Episodes

  • S17E5: "Poem of a Proposition of Nakedness" by Walt Whitman

    S17E5: "Poem of a Proposition of Nakedness" by Walt Whitman
    Sep 30 2024

    Welcome back to Season 17 of the Well Read Poem! This season's theme is "When Homer Nods: Bad Poetry by Good Poets." Until this season, our readings on The Well Read Poem have nearly all been drawn from the well of the great, or at least the good, waters of poetry, which would of course take a lifetime and more to exhaust. And so it has been deemed appropriate at summer's close, as we return to school and the daily round, that we should partake slightly of a few select vintages of bad poetry by otherwise accomplished poets for the sake of variety and the amusement of all.

    Today's selection is "Poem of a Proposition of Nakedness" by Walt Whitman. Poem reading begins at timestamp 2:51.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit https://houseofhumaneletters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to https://www.theliterary.life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our poetry page at https://www.theliterary.life/the-well-read-poem/.
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    12 mins
  • S17E4: "To a Republican Friend" by Matthew Arnold

    S17E4: "To a Republican Friend" by Matthew Arnold
    Sep 23 2024

    Welcome back to Season 17 of the Well Read Poem! This season's theme is "When Homer Nods: Bad Poetry by Good Poets." Until this season, our readings on The Well Read Poem have nearly all been drawn from the well of the great, or at least the good, waters of poetry, which would of course take a lifetime and more to exhaust. And so it has been deemed appropriate at summer's close, as we return to school and the daily round, that we should partake slightly of a few select vintages of bad poetry by otherwise accomplished poets for the sake of variety and the amusement of all.

    Today's selection is "To a Republican Friend" by Matthew Arnold. Poem readings begin at timestamps 5:27 and 9:52.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit https://houseofhumaneletters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to https://www.theliterary.life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our poetry page at https://www.theliterary.life/the-well-read-poem/.
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    12 mins
  • S17E3: "Sonnet 11: On the Desecration Which Followed My Writing Certain Treatises" by John Milton

    S17E3: "Sonnet 11: On the Desecration Which Followed My Writing Certain Treatises" by John Milton
    Sep 16 2024

    Welcome back to Season 17 of the Well Read Poem! This season's theme is "When Homer Nods: Bad Poetry by Good Poets." Until this season, our readings on The Well Read Poem have nearly all been drawn from the well of the great, or at least the good, waters of poetry, which would of course take a lifetime and more to exhaust. And so it has been deemed appropriate at summer's close, as we return to school and the daily round, that we should partake slightly of a few select vintages of bad poetry by otherwise accomplished poets for the sake of variety and the amusement of all.

    Today's selection is "Sonnet 11: On the Desecration Which Followed My Writing Certain Treatises" by John Milton. Poem readings begin at timestamps .

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit https://houseofhumaneletters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to https://www.theliterary.life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our poetry page at https://www.theliterary.life/the-well-read-poem/.
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    17 mins
  • S17E2: "The Death of King Charles II" by John Dryden

    S17E2: "The Death of King Charles II" by John Dryden
    Sep 9 2024

    Welcome back to Season 17 of the Well Read Poem! This season's theme is "When Homer Nods: Bad Poetry by Good Poets." Until this season, our readings on The Well Read Poem have nearly all been drawn from the well of the great, or at least the good, waters of poetry, which would of course take a lifetime and more to exhaust. And so it has been deemed appropriate at summer's close, as we return to school and the daily round, that we should partake slightly of a few select vintages of bad poetry by otherwise accomplished poets for the sake of variety and the amusement of all.

    Today's selection is "The Death of King Charles II" from "Threnodia Augustalis" by John Dryden. Poem readings begin at timestamps 4:06 and 8:08.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit https://houseofhumaneletters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to https://www.theliterary.life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our poetry page at https://www.theliterary.life/the-well-read-poem/.
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    11 mins
  • S17E1: "On the Jubilee of Queen Victoria" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

    S17E1: "On the Jubilee of Queen Victoria" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
    Sep 2 2024
    Welcome back to Season 17 of the Well Read Poem! This season's theme is "When Homer Nods: Bad Poetry by Good Poets." Until this season, our readings on The Well Read Poem have nearly all been drawn from the well of the great, or at least the good, waters of poetry, which would of course take a lifetime and more to exhaust. And so it has been deemed appropriate at summer's close, as we return to school and the daily round, that we should partake slightly of a few select vintages of bad poetry by otherwise accomplished poets for the sake of variety and the amusement of all. Today's selection is "On the Jubilee of Queen Victoria" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Poem reading begins at timestamp 7:47. To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to TheLiterary.Life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our Well Read Poem webpage. On the Jubilee of Queen Victoria by Alfred, Lord Tennyson I. Fifty times the rose has flower'd and faded, Fifty times the golden harvest fallen, Since our Queen assumed the globe, the sceptre. II. She beloved for a kindliness Rare in fable or history, Queen, and Empress of India, Crown'd so long with a diadem Never worn by a worthier, Now with prosperous auguries Comes at last to the bounteous Crowning year of her Jubilee. III. Nothing of the lawless, of the despot, Nothing of the vulgar, or vainglorious, All is gracious, gentle, great and queenly. IV. You then joyfully, all of you, Set the mountain aflame to-night, Shoot your stars to the firmament, Deck your houses, illuminate All your towns for a festival, And in each let a multitude Loyal, each, to the heart of it, One full voice of allegiance, Hail the fair Ceremonial Of this year of her Jubilee. V. Queen, as true to womanhood as Queenhood, Glorying in the glories of her people, Sorrowing with the sorrows of the lowest! VI. You, that wanton in affluence, Spare not now to be bountiful, Call your poor to regale with you, All the lowly, the destitute, Make their neighborhood healthfuller, Give your gold to the hospital, Let the weary be comforted, Let the needy be banqueted, Let the maim'd in his heart rejoice At this glad Ceremonial, And this year of her Jubilee. VII. Henry's fifty years are all in shadow, Gray with distance Edward's fifty summers, Even her Grandsire's fifty half forgotten. VIII. You, the Patriot Architect, You that shape for eternity, Raise a stately memorial, Make it regally gorgeous, Some Imperial Institute, Rich in symbol, in ornament, Which may speak to the centuries, All the centuries after us, Of this great Ceremonial, And this year of her Jubilee. IX. Fifty years of ever-broadening Commerce! Fifty years of ever-brightening Science! Fifty years of ever-widening Empire! X. You, the Mighty, the Fortunate, You, the Lord-territorial, You, the Lord-manufacturer, You, the hardy, laborious, Patient children of Albion, You, Canadian, Indian, Australasian, African, All your hearts be in harmony, All your voices in unison. Singing, 'Hail to the glorious Golden year of her Jubilee!' XI. Are ...
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    13 mins
  • S16E6: "Summer" by Christina Rossetti

    S16E6: "Summer" by Christina Rossetti
    Jul 8 2024

    Welcome to the final episode in Season 16 of The Well Read Poem podcast! Since summer is upon us, we thought it right to present six poems written on one subject or another in some way inspired by the present season. These works are of a diversity of hands, times, and moods, and we hope that they will add something pleasant to your reading life as the days and nights grow warmer.

    Today's poem is "Summer" by Christina Rossetti. Poem reading begins at timestamp 3:06 or 6:44.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to TheLiterary.Life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our Well Read Poem webpage.

    Summer

    by Christina Rossetti

    Winter is cold-hearted,
    Spring is yea and nay,
    Autumn is a weathercock
    Blown every way:
    Summer days for me
    When every leaf is on its tree;

    When Robin's not a beggar,
    And Jenny Wren's a bride,
    And larks hang singing, singing, singing,
    Over the wheat-fields wide,
    And anchored lilies ride,
    And the pendulum spider
    Swings from side to side,

    And blue-black beetles transact business,
    And gnats fly in a host,
    And furry caterpillars hasten
    That no time be lost,
    And moths grow fat and thrive,
    And ladybirds arrive.

    Before green apples blush,
    Before green nuts embrown,
    Why, one day in the country
    Is worth a month in town;
    Is worth a day and a year
    Of the dusty, musty, lag-last fashion
    That days drone elsewhere.
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    10 mins
  • S16E5: "On the Move" by Thom Gunn

    S16E5: "On the Move" by Thom Gunn
    Jul 1 2024

    Welcome back to Season 16 of The Well Read Poem podcast! Since summer is upon us, we thought it right to present six poems written on one subject or another in some way inspired by the present season. These works are of a diversity of hands, times, and moods, and we hope that they will add something pleasant to your reading life as the days and nights grow warmer.

    Today's poem is "On the Move" by Thom Gunn. Poem reading begins at timestamp 4:01.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to TheLiterary.Life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our Well Read Poem webpage.

    On the Move

    by Thom Gunn

    The blue jay scuffling in the bushes follows Some hidden purpose, and the gust of birds That spurts across the field, the wheeling swallows, Has nested in the trees and undergrowth. Seeking their instinct, or their poise, or both, One moves with an uncertain violence Under the dust thrown by a baffled sense Or the dull thunder of approximate words. On motorcycles, up the road, they come: Small, black, as flies hanging in heat, the Boys, Until the distance throws them forth, their hum Bulges to thunder held by calf and thigh. In goggles, donned impersonality, In gleaming jackets trophied with the dust, They strap in doubt – by hiding it, robust – And almost hear a meaning in their noise. Exact conclusion of their hardiness Has no shape yet, but from known whereabouts They ride, direction where the tyres press. They scare a flight of birds across the field: Much that is natural, to the will must yield. Men manufacture both machine and soul, And use what they imperfectly control To dare a future from the taken routes. It is a part solution, after all. One is not necessarily discord On earth; or damned because, half animal, One lacks direct instinct, because one wakes Afloat on movement that divides and breaks. One joins the movement in a valueless world, Choosing it, till, both hurler and the hurled, One moves as well, always toward, toward. A minute holds them, who have come to go: The self-defined, astride the created will They burst away; the towns they travel through Are home for neither bird nor holiness, For birds and saints complete their purposes. At worst, one is in motion; and at best, Reaching no absolute, in which to rest, One is always nearer by not keeping still. From Collected Poems. Copyright © 1994 by Thom Gunn. Reprinted for educational purposed only.
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    11 mins
  • S16E4: "Adlestrop" by Edward Thomas

    S16E4: "Adlestrop" by Edward Thomas
    Jun 24 2024

    Welcome back to Season 16 of The Well Read Poem podcast! Since summer is upon us, we thought it right to present six poems written on one subject or another in some way inspired by the present season. These works are of a diversity of hands, times, and moods, and we hope that they will add something pleasant to your reading life as the days and nights grow warmer.

    Today's poem is "Adlestrop" by Edward Thomas. Poem readings begin at timestamps 3:07 and 6:08.

    To learn more about Thomas Banks, visit HouseofHumaneLetters.com, and to listen to our flagship podcast, head to TheLiterary.Life. You can also find free downloadable, printable files with all the poems read on the podcast on our Well Read Poem webpage.

    Adlestrop

    by Edward Thomas

    Yes. I remember Adlestrop— The name, because one afternoon Of heat the express-train drew up there Unwontedly. It was late June. The steam hissed. Someone cleared his throat. No one left and no one came On the bare platform. What I saw Was Adlestrop—only the name And willows, willow-herb, and grass, And meadowsweet, and haycocks dry, No whit less still and lonely fair Than the high cloudlets in the sky. And for that minute a blackbird sang Close by, and round him, mistier, Farther and farther, all the birds Of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire.
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    10 mins