Show Notes
In this episode Miles is joined by Robert Cremins (University of Houston, Texas) and Daniel Read (Kingston University) to celebrate the anniversary of Murdoch's Whitbread Award-winning novel from 1974. They cover the culture of the 1970s, trauma, childhood, cruelty, black humour, love triangles, links to other writers, links to other novels by Murdoch and much more.
Robert is a writer and Senior Lecturer in the Honours College at the University of Houston, and the Faculty Director of Creative Works. A novelist, short story writer and literary critic, Robert has got a lifelong love of Murdoch’s fiction. He is currently working on next year’s North American special edition of the Iris Murdoch Review which will be published in the Autumn of 2025.
Daniel Read lectures at the University of Kingston and his monograph, Degrees of Evil in Iris Murdoch's Fiction and Philosophy, is due from Palgrave MacMillan in early 2025.
More from The Iris Murdoch Society podcast
In this episode Miles is joined by Justin Broackes (Brown, USA) and Matt Dougherty (CEU, Vienna) to discuss the influence of Martin Heidegger on Murdoch's philosophy, and Murdoch's forthcoming work on Heidegger which has been edited by Justin.
In this episode Miles discusses Murdoch's eighteenth novel, Henry and Cato, on the 50th anniversary of its publication.
In this episode Miles is joined by Elizabeth Whittome to discuss the profound influence Shakespeare had on the fiction, poetry and philosophy of Iris Murdoch. The conversation ranges widely across Murdoch's life and work, with special attention paid to her novels of the 1970s, including The Black Prince and The Sea, The Sea.
In this episode Miles is joined by Rebecca Moden (Birmingham Newman University, UK) to discuss the new exhibition at the University of Chichester, Iris Murdoch among the Artists. Drawing on newly-discovered artworks by Murdoch, those by her friends, students and collaborators, and new works by three contemporary British artists responding to her fiction and philosophy, the exhibition runs until the 10th December.
In this Birthday Lecture Daniel Read (Kingston University, UK) discusses Murdoch's dramatic work and the connections to her life, fiction and philosophy. Although lesser-known, Read makes the case that her dramatic work needs to be reassessed in the light of new materials and biographical insights.