Tag: Wizards

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Minisode 2.1 April Grab Bag

Happy full moon, witches! April’s full moon (one of the most potent and magical!) is called the Pink Moon for the wild ground phlox flowers that bloom in North America in early spring. Other names include the Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon, the Fish Moon, the Grey Goose Moon, and the Hare Moon. This year it is also the Scorpio Full Moon.

In this fun grab bag of an episode–our first minisode of season two–we talk about the sorcery of predatory guardianship, the magic of daily practice and setting goals that focus on internal fulfillment, the mystical origins of birthday traditions, and the witchy power of Hamilton! (Tip: Listen closely to Jenny’s section for some beautiful birdsong in the background!) We also give recommendations for some uncanny books and board games. See below for links and further reading.

Our theme song is “Moon and Spruce” by Sarah Littledrum.

Part One: Magical Experiences, Discoveries, and Thoughts

“How the Elderly Lose their Rights” by Rachel Aviv 

Classical Roots of Harry Potter Spells

Our Girl Who Drank the Moon Episode 

Anne Lamott: “12 Truths I Learned from Life and Writing”

This is Why You Get to Celebrate Your Birthday Every Year (NB: half of the citations are broken/ wrongly linked, so definitely take this with a grain of salt!)

Dictionary of Folklore, Mythology, and Legend

“The Women of Hamilton”

Part Two: Witchy Recommendations

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

The Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud

The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo

Mysterium

As d’Or (Golden Ace!)

Through Black Spruce by Joseph Boyden

Disclaimers about Joseph Boyden: here and here

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Episode 1.4: Equal Rites

Happy full moon–and lunar eclipse! For our fourth episode, we’re throwing it back to a classic: Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett.

Our theme song is “Moon and Spruce” by Sarah Littledrum.

Here’s a listening guide for the episode. (For a description of our segments, go here.)

Introduction (0:00 – 3:20)

Which Craft? (3:20 – 29:35)

“Are You a Good Witch or a Bad Witch?” (29:35 – 47:46)

  • Reading magic through gender identity
  • Reading magic as socially assigned labor

Related Links

Traditional Gender Hierarchy*

Male as Norm

Gender Master List: A Glossary of Gender Identities

“Bald Heads and Queer Noses” (47:47 – 1:00:15)

  • Decoding bodies through visual cues, especially clothing (#robegate)
  • Racebending and the benefits and drawbacks of foregoing racial signals

“Round About the Cauldron Go” (1:00:15 – 1:18:00)

  • Connection between magic and the natural world (bees!)
  • Real world magic (headology and the power of will)
  • More bees!

Final Spells (1:18:10 – 1:24:00)

Blooper Reel (1:25:00 – 1:26:50)

*Relevant quote from source above: “Women have traditionally been associated with the senses in Western culture, and in particular, with the ‘lower’ senses. Women are the forbidden taste, the mysterious smell, the dangerous touch. Men, by contrast, have been associated with reason, as opposed to the senses, or else with sight and hearing as the most ‘rational’ of the senses” (Constance Classen, The Color of Angels: Cosmology, Gender, and the Aesthetic Imagination, 1-2).

Next month (Sep. 6) we’ll be discussing Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. See you then!