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PODCAST

Books of Titans Podcast

Welcome to the Books of Titans Podcast where I (Erik Rostad) seek truth & beauty in the Immortal Books. My goal is to read the Great Books written by 200 authors over the next 15 years and share what I’m learning. I’ll talk a bit about each book, tie ideas together from a variety of genres, and share the one thing I always hope to remember from each of the Immortal Books. www.booksoftitans.com

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All Episodes

30:22

#266 - Statesman by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/10/31

The goal of this dialogue is the definition of a statesman. Can Plato show us the essence or nature of the statesman? This dialogue is a sequel to Sophist. In each dialogue, an attempt at a definition is sought through the method of division. For example, Statesman begins with Knowledge, which is divided into practical and theoretical knowledge. The statesman would be on the theoretical side.This division occurs until the discussion partners Visitor from Elea and Socrates the Younger describe the

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39:37

#265 - Man's Search for Meaning (Revisited)

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/10/24

I finished reading Man’s Search for Meaning as the fireworks announced the start of 2018. I was closing out my first year of this reading project with my final book of the year and was trying to finish it before the clock struck 12. I didn’t make it, but I was close.That book ended up being my favorite for many years. Here was a man claiming that it was possible to develop a spiritual life amidst hell on earth. Amidst hunger, torture, unbearable loss, and despair. There was a flicker of hope.Last

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23:40

#264 - Theaetetus by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/10/17

How do we know what we know? That’s the question Socrates presents to Theaetetus in this dialogue by Plato. I was actually intrigued with the some of the side discussions about learning and memory and how that connects to knowledge. In this podcast episode, I share the general outline of the arguments and highlight the parts about memory that might help us in our reading lives. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit

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27:51

#263 - Cratylus by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/10/10

So far, this is my favorite dialogue by Plato. I’ve only read 5 of them, so I have a ways to go, but this one covers the origin of language and the correctness of names. It answers this question - is there a reason behind the name of a thing or is it just by chance?Cratylus believes there is a correct name for each thing, one that belongs to it by nature. Hermogenes believes that names are agreed upon by the community. Socrates leads the discussion to determine if “names are given in accord with

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29:23

#262 - Phaedo by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/10/03

Were you there?It’s the opening question of this dialogue. Echecrates is asking Phaedo if he was there when Socrates drank the hemlock and died in prison. He was there. This is Phaedo’s account of the final day of Socrates.I wonder what I would do knowing I had a few hours to live. Would I be frantic? Would I conduct a dialogue about the soul as Socrates does here? Would I calmly drink my death sentence that 500 of my peers had bestowed upon me? I doubt it. Socrates was calm. He died as he had

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22:41

#261 - Crito by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/09/26

Socrates is nearing the end. He’s been sentenced to death and the time has come where he will be forced to drink hemlock. Crito, his old friend, comes to persuade him to escape this death. He tries to convince Socrates that in this grave injustice, the just thing would be to escape.But Socrates says “we must examine whether we should act in this way or not, as not only now but at all times.” Would it be right for Socrates to escape?This short dialogue allows us see if Socrates will remain true to

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55:18

Allen Levi In Conversation: Part II

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/09/19

Here’s Part II of a conversation with author Allen Levi that took place on Saturday, September 6th in Franklin, Tennessee, at the historic Franklin Theatre. Part I released last week and is the discussion from the 3pm event. Part II releases this week and is the discussion from the 7pm event. Each event was sold out and questions were different for each event.Allen Levi is the author of Theo of Golden. In this conversation, I asked him about this book, his inspirations, his life, and potential movie

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58:39

Allen Levi In Conversation: Part I

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/09/12

SPOILER ALERT: This conversation contains book spoilers. Listener beware.Here’s Part I of a conversation with author Allen Levi that took place on Saturday, September 6th in Franklin, Tennessee, at the historic Franklin Theatre. Part I releases this week and is the discussion from the 3pm event. Part II releases next week and will be the discussion from the 7pm event. Each event was sold out and questions were different for each event.Please Note: Static interference is present at various points

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49:54

#260 - Apology by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/09/05

Last week, Socrates was on his way to his trial in the Euthyphro dialogue. In Apology, Socrates is giving his defense against three charges:* Not recognizing the gods recognized by the State* Manufacturing new gods* Corrupting the youthIf you are expecting any contrition on the part of Socrates, you’ve come to the wrong place. Here, apology means a defense speech in a legal proceeding, and Socrates is anything but apologetic in the sorrowful sense. Here we see a defiant man unconcerned with death

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29:06

#259 - Euthyphro by Plato

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/29

I have decided to read through the complete works of Plato. Euthyphro is my first dialogue in this Plato Project. I ended up reading it 4 times within 4 different translations. In this episode, I give a brief overview of the dialogue, talk about piety and if/when this word shows up in Homer, the Greek Tragedies, and elsewhere, and cover each of the answers and responses between Euthyphro and Socrates.Socrates has asked Euthyphro if piety and impiety take on an essential form. Poor Euthyphro thinks

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7:50

Frameworks for Reading

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/26

Do you find yourself struggling to remember what you read? This has been a continual difficulty for me and is a main reason that I started this reading project. I wanted to read more books, but more importantly, I wanted to experiment with different ways to help me remember what I read.One of the most powerful ways I’ve found to remember what I read is to apply basic summary frameworks during and after the completion of each book. In this article, I’ll highlight the most powerful frameworks that you

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14:53

The Plato Project

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/22

I’m currently making my way through The Immortal Books by 200 different authors. I expect the project to take 15 years. I’m currently in year 3 and Plato is author 18 out of 200. I had initially planned to read 9 of his works (Apology, The Republic, Laches, Symposium, Philebus, Crito, Phaedo, Theatetus, Meno), but when people on Twitter suggested I pick up this version of his complete works, I began to consider reading Plato’s entire corpus.Why not? Plato has an outsize influence on what comes after

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17:31

#258 - The Last Sweet Mile by Allen Levi

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/15

A life well-lived. Looking back, what would make you say that about your own life? What would constitute that well-lived life? Would it contain grand gestures seen by many or small, sacred acts seen by few?The Last Sweet Mile is a long letter written by Allen Levi to his family that covers the last year of his brother Gary’s life. They had a special relationship. A relationship we all long for. They were remarkably close. Gary was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2011 and died an exact year later on

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35:20

The DIY Great Books Approach

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/08

This episode is for anyone who wants to tackle the Great Books independently—whether you’re years out of college or just looking for a self-guided approach. Not sure where to begin? In this episode, I share ideas on how to prepare, start, and continue on your very own Great Books journey. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.booksoftitans.com/subscribe

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28:36

#257 - An Odyssey by Daniel Mendelsohn

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/08/01

I book the author events at Landmark Booksellers in Franklin, TN, and earlier this year, I saw that Dr. Mendelsohn was coming out with a brand new translation of The Odyssey for the University of Chicago Press. I reached out to Dr. Mendelsohn to see if he would be near Franklin any time soon, and to my delight, he was able to do an author event.It was fascinating. I learned so much about The Odyssey and about his translation choices. It shed new light on the epic. You can watch the event here and

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37:33

#256 - The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/07/25

This book is seared into my memory. I first read it in August of 2002 and just re-read it for the second time in my life. My memory of the work from my first reading was near exact, something that almost never happens to me. It struck such a cord in my 20s that I thought about it often over the subsequent 20+ years. It is one of the most important novels I have ever read.Dorian Gray makes a Faustian bargain to retain his youth in exchange for his soul. A painted portrait then takes on his “passions

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51:24

#255 - The Library of Ancient Wisdom by Selena Wisnom

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/07/18

Ashurbanipal was king of Assyria from 669 to 631BC. He was a warrior poet, a scholar who carried a pen in his belt while decimating foes with cruel and unusual punishments. In a miraculous twist of history, the fire that destroyed his famous library is the very thing that ensured its survival. The fire solidified his 30,000+ clay tablets.Those clay tablets, lost to history for 2,400+ years, now mostly reside in the British Museum, where Cuneiform scholars work their way through works of astrology,

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32:18

2025 Mid-Year Reading Review

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/07/11

I find it helpful to take a step back from day to day reading to consider overall themes that show up over spans of reading time. That’s what I do in this episode. I look at the first half of reading for 2025 and talk about the 19 books I’ve read so far. I then talk about my favorite books, things I enjoy about Greek Literature, and share the one idea so far this year that has had the biggest impact. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to

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39:37

#254 - The Education of Cyrus by Xenophon

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/07/04

Last week, I discussed Anabasis by Xenophon, which covers the failed attempt of Cyrus the Younger to rule the Persian Empire with the help of 10,000+ Greek Mercenaries. The Education of Cyrus covers a different Cyrus, Cyrus the Great (600 - 530BC). This is the Cyrus in the Bible. The Cyrus of the British Museum’s Cyrus Cylinder. The Cyrus who conquered the Babylonians.The Education of Cyrus differs from Xenophon’s Hellenika and Anabasis in that it is largely a fictionalized account of Cyrus’ life

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40:39

#253 - Anabasis by Xenophon

Books of Titans Podcast ·

2025/06/27

The Persian Cyrus the Younger recruits Greek mercenaries (12,900 to be exact, although Ten Thousand has a nicer ring to it) to help him try to claim the throne of Persia. The battle doesn’t go well, Cyrus loses a hand and a head, and the Greeks are forced to retreat to their country of origin. These events, take place between 401 - 399BC.Anabasis means a movement upwards, but can also refer both to an advance and a retreat. Both occur in this work, with Xenophon not only authoring the work but being

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