The Entmoot Podcast

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam talk to Professor Jyrki Korpua about the Kalevala and the inspiration that Tolkien drew from it. This episode is a companion piece to our previous episode on chapter 21 of The Silmarillion, which you can find here.Jyrki Korpua is a researcher and lecturer of literature at the University of Oulu in Finland. He has published extensively on both the Kalevala and Tolkien, and we are here primarily discussing his 2024 book Tolkien and the Kalevala.More Jyrki:The Mythopoeic Code of Tolkien: A Christian Platonic Reading of the Legendarium“Master of Fate, yet by fate mastered” – Tolkien’s Túrin Turambar and Kalevala’s KullervoAlso mentioned:Lönnrot (Bosley translation) - The KalevalaLeave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam discuss chapters 20 and 21 of the Quenta Silmarillion, which include an account of the Fifth Battle and the tragic tale of Turin Turambar.Primary sources: The Silmarillion | The Lord of the Rings | The Letters of J.R.R. TolkienBooks we've been reading:The Wages of DestructionRide The Pink HorseThe Long GoodbyeGileadThe Sot-Weed FactorThe Fort Bragg CartelThe Age of EmpireLeave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam joined friend of the show Ethan Colburn for an episode of the Cineflek Podcast about Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings.For a great documentary with more information on the making of the movie, check out "An Exhaustive History of Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings" from Folding Ideas on YouTube.For more on adaptation rights to Tolkien's work, listen to our episode from earlier this year "State of the Estate."For more of our opinions on movies, you can follow each of us on Letterboxd: Ethan (an actual Letterboxd influencer), Kenny, Sam.Leave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam talk to Professor Cami Agan about the 2018 volume Beren and Luthien and about the textual history of the tale. This episode is a companion piece to our previous episode on chapter 19 of The Silmarillion, which you can find here.Cami Agan is the Distinguished Professor of Language and Literature at Oklahoma Christian University and a prominent scholar of Tolkien's First Age.More Cami:Lúthien Tinúviel and Bodily Desire in the Lay of LeithianCities and Strongholds of Middle-earthHearkening to the Other: A Certeauvian Reading of the AinulindaleAlso mentioned:Moore - A Song of Greater Power: Tolkien's Construction of Lúthien TinúvielWhitaker - Corrupting Beauty: Rape Narrative in The SilmarillionLeave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam discuss chapter 19 of the Quenta Silmarillion, the incredible story of Beren and Luthien. Included is also a discussion of current events affecting Sam as a resident of Washington DC -- listeners with an allergy to that sort of thing can skip to 17:25 to get to "the good stuff." Primary sources: The Silmarillion | The Lord of the Rings | Beren and Luthien | The Letters of J.R.R. TolkienLeave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!

In which co-hosts Kenny and Sam talk to Professor Bret Devereaux about the Siege of Gondor and the Battle of Helm's Deep, including discussions of pre-modern logistics, cavalry charges, flails, command structures, battle speeches, and much more.Bret Devereaux is an ancient and military historian who currently teaches as a Teaching Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University. You can find him on Twitter and Bluesky, or at his blog A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry.More Bret:Blog series on Siege of GondorBlog series on Helm's DeepBlog series on logisticsInterview with Patrick Wyman on the Punic WarsLeave us a review! Send us an email at entmootpod@gmail.com!