Hot Takes on the Classics

Hosted ByEmily Maeda & Tim McIntosh

Hot Takes on the Classics is no dusty, academic approach to great books. It’s a gossipy, exciting discussion about the best literature ever written. Hosted by Tim and Emily, who are veteran teachers and long-time friends, Hot Takes is packed with playful debate, meaningful speculation, and hearty laughs.

Hot Takes on the Classics is no dusty, academic approach to great books. It’s a gossipy, exciting discussion about the best literature ever written. Hosted by Tim and Emily, who are veteran teachers and long-time friends, Hot Takes is packed with playful debate, meaningful speculation, and hearty laughs.

(You may also enjoy Tim’s “The Play’s the Thing” show with CiRCE.)


All Episodes

Episode 11: Beowulf: Three Monsters and An Aging Hero

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh dive into Beowulf, the Anglo-Saxon epic poem about a legendary hero who battles monsters...

Episode 10: The City of God: A User’s Guide for the End of Civilization

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda explore St. Augustine’s monumental work, City of God. Written in response to the Visigoth...

Episode 9: Plutarch: Alcibiades and Coriolanus: Great Men to Love and Hate

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh delve into Plutarch’s Parallel Lives, exploring the contrasting characters of Alcibiades, the charming yet...

Episode 8: The Art of War by Sun Tzu: Victory without Battle

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda analyze Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, a foundational text in strategic thought. Written...

Episode 7: Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars: Genocidal Maniac or Great Hero?

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Emily Maeda and Tim McIntosh examine Julius Caesar’s Gallic Wars, an essential work of Latin literature that chronicles Caesar’s...

Episode 6: The Psychomachia: Was C.S. Lewis Wrong About Prudentius?

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda explore Prudentius’ Psychomachia (“The Battle of the Soul”). This groundbreaking Christian allegorical poem reimagines...

Episode 5: Virgil, The Aeneid: Can Peace Be Built on War?

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda delve into Virgil’s Aeneid, a cornerstone of Roman literature. They discuss Aeneas as the...

Episode 4: Thucydides, Pericles’ Funeral Oration: The Greatest Speech to Read

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda dive into Pericles’ Funeral Oration as recorded by Thucydides in The Peloponnesian War. They...

Episode 3: Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War: Not a Modern Historian, but a Participatory Chronicler

Description In this episode of Hot Takes on the Classics, hosts Tim McIntosh and Emily Maeda explore Thucydides’ The Peloponnesian War, examining the legendary conflict between Athens and Sparta....