Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory with Neema Parvini
35 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 7 years ago - ★★★★★ - 3 ratingsIn this podcast Dr Neema Parvini, Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Surrey, and author of several books, interviews various Shakespeare scholars and literary theorists from around the world in a bid to gain an understanding of the current state of play in Shakespeare studies and in literary criticism more generally. Through a series of candid talks, it will tackle the biggest theoretical and practical questions that have preoccupied scholars and readers of Shakespeare alike for generations: the idea that history is driven by human beings versus the idea that it is driven by forces beyond our control, the individual versus society, nature versus nurture, and freedom versus determinism.
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Episodes
SCT #36: Shakespeare and Counterfactual Thinking with Amir Khan
April 28, 2017 09:48 - 50 minutes - 24.8 MBWhat would Hamlet be like if we didn't already know what was going to happen? What would the play look like if we only knew what Hamlet knew? Neema talks to Amir Khan (Missouri State University) whose book Shakespeare in Hindsight: Counterfactual Thinking and Shakespearean Tragedy helps us think about exactly these sorts of questions. Amir Khan's Shakespeare in Hindsight (2015): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shakespeare-Hindsight-Counterfactual-Shakespearean-Philosophy/dp/1474409458 Links to pa...
SCT #35: Shakespeare, Character and Morality with James A. Knapp
March 23, 2017 14:43 - 59 minutes - 30.3 MBNeema talks to James A. Knapp (Loyola University Chicago) about Shakespeare, Character and Morality. Topics include: the motivations of literary characters, emotions and human nature, ethics, and partisanship / political bubbles. Knapp's essay "Beyond Materiality in Shakespeare Studies" (2014): http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/lic3.12177/abstract
SCT #34: Shakespeare and Trump with Jeffrey R. Wilson
November 25, 2016 11:14 - 1 hour - 62.8 MBNeema welcomes Jeffrey R. Wilson (Harvard) to discuss the election of Donald Trump, its impact on the intellectual climate, and some of the ways in which Shakespeare was used in the coverage of the US election. Wilson’s essay, “Public Shakespeareanism: The Bard in the 2016 American Presidential Election,” is available upon request from the author; email [email protected]. The instances of “public Shakespeareanism” discussed in the essay and the podcast include: Andrew Cutrofello,...
SCT #33: Interview with Michael D. Bristol
November 18, 2016 12:34 - 59 minutes - 54.6 MBNeema interviews Michael D. Bristol (McGill) about a wide range of topics including: Mikhail Bakhtin, LC Knights's famous attack on A.C. Bradley "How Many Children Had Lady Macbeth?", the importance of character to Shakespeare criticism, is Shakespeare a philosopher?, moral agency and much more.
SCT #32: Interview with Stephen Greenblatt
November 11, 2016 11:16 - 49 minutes - 45.3 MBAhead of the publication of his forthcoming book Shakespeare and New Historicist Theory (for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series), Neema interviews new historicism's most influential exponent, Stephen Greenblatt (Harvard). Topics include the cultural and political moment of the late 1960s, Louis Althusser, the genesis of new historicism, how and why Shakespeare has endured across history, and, yes, Donald Trump.
SCT #31: Shakespeare and Cultural Materialist Theory with Christopher Marlow
November 04, 2016 16:53 - 46 minutes - 42.2 MBNeema interviews Christopher Marlow (University of Lincoln) about his forthcoming book, Shakespeare and Cultural Materialist Theory, for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory Series. Topics include: Raymond Williams, Louis Althusser, the place of politics in the academy, and (of course) Donald Trump and Brexit.
SCT #30: Shakespeare and Film Theory with Scott Hollifield
October 28, 2016 13:36 - 53 minutes - 48.5 MBNeema interviews Scott Hollifield (University of Nevada) about his forthcoming book Shakespeare and Film Theory for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. Topics include: Roman Polanski's Macbeth, Orsen Welles's Chimes at Midnight, Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet, and the differences between Shakespeare on film and on television.
SCT #29: Shakespeare and Queer Theory with Melissa E. Sanchez
October 18, 2016 11:19 - 43 minutes - 39.5 MBNeema interviews Melissa E. Sanchez (University of Pennsylvania) about her forthcoming book Shakespeare and Queer Theory for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. Discussion includes queerness in Shakespeare, whether or not it is important to ask if Shakespeare himself was gay, Shakespeare's view of sexuality, and misogyny in the current US presidential election.
SCT #28: Shakespeare and Posthumanist Theory (with Karen Raber)
September 30, 2016 10:16 - 1 hour - 58.4 MBNeema interviews Karen Raber (University of Mississippi) about her forthcoming book Shakespeare and Posthumanist Theory, part of the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. Topics include: the difference between "The Posthuman" and posthumanism, and animals in Shakespeare.
SCT#27: Shakespeare and New Historicist Theory with Evelyn Gajowski and Neema Parvini
August 29, 2016 21:39 - 1 hour - 63.6 MBNeema welcomes back Evelyn Gajowski, editor for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. In a change from the norm, in this episode, Evelyn turns the tables and interviews Neema about his forthcoming book Shakespeare and New Historicist Theory. Topics include: the place of theory in Shakespeare studies; differences between new historicism and cultural materialism; presentism; the re-emergence of positivism; and Shakespeare's empathy.
SCT #26: Shakespeare and Postcolonial Theory with Jyotsna Singh
July 19, 2016 16:35 - 47 minutes - 43.8 MBNeema interviews Jyotsna Singh about her forthcoming book Shakespeare and Postcolonial Theory for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. Topics include the rise of global capitalism in early modern Europe, representations of colonial power, and Shakespeare's place as a global playwright.
SCT #25: Shakespeare and Ecofeminist Theory with Rebecca Laroche and Jennifer Munroe
June 07, 2016 13:34 - 47 minutes - 43.9 MBNeema interviews Rebecca Laroche and Jennifer Munroe about their forthcoming book Shakespeare and Ecofeminist Theory for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series. Links for the Early Modern Recipes Online Collective and the Recipes Project can be found below, as well as a recipe for "Candy Angelica". EMROC (Early Modern Recipes Online Collective): http://emroc.hypotheses.org/ Recipes Project: http://recipes.hypotheses.org/ "To Candy Angelica" (from "Cookbook of Mary Cruso and Timothy Cruso,...
SCT #24: Shakespeare and Ecocritical Theory with Gabriel Egan
May 20, 2016 20:37 - 53 minutes - 49.3 MBWhat does it mean to approach Shakespeare's plays through the lens of ecocriticism? Neema welcomes back Gabriel Egan to talk about his volume for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series, Shakespeare and Ecocritical Theory.
SCT #23: Shakespeare and Feminist Theory with Marianne Novy
May 13, 2016 06:03 - 39 minutes - 36 MBWhy is feminist theory important to the study of Shakespeare’s plays? Neema is joined by Marianne Novy, author of the forthcoming book Shakespeare and Feminist Theory, for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory Series.
SCT #22: Shakespeare and Economic Theory with David Hawkes
May 05, 2016 08:10 - 43 minutes - 40.2 MBHow are money, the marketplace, and questions of economic exchange relevant to studying Shakespeare? To find out, Neema interviews David Hawkes, author of Shakespeare and Economic Theory for the Arden Shakespeare and Theory Series.
SCT #21: The Arden Shakespeare and Theory series with Evelyn Gajowski
April 29, 2016 11:21 - 1 hour - 69.8 MBIn the first of a number of episodes showcasing authors from the Arden Shakespeare and Theory series, Neema welcomes the series editor, Evelyn Gajowski, who talks, among other things, about its conception and purpose, the continuing relevance of theory in Shakespeare studies, and presentism. You can find details of the Arden Shakespeare and Theory Series here: http://www.bloomsbury.com/us/series/shakespeare-and-theory/
SCT #20: Shakespeare and Cognition (Part 2) with Laurie Johnson
April 22, 2016 02:04 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBNeema delves deeper into the topic of cognition with Laurie Johnson from the University of Southern Queensland, who explains the distinction between "embodied cognition" and "distributed cognition" and how these terms relate to Shakespeare and the early modern theatre.
SCT #19: Shakespeare and Cognition with Raphael Lyne
April 12, 2016 23:53 - 59 minutes - 54.3 MBTo kick-start season 2 of Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory, Neema spoke with Dr Raphael Lyne from the University of Cambridge about the 'cognitive turn' in Shakespeare studies and what studying Shakespeare might be able to tell us about the human mind. Be sure to check out his blog, 'What Literature Knows About Your Brain': http://www.english.cam.ac.uk/research/cogblog/
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #18: Michael Egan
October 27, 2015 23:21 - 1 hour - 68.6 MBOriginal date: 11th October 2013 Was Shakespeare really William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon, or was he, in fact, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford? Neema interviews Professor Michael Egan, editor of The Oxfordian, about this question to help you make up your own mind …
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #17: Ros King
October 27, 2015 23:19 - 1 hour - 79.7 MBOriginal date: 2nd October 2013 Neema interviews Professor Ros King about the perceived dichotomy between presentism and historicism, the importance of dramaturgy, Elizabethan war manuals, ways of playing Ophelia in Hamlet, why the Scrivener is the most important character in Richard III and more.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #16: Alison Assiter
October 27, 2015 23:17 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBOriginal date: 20th September 2013 Neema interviews the feminist philosopher Professor Alison Assiter about feminism, universalism, cultural relativism, Kierkegaard, women in academia, and many other topics.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #15: Jonathan Kramnick
October 27, 2015 23:15 - 58 minutes - 53.7 MBOriginal date: 21st June 2013 Neema talks to Professor Jonathan Kramnick about his critique of literary Darwinism, aesthetic value judgements, and much more.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #14: Andrew Hadfield
October 27, 2015 23:13 - 1 hour - 67 MBOriginal date: 27th May 2013 Neema interviews Professor Andrew Hadfield. Topics include: cultural materialism vs. practical criticism; comparing Dollimore and Sinfield with F.R. Leavis; has historicism come too far or should we return to form?; considering aesthetic value and judgements; Adorno and The Frankfurt School; questions of the literary canon; and Shakespeare’s politics.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #12: Henry S. Turner
October 27, 2015 23:11 - 1 hour - 80.8 MBOriginal date: 3rd April 2013 Neema interviews Dr Henry S. Turner. Topics include: post-historicism?; does Marx’s notion of commodity fetishism still have value?; Pierre Bourdieu; The Politics of Truth by Michele Barret; the importance of Roland Barthes; literary theory and the sciences; Jonathan Kramnick’s assessment of Literary Darwinism; mimesis; Shakespeare’s theatrical ‘word cloud’; rethinking the concept of unity; and Madeline Doran’s Endevors and Art.
Shakespeare and Contemporoary #11: David Alderson
October 27, 2015 23:08 - 1 hour - 58.1 MBOriginal date: 15th March 2013 Neema interviews Dr David Alderson. In this episode: the influence of new historicism, cultural materialism and Raymond Williams beyond Shakespeare studies; Althusser, Foucault and subjectivity; base and superstructure; ‘neo-liberal hegemony’ and the current uses of Marxist criticism; is capitalism progressive?; Marxism and humanism; the ‘diversified dominant’ and the commodification of individualised freedom; Norman Geras vs. biological accounts of human natur...
Shakespeare and Contemporary #10: Steven Mullaney
October 27, 2015 23:05 - 1 hour - 55.5 MBOriginal date: 1st March 2013 Neema interviews Professor Steven Mullaney. Topics include: Vietnam, May 68 and the civil rights movement; what footprint did either deconstruction or Derrida leave on Shakespeare studies?; the distinction between new historicism and cultural poetics; Foucault’s ‘spatial’ thinking; Marxism in America; is new historicism ‘textualist’ in the way it ‘reads’ culture?; Bruno Latour’s actor-network theory; Louis Montrose on E.M.W. Tillyard; universalists vs. construct...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #9: Gabriel Egan
October 27, 2015 22:58 - 1 hour - 80.5 MBOriginal date: 10th February 2013 Neema talks with Professor Gabriel Egan, author of Shakespeare and Marx, Green Shakespeare and The Search for Shakespeare’s Text. Topics include: criticisms of Foucault’s concept of power; the importance of class; Greenblatt’s use of Clifford Geertz; how the economics of the early modern theatre industry worked; Charles Darwin and Karl Marx; theory vs. science; how do we know what Shakespeare wrote?; issues in editing Shakespeare; Pierre Macherey; D.F. McKen...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #8: Andy Mousley
October 27, 2015 22:51 - 12 minutes - 11.1 MBOriginal date: 3rd February 2013 - please note that the majority of this episode has been sadly lost. We are making efforts to recover it. Neema interviews Dr Andy Mousley, a leading advocate of ‘literary humanism’. Topics include: F.R. Leavis; Edward Pechter’s critique of new historicism; the death of the aesthetic; ‘residual humanism’; teacup handles and the difference between traditional history and cultural history; emotions and literature; cathexis; and the distinctiveness of literature.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #7: Lisa Hopkins
October 27, 2015 22:45 - 59 minutes - 54.6 MBOriginal date: 25th January 2013 Neema is joined by Professor Lisa Hopkins to discuss, among other things: feminism; A.P. Rossiter and Shakespeare’s ambivalence; the ‘post-theory’ moment; subjectivity, contradiction and the coexistence of two competing ideas at the same time; women in The Hobbit; breastfeeding, nature and nurture; Victorian uses of Darwinian theory; did Shakespeare have a mind which could think otherwise, or did he share something with his contemporaries?; the question of ae...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #6: Joseph Carroll
October 27, 2015 22:42 - 1 hour - 77.1 MBOrginal date: 15th January 2013 Neema interviews the founder of a movement known as ‘Literary Darwinism’, Professor Joseph Carroll. Topics include: the resistance of the academic status quo to evolutionary theory; Matthew Arnold and the value of literary study; poststructualism vs. biologically-informed psychology and anthropology in the mainstream public; why is the question of nature and nurture important to us as readers of literature?; graphing Jane Austen and using empirical methods in...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #5: John Drakakis
October 27, 2015 22:39 - 1 hour - 68.1 MBOriginal date: 9th January 2013 Neema is joined by Professor John Drakakis. In this episode: the professionalisation of the discipline and its impact on scholarship; what was ‘new’ about new historicism?; understanding the roots of cultural materialism and its differences from new historicism; differences between left-wing criticism at Sussex and at Cardiff; influences beyond Althusser and Foucault: Antonio Gramsci, Raymond Williams, Fredric Jameson, Pierre Macherey; the British New Left; t...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #4: Marcus Nordlund
October 27, 2015 22:36 - 1 hour - 55 MBOriginal date: 30th December 2012 Neema interviews Marcus Nordlund, author of Shakespeare and the Nature of Love. Topics include: false dichotomies, straw men and the academic market place; can you talk about Shakespeare’s characters as if they are real people?; the validity of Jacques Lacan’s theories; the importance of developing a ‘biocultural’ view when reading literature; and Shakespeare’s perspectivism.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #3: Hugh Grady
October 27, 2015 22:34 - 1 hour - 64.2 MBOriginal date: 17th December 2012 This week Neema is joined by Professor Hugh Grady, one of the figures at the forefront of the movement in Shakespeare studies known as ‘presentism’. Topics include: the influence of deconstruction on new historicism and cultural materialism; Stephen Greenblatt’s relationship with Marxist theory; the different receptions of Louis Althusser and Michel Foucault in America and Britain; Fredric Jameson; the importance of subjectivity to Shakespeare criticism; Jac...
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #2: Brian Boyd
October 27, 2015 22:18 - 1 hour - 64.4 MBOriginal date: 7th December 2012 Neema interviews Professor Brian Boyd, one of the world’s leading experts on literature and evolution. Topics include: the antifoundationalism of Karl Popper; criticisms of new historicism and cultural materialism; human nature, universals and literature; dominance and counter-dominance, self-interest and altruism; mate choice or romantic love; why do we make up stories?; David Bordwell and presentism. NB. Apologies, some audio issues on this track.
Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory #1: Jonathan Dollimore
October 27, 2015 22:15 - 1 hour - 59.1 MBOriginal date: 2nd October, 2012 In this first episode, Neema is joined by one of the founders of cultural materialism, Professor Jonathan Dollimore. Topics include: the importance of interdisciplinary study; differences between the French and English versions of Marxism; Karl Marx; Jean-Paul Sartre; George Steiner; Cilla Black, the 1960s and cultural memory; nature versus nurture and the question of sexuality; how Stephen Greenblatt is a bit like Bob Dylan; how cultural materialism might pr...