Book 7, Ep. 7 | Sentimentality

In the wise words of Lizzo, it's about damn time! Our latest episode is all about Sentimentality, an 18th century philosophical intervention that emerged in opposition to rationality. Hannah (whose recent book, A Sentimental Education, is all about this topic) guides the episode. We revisit our discussions on Orientalism, Animal Studies and Print Culture, before jumping into an overview of what Sentimentalism is all about— and how we might read Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows as a novel written in that literary tradition.

If you like thinking about character development, intersectional feminism and the power (or lack thereof) of the written word, then this episode is for you! We also get a little meta and think through how books become sentimental for a reader. For example, how a series about friendship and the fight between good and evil inspires two lady scholars to make an entire podcast about it for a dedicated listenership of people 25 years after it was first published. Just as an example!!

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Special thanks to our Witch, Please team: Gaby Iori, Erik Magnus, Zoe Mix, and Hannah Rehak.