x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter Podcast

Prof. Julian Wamble

Instead of seeing criticism as an indication of not liking something, Professor Julian Wamble invites listeners of Critical Magic Theory to explore the things about the characters, plot points, and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter broadly that have always given them pause or made them smile without knowing why. It is in this navigation of the positive and the negative aspects of a world that we find true magic.

arts books

All Episodes

72:03

The One Who Got Away: The Search for Nymphadora Tonks

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/02/18

Nymphadora Tonks is one of the most beloved characters in the Harry Potter series — and one of the most underserved. In this episode, we dig into 303 listener responses about the only woman Auror we meaningfully encounter in the wizarding world. The data is striking: 93% of listeners say she's a good person, 80% call her a hero, but when it comes to whether she was a good mother, the majority said they simply don't know.We break down every survey question, pull unabridged listener quotes, and sit

en

52:01

Prof Responds: Fleur Delacour & the Patriarchy’s...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/02/11

In this Prof Responds episode, Professor Julian Wamble revisits Fleur Delacour and the surprising truth many listeners shared: we didn’t like her when we were younger, and we weren’t always sure why.Drawing on the post-episode chat, this reflection explores how internalized misogyny, pretty privilege, and patriarchal expectations shape how we judge female characters in Harry Potter. The episode examines the rivalry between women, the real social weight of beauty, and why Fleur’s loyalty and bravery

en

80:24

Fleur Delacour & The Price of Pretty Privilege

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/02/04

Fleur Delacour is one of the most misunderstood women in the Harry Potter series. She's often blamed for her beauty, scrutinized for her confidence, and held responsible for the reactions of everyone around her. In this episode, we examine how Fleur becomes a lightning rod for gendered blame, punished not for what she does, but for what others assume about her beauty, her Veela ancestry, and her femininity.Drawing on listener survey data, we unpack why Fleur’s competence as a Triwizard Champion is

en

70:09

Prof Responds: Hogwarts & the Pedagogy of Wartime...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/01/28

In this Prof Responds episode, Professor Wamble reflects on listener responses to the “Best & Worst Teachers at Hogwarts” discussion and steps back to ask a larger question: What does it mean to teach in the shadow of war? Drawing on Hogwarts faculty, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Dumbledore’s leadership, this episode explores how education changes under sustained threat, how silence functions as pedagogy, and why students, especially marginalized ones, so often bear the cost of adult

en

79:28

Two Years of Critical Magic: Best & Worst Teachers at...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/01/21

In this two-year anniversary episode of Critical Magic Theory, Prof. takes a step back from individual character deep dives to ask a bigger question about pedagogy, power, and responsibility in the wizarding world—and beyond.Drawing on listener survey data, this episode explores why some teachers are remembered as effective despite being deeply troubling, while others are overwhelmingly rejected. The conversation then shifts away from the most dramatic figures to examine the quieter labor that keeps

en

59:33

Prof Responds: Secrecy, Sacrifice, and the...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/01/14

In this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble revisits the Dumbledore family to examine how secrecy, sacrifice, and institutional failure shape Ariana Dumbledore’s life, and the lives of those around her.Drawing on listener reflections, the episode explores how the Wizarding World’s commitment to secrecy creates harm rather than protection, forcing families to absorb the cost of systemic failure.From Kendra Dumbledore’s quiet labor and Percival Dumbledore’s

en

62:42

Ariana & Aberforth Dumbledore & the Price of Secrecy

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2026/01/07

In the first episode of Critical Magic Theory in 2026, Professor Julian Wamble steps away from the six-part Albus Dumbledore arc for a rant/rave on Ariana and Aberforth Dumbledore—two characters whose stories expose the wizarding world’s obsession with secrecy. Prof revisits Ariana’s childhood attack by Muggle boys and argues it reveals how ignorance fuels entitlement and violence, while the Ministry of Magic prioritizes concealment over care, pushing families toward isolation instead of healing.The

en

50:25

IT IS CHRISTMAS... AT HOGWARTS

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/12/25

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL (WHO CELEBRATE)!! AND TO ALL.... AN INVISIBILITY CLOAK!! USE IT WELL!In this episode of Critical Magic Theory, Prof. looks at the various Christmas moments throughout the series and analyzes them.

en

67:46

Prof Responds: Dumbledore, Necessity, and the Myth of...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/12/18

In this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble returns to Harry Potter to engage listeners’ reflections on Albus Dumbledore. Rather than asking whether Voldemort had to be defeated, this episode interrogates how necessity becomes moral justification, why “not a villain” is not the same as “good,” and what responsibility adults bear when children are asked to fight a war they did not choose. Through questions of prophecy, hindsight, and power, Prof Responds examines

en

60:21

The Fears, Fallacies, and Folly of A.W.P.B. Dumbledore

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/12/10

In this penultimate episode of our Critical Magic Theory series on Albus Dumbledore, Professor Julian Wamble takes a deep look at one of the most complicated figures in the Harry Potter universe. Is Dumbledore a villain? Was he ever a good mentor to Harry? And, after two Wizarding Wars, was everything he did actually worth the cost?Drawing on listener responses, scholarly insight, and the emotional legacy of the series, we explore why Dumbledore causes so much harm yet remains so difficult to label

en

68:47

Prof Responds: If Not Him, Then Who? Dumbledore & the...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/12/03

In this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble takes a critical look at Albus Dumbledore’s most morally complicated choices in the Harry Potter series. Drawing on listener reflections from the Patreon post-episode chat, Prof examines how Dumbledore’s permanent state of war shaped his treatment of Harry, the Order of the Phoenix, and the entire wizarding world — and how the myth of wartime necessity allows us to excuse harm done in the name of the “greater

en

64:07

Dumbledore, the Great & (Reluctantly and Ignorantly)...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/11/26

In this episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble revisits Albus Dumbledore through a very different lens: not as the wise, whimsical Headmaster we grew up with, but as a leader whose incomplete understanding of power shaped an entire generation of Hogwarts students. Drawing on your survey responses about whether Dumbledore is a hero, a good leader of the Order of the Phoenix, or a “good half-blood,” Julian explores the moment when Tom Riddle returns to Hogwarts — a scene that

en

55:28

Prof Responds: Dumbledore’s Schemes & Scams, Plots &...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/11/19

In this Prof Responds episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble dives into your discussion about Albus Dumbledore and asks some of the biggest questions in the Harry Potter series: is Dumbledore a brilliant strategist, a reactive improviser, or a man whose schemes, scams, plots, and plans are held together by privilege and the “greater good”? Drawing on listener comments from the Patreon post-episode chat, Julian explores how we interpret Dumbledore’s power, his choices, and the

en

68:37

THIS is a Dumbledore Episode

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/11/12

In the first installment of our Albus Dumbledore series, Critical Magic Theory host Professor Julian Wamble unpacks the contradictions that define Albus Dumbledore—the most beloved and baffling figure in the Harry Potter universe. Is he truly a wise protector of Hogwarts, or a master manipulator whose brilliance excuses too much? Does being “for the greater good” make him noble, or merely dangerous in more elegant ways? We also ask whether Dumbledore embodies what it means to be a “good Gryffindor,”

en

65:27

Prof Responds: Hogwarts & the Fallacy of Equity

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/11/05

In this Prof Responds episode, Professor Wamble tackles the fallacy of equity at Hogwarts: the idea that sharing wands and classrooms means sharing opportunity. Building on listener insights, he traces four fault lines: curriculum that trains spell-casting but not citizenship, a hidden labor economy (house-elves/goblins) that sustains privilege, ableism that sidelines Squibs, and a house system that rewards conformity over curiosity. Along the way, he draws clear parallels to our world, showing how

en

38:52

WTF is Hogwarts doing???

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/10/29

What is Hogwarts actually for? Beyond floating candles and talking portraits lies a school with deeply entrenched ideologies—one that prepares students less for life and more for assimilation into magical bureaucracy.This episode of Critical Magic Theory critiques Hogwarts’ narrow curriculum, its implicit promotion of pure-blood supremacy, and its role in maintaining the magical world’s social hierarchies. From the house system’s siloed culture to the glaring lack of civic or ethical education, we

en

55:52

The Horizontal Arc of Severus Snape: Unpacking His...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/10/22

After six deep-dive episodes, Professor Julian Wamble closes our exploration of Severus Snape—one of the most complex figures in the Harry Potter series. This final Prof Responds examines the ethics of Snape’s teaching at Hogwarts, the tension between redemption and guilt, and what his story reveals about power, trauma, and morality in the Wizarding World. Through listener reflections, we unpack how Snape’s double life as spy and professor complicates ideas of heroism, forgiveness, and

en

75:09

The Ends, the Means, and the Man: The Ethics of...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/10/15

In this final chapter of The Severus Snape Trilogy, Professor Julian Wamble takes listeners back into the moral heart of the Harry Potter universe to ask: was Severus Snape a hero, a villain, or something in between? What does true redemption require—and can it exist without accountability? Drawing on hundreds of listener responses, Julian unpacks how perspective shapes our sense of good and evil, and why the Wizarding World so often confuses effectiveness with goodness. From the tension between

en

64:09

Prof Responds- The Tragedy of Severus Snape

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/10/08

In this Prof Response episode, Professor Wamble revisits Severus Snape to explore the heartbreak and moral ambiguity that define him. Building on listener insights, we wrestle with what it means to be “good enough,” how the Order of the Phoenix confuses purpose with performance, and why effectiveness so often masquerades as virtue.In the reflection, Professor Wamble turns inward, reframing occlumency as a metaphor for survival, a magic that keeps Snape alive by keeping him numb. We see him as a man

en

62:32

Half-Blood, Whole Paradox: Severus Snape’s Identity...

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter... ·

2025/10/01

In part two of our Severus Snape journey, we dive into the contradictions that define him. Is he truly a good member of the Order of the Phoenix, or simply too useful to ignore? Does being an effective double agent make him admirable—or just strategic? We also ask whether Snape embodies what it means to be a “good Slytherin,” and what that label even means when ambition and loyalty can serve both brilliance and cruelty. Finally, we take on the most complicated question of all: was Snape a “good

en

79 results

Similar Podcasts

Start The Breakthrough Full Audiobook Now, Thriller Fans!

thebookvoice.com

Get Hooked On The Life-Enhancing Full Audiobook Experience!

thebookvoice.com

西四五条

主播郑捕头

Podcast Patapoe

0d0a

On Mic Podcast

Jordan Rich