Books of Titans Podcast

In this episode, I cover The Birth of Love myth in Plato’s Symposium dialogue. I don’t usually think of Plato as a myth maker, but here he is offering a different spin on the birth of Eros to show how love’s parentage shows our need for Beauty. The ladder of love leads to Plato’s heavenly form of Beauty in a wonderful way. I talk about this myth, Plato’s use of myth, and myth in general in the art of persuasion.Books / Articles Referenced:* Plato: Selected Myths / Translation by Catalin Partenie / Oxford World’s Classics* Hesiod: Theogony / Translation by M.L. West / Oxford World’s Classics* Plotinus: The Enneads on Love / Translation by Stephen Mackenna / Penguin Classics* From Plato to Christ / Louis Markos* God in the Dock: Myth Became Fact / CS. Lewis* Better Than Sex! / Deacon Harrison Garlick This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.booksoftitans.com/subscribe

What is the good life? This is the question addressed in Philebus, one of Plato’s later dialogues, written in the late 350s BC. Philebus and his counterpart Protarchus (a pupil of Gorgias) argue for pleasure as the highest pursuit and good. Plato (through Socrates) argues for wisdom and knowledge. Can either of these be the sole pursuit of the life well-lived? The goal of the dialogue is to rank pleasure and wisdom.Plato quickly establishes the necessity for a third option in this quest - a mixture of pleasure and wisdom. It’s impossible to have pleasure without thought and memory and a life solely dedicated to wisdom would be a bit dry. However, pleasure by its nature is unlimited, and therefore cannot be ranked or measured.Plato then distinguishes between true and false pleasures. True pleasures are those that don’t involve pain (like witnessing a sunset or hearing a beautiful piece of music). False pleasures are those based upon false beliefs (like I’m going to win the lottery), bad measurement/distance (another beer now will hurt in the morning), and relief from pain (showing the absurdity of hedonism that more pain leads to more pleasure).Plato concludes with a ranking or Ladder of Goods:* Goodness in Moderation* In Beauty* In Intellect and Reason (Wisdom from the beginning)* Knowledge* Good/True Pleasures (Pleasure from the beginning, only false pleasures are not allowed)The key point in this dialogue is that the good life does not consist of getting more of either of the initial pursuits, pleasure or wisdom. Instead, it consists of getting the correct balance between the two. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.booksoftitans.com/subscribe

In today’s podcast episode, I cover the legend of The Flowering Hawthorn and its connection to the King Arthur legend. It’s a tale that begins with Joseph of Arimathea. He’s the rich man who buried Jesus in his tomb. Tradition holds that Joseph traveled to England many years after the resurrection carrying with him the blood of Jesus, a staff, and possibly, the holy grail. Joseph’s staff began to bud each Christmas Day in Glastonbury, England.The story is told across the ages by bards, poets, and kings. Glastonbury attracted pilgrims from around the world to come and see this flowering hawthorn.Is the story true? Or is it just speculation, legend, or tradition? We may never know, but there are enough connection points in this story that make it delightfully intriguing.I recorded this video episode at the Christ Church meadow in Oxford, England.PhotosHere are a set of photos sent to me by Stephen Crotts who visited these sites last year. Crotts is the illustrator of the new Arthuriad, an Epic Poem by Malcolm Guite, recounting the King Arthur legend. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.booksoftitans.com/subscribe

In this podcast episode, I cover the life and ideas of two of the earliest Greek Philosophers, Anaximander & Anaximenes of Miletus. Anaximander is credited with introducing the idea of the First Principle, of which his was the infinite, and Anaximenes, Air.Books Referenced:* Early Greek Philosophy - Translation by Jonathan Barnes - Penguin Classics* The First Philosophers - Translation by Robin Waterfield - Oxford World’s Classics* Lives of the Eminent Philosophers - Diogenes Laertius - Loeb Classical Library This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.booksoftitans.com/subscribe

A deep dive into Parmenides' life and his lasting puzzle about Being. Short readings of his poem On Nature and the two paths of truth and opinion. Clear focus on his claim that reason, not the senses, alone reveals reality. Survey of how later thinkers like Plato and Democritus tried to answer his challenge.

A lively tour of Gorgias and the Sophists, exploring a shift from seeking first principles to celebrating persuasion. Short readings and surviving works are highlighted for their rhythmic prose and rhetorical flair. The episode traces how speech shaped Athenian power, education, and mythic storytelling. It ends by placing Gorgias among his contemporaries and showing his blend of philosophy and performance.

A lively tour of Democritus’s life, travels, and reputation as the laughing polymath. The conversation dives into his atom-and-void theory and how it tackled Zeno’s puzzles and explained elements. You hear about his lost works, ethical maxims, and the long influence on Aristotle and Epicurus. Historical anecdotes and comparisons to biblical wisdom add color.

A lively dive into Anaxagoras’s life, his move to Athens, and his role in early philosophy. Discussion of his bold idea that mind (nous) ordered a primordial mixture into everything. Tales of his trial, relationships with Pericles and Euripides, and his influence down to Socratic lineage. Natural explanations of the heavens and the surprising claim that all things contain portions of everything.

A lively dive into the life and myth of Empedocles, including his dramatic volcano legend. Discussion of his choice to write philosophy as epic poetry and the many surviving fragments. Exploration of his four elements and the twin forces of love and strife that shape change. Coverage of his ideas on souls, reincarnation, ritual reform, monsters from element mixtures, and his lasting legacy.

A lively dive into Thales of Miletus and his role in shifting from myth-based to natural explanations. Discussion covers his claim that water is the primary principle, his ideas about souls and animism, and famous anecdotes that humanize the thinker. Practical links to his math, geometry, and navigation achievements round out the conversation.