PWJ: S3E44 – AH – “After Hours” with Joseph Loconte

Continuing “Tolkien Month”, I interviewed Joseph Loconte, author of A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War which tells the story of how the First World War shaped the lives, faith, and writings of J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis.

S3E44: “After Hours” with Joseph Loconte (Download)

If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Podbean, Stitcher, TuneIn and Overcast), as well as on YouTube.

More information about us can be found on our website, PintsWithJack.com. If you’d like to support us and get fantastic gifts, please join us on Patreon.

The roadmap for Season 3 is available here.

Time Stamps

00:00 – Entering “The Eagle & Child”…
00:11 – Welcome
01:11 – Biographical Information
02:23 – Drink-of-the-week
03:00 – Quote-of-the-week
03:31 – Patreon Toast
04:07 – Life and Career
06:48 – Meeting the Inklings
08:22 – Deep Dive
09:20 – The Book
12:25 – Pre-War Changes
15:10 – Christian Nationalism
17:09 – A Different Kind Of War
21:57 – JRR and CSL Attitudes & Experience
26:00 – Post-War Changes
29:13 – The Inklings Respond
33:38 – Why So Much Success?
36:35 – The Documentary
39:53 – Legacy For Today
45:32 – This vs That Quiz
47:34 – “Last Call” Bell
47:44 – Contact Info
48:35 – Closing remarks

YouTube Version

After Show Skype Session

No Skype Session today!

Show Notes

• Biographical Details:

Dr. Lonconte is a native of Brooklyn, NY. His commentary on religion and public life appears in the nation’s leading media outlets, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the National Interest, the Weekly Standard, and National Review. He is also a regular contributor to the London-based Standpoint and the Huffington Post. For 10 years he served as a commentator for National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered”.

In addition to his book about Lewis and Tolkien which we’ll be discussing today, he is also the author of several other books, including: “God, Locke, and Liberty: The Struggle for Religious Freedom in the West” and “The Searchers: A Quest for Faith in the Valley of Doubt”.

After 10 years teaching Western Civilization at the King’s College in New York City, last month Dr. Loconte joined the Heritage Foundation as the Director of the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies.

Biographical details

• Yesterday I received a bottle of Eagle Rare bourbon, very generously donated by one of our listeners, but I’ll be saving that for when Matt and I record the Season finale. Instead of Eagle Rare, today I am enjoying a glass of Ashentoshen, Lowland Single Malt, in one of our Pints With Jack Glencairn glasses.

• Given that today we’re going to be talking about warfare and the effects of war on the human heart and mind, I thought this passage from The Return of the King was appropriate. It’s where Aragon is speaking to Pippin about his friend, Merry…

“He is weary now, and grieved… But these evils can be amended, so strong and gay a spirit is in him. His grief he will not forget; but it will not darken his heart, it will teach him wisdom.”

Aragorn speaking to Pippin about Merry, (The Return of the King)

• We toasted Patreon supporter, Molly Hugo. I stole this from a toast which Tolkien himself gave at The “Hobbit Dinner” in Rotterdam in 1958:

“I look East, West, North, South, and I do not see Sauron; but I see that Saruman has many descendants. We Hobbits have against them no magic weapons. Yet, my gentlehobbits, I give you this toast: To the Hobbits. May they outlast the Sarumans and see spring again in the trees.”

The “Hobbit Dinner” Toast

• I asked Dr. Loconte to fill in the details about himself and his career. He told us about when he first discovered the inklings and when they became a serious area for study.

• Dr. Loconte explained his motivation in writing A Hobbit, a Wardrobe and a Great War.

• We spoke about the mood in Europe prior to The Great War, noting the belief in progress and the belief that war was dying out.

• After speaking about the way in which The Great War was different form earlier wars, Dr. Loconte outlined the attitudes and wartime experiences of Lewis and Tolkien.

• We then talked about the consequences of World War One, how it changed society, and how the Inklings responded.

• Dr. Loconte’s book is currently being turned into a documentary:

• As we drew towards the end of the interview, we spoke about the legacy of the Inklings for today’s generation.

• The interview concluded with our usual “Tolkien Month” This vs. That quiz:
  • Tea or Coffee?
  • Elves or Dwarves?
  • Early Bird or Night Owl?
  • Gandalf or Radagast?
  • Call or text?
  • Tom Bombadil: Wonderful or Wretched?
  • iPhone or Android?
  • Pippin or Merry?
  • Shelob or Nazgul?
  • Second Breakfast or Elevenses?
  • Boromir or Faramir?
  • Balrogs: Wings or wingless?
  • Bagels or croissants?
  • The movies or the book?
  • Arwen or Eowyn?
  • Rivendell or Lothlorien?
  • Gollum or Jar Jar Binks?
  • Tolkien or Lewis?

• You can find out more about Dr. Loconte’s work at JosephLoconte.com and HobbitWardrobe.com.