 2026 in Brisbane, and Kenneth is the school's first principal. In this episode, he explains the school's approach to classical education, the mission and vision of Newman College, the joy of hard work, the importance of the community of families and parents, and the role of technology at the school and in the classical home.St John Henry Newman College is holding its official launch on Thursday July 11th at 6pm.  Find out more and register to attend here.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff & James are joined by Ben McCabe, who runs the Augustine Academy. The Academy offers a Certificate IV for students between 16 and 19 years of age. Primarily designed for homeschoolers as a way for them to gain an accredited certification for university entry, the Academy is a one year course in Literature, Philosophy, History and Theology, with a little agriculture thrown in on the side.Ben and his wife are taking the Academy on tour to capital cities around Australia. To find out more, look for the Augustine Academy on Facebook, or go to their website: https://augustineacademy.com.au Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

You've probably heard the saying before, that parents are the primary educators of their children. In fact, it has been said on this very podcast. But are they?  And if they are, what does this really mean?  Difff and James engage in a pseudo-debate about the topic to try to get to the heart of the proposition. They end up discussing the importance of family, the power of the state, how to work with schools, and the weight of responsibility that parenthood entails.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

The Paideia Approach is a theory and practice of education proposed by a number of luminaries including Mortimer Adler. In this episode, James discusses the Paideia way to think about curriculum design, such as anchoring subjects of study in The Great Ideas, as well as pedagogical design, such as the use of the lecture, academic coaching, and the Socratic seminar. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

C.S. Lewis' 'On the Reading of Old Books' is the topic of discussion in this episode of Educating Humans. James reads most of the excerpt unabridged, and then the conversation ensues, touching on various topics based upon Lewis' main point that old books provide a lens and viewpoint that is foreign to our own and therefore valuable because it does not suffer from the same blindness of our age. We also question why people shun old books - is it too much humility, too much pride, or something else?Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Can the Australian National Curriculum be redeemed? The question itself implies that there might be something wrong with the curriculum provided by ACARA, and indeed listening to the pundits and commentators, apparently there may be. For proponents of classical education, however, the real question is whether the national curriculum can accommodate a classical approach to education. And the answer is that it can.This episode is a version of a presentation Difff gave to the Church and State Summit in Brisbane in March 2024.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff & James read and discuss Josef Pieper's short essay Learning How to See Again. As the essay begins: "Man's ability to see is in decline."  Why is this?  Pieper, writing in the 1950s, suggested that one of the reasons was that - even back then - there was too much to see. The proposed remedy is a great insight into how the arts can be thought about within the classical education tradition.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

And we're back for 2024! Difff and James chat about what has been happening in classical education in Australia, including updates from new schools starting up, a visit from Andrew Kern and Katerina Hamilton, and Difff's upcoming presentation at the Church and State Summit. James then previews what's to come in 2024, including overly ambitious guest interviews and a close read of Josef Pieper's Leisure: The Basis of Culture.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff is joined by Heidi White, a classical education consultant with the CIRCE Institute to discuss, well, a whole lot of good stuff. Beginning with some foundational questions about the classical education renewal, Heidi talks about the formation of classical teachers, Aristotle's Five Common Topics, and understanding virtues, before moving on to thinking about Shakespeare's humanism and why he's a quintessential example of the kind of literary figure that shapes classical education. This episode has everything - it's not only theological and philosophical, but it's also intensely practical, with Heidi explaining how to structure lesson plans around the Five Common Topics.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In our short series on conversation topics for things we're reconsidering: subjects - yes, we're even reconsidering subjects. Something as foundational to the structure of schools is often overlooked, but what are the pitfalls that can sneak into a school when they think in terms of distinct siloed 'subjects'? Difff and James think through how disconnecting subjects can impact not only how and what a student learns about the subject, but also what they learn about themselves. Difff also spends some rather tedious time explaining the requirements within the Australia  National Curriculum and how - and why - subject thinking comes to dominate, before offering some potential solutions that could help to align better to the telos of education as understood within the classical paradigm.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In another short conversation starter, James and Difff chat about the place of homework, specifically in relation to the classical classroom. As usual, the conversation comes back to considering first principles of purpose. Often homework is given 'just because' rather than being tied to a meaningful and thoughtfully considered purpose. But what should the purpose of homework be? And does it hold a mandatory place in classical education?Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

What is assessment?  What is its purpose, and how do we know if we're achieving it? This episode is a shorter discussion starter, aimed at provoking some questions in listeners' minds about the purpose of assessment; ways that it can be helpful or harmful; and how it should be reconsidered in light of the aims of a classical education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Wisdom is one of the most common stated intentions of a classical education, but what exactly is it?  Using the work of St John Henry Newman and John Ozolins, Difff and James discuss Newman's definition of it and how he saw it fitting into education. This includes the importance of a foundation of knowledge that can then be connected together to form a synthesised picture of the whole of the world, rather than experiencing the world as dissonant disconnected parts. We also discuss how this might happen in a classroom, and the importance of cultivating an atmosphere of the desire for wisdom within the staff and across the school.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the final episode of the mini series about good books that we recommend for those interested in Classical Education, Difff talks about Jacques Maritain's Education at the Crossroads and the importance of teleology and therefore anthropology when it comes to true education. James discusses Peter Kreeft's Socratic Logic and introduces some basic terms in logic including a few fallacies such as the strawman and post hoc fallacies.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff & James spend some time answering questions from the audience. These questions are all about how to start the classical education journey, both at home with young children and as a teacher in a non-classical school. They also discuss how to spread the word about classical education, and Difff & James take the opportunity to reinforce how important it is for classical educators to themselves be classical students, and to love the truth, beauty, and goodness available in a classical education.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

In the penultimate episode of the Good Books series, Difff and James focus in on two classic pieces of literature. Starting with Shakespeare's Hamlet, they discuss the importance of Shakespeare in the classroom before diving into some of the major soliloquies in the play. From there they move to Mary Shelley's Frankenstein focusing specifically on the hubris of man's desire to 'ascend to godhood' as well as the book's incredible layers of intertextuality.Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

Difff speaks with Dr Laura Eidt from the University of Dallas about the new Latin program she is writing for teaching Latin to young children through stories. The conversation covers the reasons for teaching Latin as well as methods for effective instruction. They also discuss the importance and power of narration as a pedagogical approach for classical teachers.Dr Laura Eidt has taught in the German, Spanish, Comparative Literature, and Humanities programs at the University of Dallas since 2006, and is Director of the Humanities Program and Faculty Advisor for the K-12 Classical Curriculum Team.You can find out more about the Latin through Stories program here:https://k12classical.udallas.edu/k-5-latin-curriculum/preliminary-access/Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0

As James and Difff start to wrap up their series on some great books, they discuss two works of cultural criticism that have significantly impacted them. James discusses G.K. Chesterton's Orthodoxy, and in particular the chapter 'The Ethics of Elfland' and its relation to the purpose of classical education. Difff then introduces the topic of acedia in R.J. Snell's book, Acedia and Its Discontents: Metaphysical Boredom in an Empire of Desire. Acedia, the despairing refusal to be one's self and the disgust at human limitation and being, is the modern condition, and combatting it is one of the highest callings of a classical liberal education. Please consider becoming a founding donor for St John Henry Newman College, a new independent classical school in South Brisbane.Music: 'Inspiring Dreams' by Keys of Moon | https://soundcloud.com/keysofmoonCreative Commons CC BY 4.0