Paul and Jay welcome their first guest in this episode, the inimitable John Klein. John has been teaching Hamlet to high school seniors for over fifty years, and as you will quickly realize, his zeal for the play has not waned even a little. Li

Hamlet Part 4: To Be, or To Seem: Hamlet's Great Soliloquy

Jun 28th, 2021 1h 1m

Paul and Jay focus on a single passage in this episode, Hamlet's dramatic spectacle of a soliloquy, the "To Be or Not To Be" soliloquy. Read it again for the first time with Paul and Jay as they talk through it line by line. Jay opens the episo

Hamlet Episode 3: Spycraft in the Rotten State

Jun 21st, 2021 58m 30s

Well into Hamlet by now, Paul and Jay meet again for more teacher talk on the inimitable "observ'd of all observers", as Ophelia has him. Jay opens with lines from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and Paul charges forward (inspired by Sto

Hamlet Episode 2: Too Much in the Son

Jun 19th, 2021 55m 6s

Paul opens the episode with "Animals", that great poem by Frank O'Hara before he and Jay dig in on the topic of fathers and sons, which reverberates throughout the play. Hamlet alone has at least three fathers -- and that's not counting Yorick

Hamlet Episode 1: Down the Rabbit Hole

May 19th, 2021 59m 44s

Paul and Jay are back with a new series on Hamlet, that enigmatic and overwhelming Shakespeare play that starts with a ghost sighting. Jay and Paul explore the state of the state of Denmark, in a bold attempt to establish even one reliable poin

How to Prep a Text for Class: Secondary sources or no?

Apr 29th, 2021 1h 1m

Jay opens with the poet Kevin Carey's "Reading to My Kids", and then he and Paul dive into the topic. This episode explores the role of secondary sources in the high school classroom. Jay and Paul discuss the benefits and the serious dangers of

Teaching in the Time of COVID, or Disembodied Teaching

Apr 20th, 2021 55m 57s

Paul and Jay take a break from specific books and discuss the ups and downs of teaching via Zoom. Jay opens with another poem, this one by the great Billy Collins.

Romeo and Juliet Act Five

Apr 6th, 2021 58m 55s

Paul and Jay close out their series on Romeo and Juliet with a wide-ranging discussion of act five. They stick to their three questions -- mostly -- and add ranging reflections on the play that will be useful to teachers and students alike.

Romeo and Juliet Act Four

Apr 6th, 2021 52m 14s

Paul opens with Robert Frost's short philosophical poem "Stars", which leads to a surprisingly substantive conversation about the shortest and least commented on scene in the play. You won't hear commentary like this anywhere else.

Romeo and Juliet Act Three

Apr 6th, 2021 51m 53s

Jay opens this episode with the poem "Tatoo" by Ted Kooser and somehow he and Paul make their way from there to Mercutio and the dead center of the play. Tybalt's dead, Mercutio is dead and Romeo and Juliet's stars are turning to dust. Leave yo

Romeo and Juliet Act Two

Apr 6th, 2021 46m 24s

Jay and Paul dig into act two in this, their third episode in the series on Romeo and Juliet. Lots of great analysis and, as always, a noteworthy poem to start things off, this time by Tony Hoagland.

Romeo and Juliet Act One

Apr 6th, 2021 41m 36s

Paul and Jay work through act one of Romeo and Juliet to find the obvious but essential, subtle but consequential and lingering questions. This episode is an excellent short review act one with provocative reflections along the way.

Intro to Teaching Romeo and Juliet

Apr 6th, 2021 33m 38s

This is episode one of our six-part series on teaching Romeo and Juliet. In it, we ask and answer three questions that every teacher ought to start with before jumping in with this great play by William Shakespeare.

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