Episode 64: Dreams and Shadows: On Ursula Le Guin's 'A Wizard of Earthsea'
Weird Studies22 Jan 2020

Episode 64: Dreams and Shadows: On Ursula Le Guin's 'A Wizard of Earthsea'

In her National Book Award acceptance speech in 2014, Ursula K. Le Guin intimated that, far from being superseded by digital technology, fantastic fiction has never been more important than it is about to become. Soon, she prophesied, "we will need writers who can remember freedom -- poets, visionaries, realists of a larger reality." In this episode, Phil and JF plumb the prophetic depths of one of her most famous books, A Wizard of Earthsea. A discussion of the novel's style and lore leads us into the politics and metaphysics of fantasy as developed by Le Guin and her predecessor, J. R. R. Tolkien. In the end, we realize that fantasy is not the literary ghetto it's been made out to be, but the sine qua non of all fiction. SHOW NOTES John Keats, "Ode on a Grecian Urn" Heidegger, "On the Origin of the Work of Art" Beowulf, An Anglo-Saxon epic poem Weird Studies, episode 41 -- On Speculative Fiction, with Matt Cardin Weird Studies, episode 61 -- Evil and Ecstasy: On 'The Silence of the Lambs' Weird Studies, episode 62: Like 'The Shining,' But With Nuns: On 'Black Narcissus' The Complete Romances of Chretien de Troyes (translated by J.F.'s mentor, David Staines) Sir Thomas Malory, La Morte d'Arthur Lewis Carroll, British fantasist Ursula K. Le Guin's acceptance speech at the National Book Awards, 2014 David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding and A Treatise of Human Nature Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Episoder(239)

Episode 217 – Books, Spirits, and Hysteria, with Asti Hustvedt

Episode 217 – Books, Spirits, and Hysteria, with Asti Hustvedt

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Episode 216 – Artworks Are People Too

Episode 216 – Artworks Are People Too

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22 Jul 1h 34min

Special Episode: Make Art!

Special Episode: Make Art!

Owing to circumstances preventing us from releasing a new show this week, we are offering you one from the archives. This episode was originally released on our Patreon in March 2026. In it, we discus...

8 Jul 41min

Episode 215 – Where No One Can Hear You Scream: On Ridley Scott's 'Alien'

Episode 215 – Where No One Can Hear You Scream: On Ridley Scott's 'Alien'

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24 Jun 1h 29min

Episode 214 – Fortune's Fools: On Gordon White's Philosophy of Fortune-Telling

Episode 214 – Fortune's Fools: On Gordon White's Philosophy of Fortune-Telling

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10 Jun 1h 15min

Episode 213 – Comics, Surf Rock, and the Weirdness of Time: On Tom Manning's 'Eric'

Episode 213 – Comics, Surf Rock, and the Weirdness of Time: On Tom Manning's 'Eric'

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27 Mai 1h 19min

Episode 212 – Beyond Music and Back Again: On Glenn Gould

Episode 212 – Beyond Music and Back Again: On Glenn Gould

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13 Mai 1h 24min

Episode 211 – You've Always Been the Caretaker: On Kubrick's 'The Shining'

Episode 211 – You've Always Been the Caretaker: On Kubrick's 'The Shining'

In this episode, Phil and JF discuss Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of Stephen King's novel The Shining. That they are doing this eight years after starting the podcast is weird in itself, so fundamenta...

29 Apr 1h 27min

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