Alexander Schmid Podcast

In this discussion with Ms. Sarah Miller and Mr. Wes Schantz, we consider (a) the developing relationships in the text, their increasing complexity, and J.K. Rowling's and Harry Potter's (and even Albus Dumbledore's) increasing focus on them; (b) parallels and contrasts between Tom Riddle and Harry Potter's powers, natures, upbringings, and choices and even perspectives on personal responsibility; and ultimately (c) horcruxes, how they relate to tension between a desire for power vs. a desire for companionship, and the difference between Dumbledore's Army and the Death Eaters' perspectives on free-will and fate. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we consider (a) the lie of Sinon and entrance of the the Trojan Horse into Troy; (b) the deaths of Aeneas' friends and Priam's tragic and symbolic death, and (c) finally, we conclude with Creusa's, Aeneas' wife, disappearance and  profoundly sad death.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we consider (a) Dido's disastrous relationship with her brother Pygmalion and his murder of her husband Sychaeus; (b) Venus' meddling influence on the heart and mind of Dido through Cupid (Eros), and (c) Aeneas begins his recounting of the fall of Troy and the role of the Achaean spy Sinon in bringing the Trojan Horse into the city of Troy (Ilion). --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this second conversation The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Mr. Wes Schantz and I field several astute questions and comments from Mr. Ben Kozlowski; we also consider (a) the nature of the archetype of evil as Lucifer and Prometheus and how mischief and evil are connected in the actions of Skull-kid, (b) we consider the importance of prejudice and diverse perspectives in this Zelda game as well as in classical literature: Homer's "Odyssey", Virgil's "Aeneid", and Dante's "The Divine Comedy"; and (c) we consider the relationship between the Deku Mask, the Butler, and the poisoned waters as metaphors within the "text" of the game! And more! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we discuss (1) the proem of the poem and its connections to Homer's "Iliad" and "Odyssey", (2) the stoic tradition and how Neptune's "oratorical" skill is a symbol for stoicism and the subjugation of emotion to reason, and (3) the future and fate of the Trojan and Roman peoples. I also say Rome rather Troy as the last word of the lecture by accident! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this final lecture, we consider (1) the relationship between human nature and divine nature, (2) the image of the trinity and the similarities and differences between the circles, and (3) what the ultimate purpose and meaning of Dante's work and the life of a human really is. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this introductory lecture on Virgil's "Aeneid", we discuss (a) the Punic Wars (264 BCE-146 BCE) and Roman Civil War (49 BCE-45 BCE) as background to Virgil's "Aeneid", (b) the theories of the Aeneid as propaganda vs. glorification of a pacified state, and (c) the life of Virgil and his dying wish. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this penultimate lecture on Dante's "Paradiso", we discuss (a) Dante's entrance into the Empyrean (the mind of God), (b) Dante's drinking from a river of light (with his eyes), and (c) the disappearance of Beatrice in preparation for Dante's final revelation. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this special episode of Conversations at the Leaky Cauldron, Wes and Sarah host a seminar at the Norwescon 42! They considered topics ranging from (1) our humble origins and where we first met, (2) perennial philosophical questions considered through the lens of fantasy literature, and (3) what the nature of good and evil is. And more! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this episode of Conversations at The Leaky Caulron, Ms. Sarah Miller, Mr. Wes Schantz and I consider the following topics: (1) parallels between Fleur Delacour (Phlegm) and Merope Gaunt, (2) the horrors of the Gaunt household and the tension between family and state (Ministry of Magic); and (3) Dumbledore's apparent vulnerabilities and lacunae in knowledge and his increasingly informal relationship with Harry. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we observe (a) the distinction between the laws of man and gods, (b) the prophecies of Tiresias, and (c) the horrific denouement of Sophocles' "Antigone"! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture we consider (1) Antigone and Ismene's differing value-systems (family vs. state; honors vs. fear); Creon's initial edicts and his own valuation of power vs. family, and (c) we finish by making connections between Oedipus and Creon. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

Side Quests 047: The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 001 I Nintendo a) Nintendo vs. Sega/Sony Aesthetic b) More childish graphics; c) Big faces, lots of bright colors d) A lot with sound, limited dialog and simplistic story d1) Zelda at first d2) Mario d3) Potentially deeper undercurrents II Playing with cartridges a) The controller III Game Play a) Very different from a turn-based (active battle system with random encounter) RPG b) Action-adventure/action RPG c) Real-time fighting d) Never hear own voice or see own dialog IV Picks up where The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time left off a) Have already fulfilled your destiny b) Have the Ocarina of time c) Sword d) Epona (Horse) V Setting is a dark forest a) Dante connection (also after-life) b) Have a big FALL (Lucifer, Hephaistos, Alice iWonderland; The Matrix) c) Stuck in a three day loop (like Easter/Dante)  a) All focused on time b) Collect masks b1) Personae b2) Interweave/create personality based on amount of rol

In this lecture we consider the denouement of Sophocles' "Oedipus the King"! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we consider (a) Oedipus' slowly dawning revelation that the man who killed Laius was he; (b) that Polybus and Merope whom he believed his parents are not, and (c) that he may have brought the corruption of Thebes about himself if only the herdman who was the man who witnessed Laius' murder says so. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we (1) consider Oedipus' insecurity and his accusations of Teiresias and Creon, and (2) we conclude with Jocasta entering to converse with Oedipus. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this lecture, we consider (1) the path of Ulysses, and how much farther Dante has come, and how much higher his perspective is now than it was on earth; (2) the choirs of angels and how they relate to the spheres of heaven, and how the spheres of heaven which appear slowest are actually fastest and brightest and closest to the source (God), and (c) we conclude by considering the (1) creation of the world (why it was created), (2) how long it took Lucifer to fall, and (3) how act (form) and potentiality (matter) were first intertwined together. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this first conversation on J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", Ms. Sarah Miller, Mr Wesley Schantz, and I discuss (a) the duality and unity between the muggle and magical worlds in the Harry Potter universe; (b) what the cost of choice is, and how that relates to time, blood, and mistakes in the past; and (c) we gave a very rich analysis of Rufus Scrimgeour and Horus Slughorn's differing characters and characteristics. Classical references to Homer's "Odyssey", Dante's "Inferno", and Milton"s "Paradise Lost" abound. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support

In this final epic podcast, Mr. Wes Schantz and I conclude our final foray into Final Fantasy VII. Specifically we consider (a) upward and downward spirals and connections between the end of the game and the beginning; (b) Sephiroth as a Luciferian figure and in comparison to Achilleus in Homer, Lucifer in Milton's "Paradise Lost", and Voldemort in  the "Harry Potter" series, and (c) Wes and I conclude by thinking about hope and its relationship to power, and then reflecting on what this experience has meant to us. In this final epic podcast, Mr. Wes Schantz and I conclude our final foray into Final Fantasy VII. Specifically we consider (a) upward and downward spirals and connections between the end of the game and the beginning; (b) Sephiroth as a Luciferian figure and in comparison to Achilleus in Homer, Lucifer in Milton's "Paradise Lost", and Voldemort in Harry Potter, and (c) Wes and I conclude by thinking about hope and its relationship to power, and then reflecting on what this experience has mean

In this lecture, we (a) review Sophocles' biographical information, (b) introduce Oedipus in all his glory and seeming hubris, and (c) lay-out the scene (plague) in Thebes and the initial steps that have been taken to combat it. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/alexander-schmid9/support