Showing titles in Ancient, Classical & Medieval Literature

The Moral Sayings of Publius Syrus: A Roman Slave is a collection of proverbs and aphorisms pulled from the many mimes and plays of Publius Syrus. Enslaved by the Romans in his youth, this witty man went on to conquer the Roman stage. These maxims, believed to have been collected in the first century AD, are all that remain of the great playwright's work.

A compassionate, personal, and illuminating work of nonfiction that draws on the author's celebrated work as a director of socially conscious theater to connect listeners with the power of an ancient artistic tradition.

Purgatory is the second part of Dante's The Divine Comedy. The listener finds the Poet, with his guide Virgil, ascending the terraces of the Mount of Purgatory inhabited by those doing penance to expiate their sins on earth. There are the proud - forced to circle their terrace for eons bent double in humility; the slothful running around crying out examples of zeal and sloth; while the lustful are purged by fire.

Розмисли наодинці з собою — це особисті записи римського імператора Марка Аврелія Антоніна, зроблені ним в 70-і рр. нової ери. Імператор вів щоденник, де розмірковував щодо понять громадянськості, обов'язку, честі, совісті, вірності і справедливості. На сторінках цього надзвичайного документа ми спостерігаємо напружену роботу особистості з опанування філософії стоїків та з практичного розвитку стоїчної традиції. Таким чином, щоденник Марка Аврелія — один з перших в історії людства приклад літератури про самовдосконалення.

Plato's Allegory of the Cave is what many believe to be the foundation of Western Philosophy. It addresses what is visible and invisible, seen and observed versus intuited and imagined, and what is public versus private and just versus unjust. It also concerns the meaning and importance of education, the state of the soul, the conflict between truth and beauty, animal urges versus higher aspirations, knowledge versus ignorance, and on and on.

These three ‘Consolations', written by Seneca to his mother and two friends, have been described as ‘the crowning achievement in the canon of ‘consolation letters'. But sentimental they are not, for they emerge from the writer's deep-seated commitment to Stoicism, where individuals are exhorted to inhabit qualities of virtue, positivity, resilience, and indifference. This recording opens with Seneca's consolatory letter to Marcia, who, after three years, was still mourning the death of her son.

This epic of the booming 20s captures the relentless culture of American business. A classic novel about conformity in small town America - celebrated for its comic tone, statire, and vivid dialogue. L.A. Theatre Works, then a fledgling radio theatre company, completed Babbitt in 1989. This production was so well received that L.A. Theatre Works has since become the world's premiere radio theatre company.

Oliver Twist is the well-loved tale of an orphan, who starts life in a workhouse and finds himself embroiled in London's criminal underworld, before being saved by a kind gentleman who knows something of his surprising family history. A satire and social commentary as well as a page-turning yarn, full of grit, wit, and some of the most memorable characters in English Literature. The second published serialised novel by Charles Dickens, The British Library remarks that "it has proven to be one of the best-loved novels in the history of literature".

This famous work by Lucretius is a masterpiece of didactic poetry, and it still stands today as the finest exposition of Epicurean philosophy ever written. The poem was produced in the middle of first century B.C., a period that was to witness a flowering of Latin literature unequaled for beauty and intellectual power in subsequent ages.

Presenting a selection of sonnets by William Shakespeare. There are 24 in number in this first selection. They are, in order: 18, 33, 11, 3, 5, 6, 29, 10, 22, 2, 4, 7, 1, 9, 27, 8, 30, 116, 34, 54, 12, 66, 77, 60.

Der Prinz von Guastalla verliebt sich in die tugendhafte Emilia und spinnt ein tödliches Komplott: Er lockt ihren Verlobten, Graf Appiani, in einen Hinterhalt, um selbst an Emilias Seite zu gelangen. Doch er unterschätzt ihre moralische Standhaftigkeit – und die Geschichte nimmt eine dramatische Wendung. Lessings Stück prangert Machtmissbrauch und Willkürherrschaft an, stellt aber auch zeitlose Fragen zu Pflicht, Ehre und Selbstbestimmung.

The St. Charles Players present a unique telling of Victor Hugo's classic tale, in a new multi-cast dramatization performed in exciting Radio Theatre style.

The Eve of St. Agnes was first published in 1820 in a collection containing many of Keat's best-known poems. Several of these were retellings of stories that were popular in the Middle Ages and earlier times.

This remarkable poem, dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I, was Spenser's finest achievement: the first epic poem in modern English. The Faerie Queene combines dramatic narratives of chivalrous adventure with exquisite and picturesque episodes of pageantry. At the same time, Spenser is expounding a deeply-felt allegory of the eternal struggle between Truth and Error.

Las Rimas de Bécquer son hoy la más conocida de las colecciones poéticas del siglo XIX. Exponente de una lírica incómoda en el corsé romántico y casi modernista, estos poemas breves deben su liviandad a un esforzado trabajo de depuración estilística.

Agamemnon is the first part of the Oresteia trilogy by the Greek playwright Aeschylus. Each of the plays that form part of The Oresteia can stand alone, but they perfectly complement one other in a longer narrative. Agamemnon provides the seed of all the themes that are explored in part two, The Libation Bearers, and three, The Eumenides.

Shakespeare's drama tells the story of a young man who can only come into his own upon his father's death and the father who longs for immortality. Using only Shakespeare's words, this adaptation tells the deeply personal story of Prince Hal's coming of age and his relationships with two father figures: the mistrustful King Henry IV and the hilarious, irrepressible Falstaff. A Court Theatre Production.

This is a story from the Canterbury Tales I: Modern Verse Translation collection. Chaucer's greatest work, written towards the end of the fourteenth century, paints a brilliant picture of medieval life, society and values. The stories range from the romantic, courtly idealism of "The Knight's Tale" to the joyous bawdy of the Miller's; all are told with a freshness and vigor in this modern verse translation that make them a delight to hear.

When sleep was at its deepest, night at its blackest, up from the mist-filled marsh came Grendel stalking. Thus begins the battle between good and evil, for lying in wait and anxious to challenge the ogre Grendel is a young man, strong-willed and fire-hearted. This man is Beowulf, whose heroic dragon-slaying deeds were sung in the courts of Anglo-Saxon England more than a thousand years ago.

This amazing collection of poetry from the famous Greek Anthology spans over 1,500 years of ancient Greek and Byzantine history. The selections in this recording were chosen and translated by famed classicist J. W. Mackail.