Episodes
Published 08/25/17
Did you know that Houghton Library is also the publisher of Harvard Review, a major American literary journal? In this episode of Houghton75, editor Christina Thompson talks to two contributors to Harvard Review's 50th issue: renowned essayist Phillip Lopate and award-winning novelist Lily King.
Published 08/25/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we speak with Joseph Connors, Professor of the History of Art and Architecture, about the historical practice of architectural sketching and how he incorporates it into his classes. We start the conversation with the sketchbooks from the late 17th century of a young Baroque architect, Gilles-Marie Oppenord, not much older than Professor Connors’ students.
Published 06/30/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we speak with Thomas Kelly, Morton B. Knafel Professor of Music about his experiences researching and teaching chant using Houghton collections.
Published 06/23/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we speak with Stephen Greenblatt, John Cogan University Professor of the Humanities, about a small, very fragile book containing an ancient poem that rocked the world, and what it says about the inter-connectivity of the sciences and the humanities.
Published 06/16/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Ann Blair, Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor at Harvard, about the development of note-taking devices from early wax tablets to our modern smartphones. We start with an early modern writing tablet - a small reference book which also contains specially treated pages for recording notes while on the road.
Published 06/09/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Danielle Allen, James Bryant Conant University Professor and director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, about her research and teaching on the Declaration of Independence, including John Adams’ role in creating it, supported by evidence found right here at Houghton.
Published 06/02/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Stephanie Sandler, Ernest E. Monrad Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, about one relatively unknown and enigmatic artist from the time of the Russian Revolution, 100 years ago this year. Featuring special guest host Christine Jacobson.
Published 05/26/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Racha Kirakosian, Assistant Professor of German and the Study of Religion at Harvard, about one of the newer acquisitions in our collection. Close study of this colorful medieval manuscript, and other such manuscripts, can reveal where they were made, who they were written by, where they were used, who they were made for, and much more.
Published 05/19/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Michael Canfield, a lecturer in the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard and author of Theodore Roosevelt in the Field, about the complex legacy of America’s 26th President.
Published 05/12/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we speak with Alex Csiszar, Associate Professor of the History of Science, about his research on Andre Marie Ampére's electromagnetic experiments and his equally remarkable experiments in scientific publishing.
Published 05/05/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Kate van Orden, Dwight P. Robinson Jr. Professor of Music about the first music publisher, and the performance of polyphony in the Renaissance.
Published 04/28/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Christie McDonald, Smith Professor of French Language and Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature, about a fascinating painting by her aunt, Anne Eisner Putnam, entitled “Beauty Salon.”
Published 04/18/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we speak with Tom Conley, Abbott Lawrence Lowell Professor of Visual and Environmental Studies and Professor of Romance Languages and Literatures, about the work of Oronce Finé, and the surprising things we can learn from maps.
Published 04/14/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with James Engell, Gurney Professor of English and Professor of Comparative Literature at Harvard, about Charles Eliot Norton and the expression of anti-war sentiment on the university campus.
Published 04/07/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Deidre Lynch, Ernest Bernbaum Professor of Literature, to discuss one of the most audacious literary hoaxes in history, masterminded by a teenage fan turned fanatic.
Published 03/30/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Eric Nelson, Robert M. Beren Professor of Government at Harvard, to discuss the surprising impact of John Milton and a set of once forgotten rabbinical texts on the formation of the government of the United States.
Published 03/23/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak to Elaine Scarry, Walter M. Cabot Professor of Aesthetics and General Theory of Value at Harvard. She discusses a collection of miniature books handmade by the Brontës as children.
Published 03/17/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak to Elaheh Kheirandish, Postdoctoral Associate of the Department of History of Art and Architecture at Harvard about Alhazen’s importance to the science of Optics, and his place in the creation and transmission of scientific learning through the Islamic world and to the west.
Published 03/10/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Daniel Donoghue, John P. Marquand Professor of English. It is a glimpse into the ancient past of England when the world was approaching the first millennium, literature and poetry were shared mainly orally, and the languages spoken by both the clergy and lay people were very different from today.
Published 03/02/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with John Stauffer, Professor of English as well as African and African American Studies, about the wanted poster that was integral to finding and capturing the assassin (John Wilkes Booth) of President Lincoln and his conspirators.
Published 02/23/17
In this episode of Houghton75, we speak with Carol Oja, William Powell Mason Professor of Music, to discuss her research and teaching on the history of African-American music.
Published 02/16/17
In this episode of Houghton75 we welcome Professor Robert Darnton, Carl H. Pforzheimer University Professor and University Librarian, Emeritus, to discuss the experiences which led him to study the history of books.
Published 02/10/17