Arnold Weinstein's guest appearances

Arnold Weinstein

The Hedgehog and the Fox

Writers and Writings

Books and a Balance

OwlTail

Arnold Weinstein, Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature at Brown University, discusses his latest book, The Lives of Literature, and his own life of literature: the authors that have mattered most to him, what students have taken from his courses, and which books have recently become unteachable. He writes, 'The best books interrogate their readers—jostle their assumptions, challenge their own sense of "me" – and the teacher's calling must be to convey this "live”.' Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Arnold Weinstein, Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature at Brown University, discusses his latest book, The Lives of Literature, and his own life of literature: the authors that have mattered most to him, what students have taken from his courses, and which books have recently become unteachable. He writes, 'The best books interrogate their readers—jostle their assumptions, challenge their own sense of "me" – and the teacher's calling must be to convey this "live”.' Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Arnold Weinstein: The Lives of Literature

What happens when a person reads literature? An observer, seeing little more than eye movement, might conclude that the answer is: nothing. But literature is a form of travel, says our guest, and encountering it a potentially shattering experience. “Literature,” he says, “allows us to imagine a future that we could not afford to live in.” Arnold Weinstein is the Richard and Edna Salomon Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature at Brown University. Drawing on a lifetime of reading and teaching great works, he joins the podcast to discuss the galvanizing effect of literature and its darkness, how it can play the role of both wrecking ball and tonic in our lives, how reading changes with age, and much more.   The Lives of Literature: Reading, Teaching, Knowing. Princeton University Press, 2021. 

What happens when a person reads literature? An observer, seeing little more than eye movement, might conclude that the answer is: nothing. But literature is a form of travel, says our guest, and encountering it a potentially shattering experience. “Literature,” he says, “allows us to imagine a future that we could not afford to live in.” Arnold Weinstein is the Richard and Edna Salomon Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature at Brown University. Drawing on a lifetime of reading and teaching great works, he joins the podcast to discuss the galvanizing effect of literature and its darkness, how it can play the role of both wrecking ball and tonic in our lives, how reading changes with age, and much more. <ul> <li><a href="-%09https:/press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691177304/the-lives-of-literature" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> The Lives of Literature: Reading, Teaching, Knowing</a>. Princeton University Press, 2021.</li> </ul>

Arnold Weinstein on The Lives of Literature

From the introduction of his new book: “We enter the bookstore, see all the books arrayed there, and think: so many books, so little time; but the truth goes the other way: books do not take time, they give time. They enable us to see the dimensions of life, a gift and a vision that are unavailable to us as we live day to day.” And that’s what we’re talking about today. 

From the introduction of his new book: “We enter the bookstore, see all the books arrayed there, and think: so many books, so little time; but the truth goes the other way: books do not take time, they give time. They enable us to see the dimensions of life, a gift and a vision that are unavailable to us as we live day to day.” And that’s what we’re talking about today.