4 Sappho

In an 1886 letter to his brother, Anton Chekhov delivered some advice about truthfulness in writing. "Don't invent sufferings you have not experienced," he wrote, "and don't paint pictures you have not seen--for a lie in a story is much more boring than a lie in conversation." In ...  Show more

Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961) was one of the most famous American writers of the twentieth century. His plain, economical prose style--inspired by journalism and the King James Bible, with an assist from the Cezannes he viewed in Gertrude Stein’s apartment--became a hallmark of mo ...  Show more

Persephone and real women of antiquity. Dr Ellie Mackin Roberts, author of Heroines of Olympus, talks about the versions of Persephone, real women's interactions with her, and understanding the idea of "abduction" in Greek mythology. Follow Ellie on TikTok and Twitter.CW/TW: **Th ...  Show more

*This episode contains very strong language and adult content*

A semi autobiographical account from a conflicted man? An ode to a wife’s sexual desire? A criminally obscene novel?

Lady Chatterley’s Lover is one of the most famous texts from the past century ...

Lucrecia Borgia fue presentada por el escritor Víctor Hugo como una mujer viciosa, despiadada y maestra en venenos. La realidad es que la verdadera Lucrecia, la que emerge de los archivos y los documentos históricos, era radicalmente distinta: una mujer espléndida, culta, gentil, ...  Show more

It’s been said that history is written by the person at the typewriter. But who did the person who made history depend on? Often, it’s impossible to find out. But once in a while, we get lucky, and the story was not only recorded, it’s really good.
Well that’s what this p ...