Before we dive into today’s episode, a personal note: This summer, I will be going back to France for the first time in two years, and I will take a break from podcasting until September.
However, my interns Josh and Emma will be keeping the lights on by releasing podcast episodes and newsletter articles (subscribe here).
Josh has been working on a series of episodes discussing American music and poetry, which will be released weekly in July and August.
So, Back in America will be in summer mode, and I know you will love it!
Now, it is time for our interview.
Starting this podcast back in November 2019, I wanted to make sense of the Trump years, and the sadness I felt for a country I loved but no longer understood.
In more than 50 episodes and countless conversations, I have time and time again asked my guests: What is America to them?. Careful listeners to this podcast might have gained a better understanding of the fabric of this country––I know I certainly have.
In this episode, I turn to Professor Douglas Steinel, a man whose life has been dedicated to just that: understanding America.
His students have praised him for forcing them to confront opposing views, and his course syllabi require reading political critiques from both sides of the aisle.
Professor Douglas Steinel has been a professor of American Political Thought since 1982 at the George Washington University, just a few blocks away from the White House.
Professor Steinel's book suggestions
Bertrand Russell Collection, Selected Works, 1912-1922: The Problems of Philosophy, The Analysis of Mind, Why Men Fight, Free Thought and Official Propaganda
Why I Am Not a Christian and Other Essays on Religion and Related Subjects
by Bertrand Russell
The New Class War: Saving Democracy from the Managerial Elite
by Michael Lind
Doug Steinel: Cancel Culture in Classroom