Despite being rooted in 19th-century France, Honoré de Balzac's exploration of universal themes such as love, greed, and ambition makes his work still relevant today. Our guests are Dr. Melanie Conroy from the University of Memphis, who also authored Literary Geographies in Balzac and Proust (2021), and Dr. Julia Titus from Yale University, author of Dostoyevsky as a Translator of Balzac (2022).

Recommended Readings:
Eugénie Grandet
The Human Comedy

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Today, we're unfurling the scrolls of one of the most provocative, scandalous, and riveting novels to ever emerge from China’s Ming dynasty: "Jin Ping Mei," or as it's tantalizingly translated, "The Plum in the Golden Vase." This novel is not just a story; it's a journey into the opulent, and often morally ambiguous, world of 16th-century China. We have the esteemed Dr. Junjie Luo, associate professor in East Asian Studies at Gettysburg College, joining us in the studio. Dr. Luo, with his vast knowledge of Chinese literature and culture, will help us unravel the complex narrative threads and uncover the hidden pearls within this golden vase of a novel.

Reading Recommendations:
Lanlingxiaoxiaosheng, The Plum in the Golden Vase, trans. David Roy
Junjie Luo (2014) Translating Jin.Ping.Mei: a preliminary comparison of The Golden Lotus and The Plum in the Golden Vase, Perspectives, 22:1, 56-74.

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Madame Bovary scandalized and fascinated nineteenth-century France upon its release, and is a groundbreaking exploration of desire, romantic disillusionment, and the mundane realities of rural life. Joining us are Professors Mary Donaldson-Evans who taught at University of Delaware, Jennifer Yee from Oxford University, Rachel Mesch from Boston University, and C.F.S. Creasy from National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University in Taiwan.

Recommended Readings:
Flaubert, Gustave. Madame Bovary
Creasy, C.F.S.. "Flaubert’s Alibi: The Impossible Ensemble of Madame Bovary," Novel. 2015. p363-380.
Donaldson-Evans, Mary. Madame Bovary at the Movies. Rodopi B.V., Amsterdam - New York, NY 2009
Yee, Jennifer. "Making Madame Bovary's Wedding Cake." article

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