Archive - Poetry Aloud of Word & Song by Anthony Esolen

My Last Duchess

The 19th century is the great age of a new form of poetry called the “dramatic monologue." Tennyson and Browning were the masters of it. Give a listen.

Apr 19 •

3:38

March 2024

For Fridays in Lent this year, I’ve been reading monologues from my book-length poem, The Hundredfold: Songs for the Lord. This week's speaker is St…

Mar 22 •

8:48

Listen to the fifth monologue from my book-poem, The Hundredfold: Songs for the Lord. The speaker is the blind man whom Jesus healed, as he recalls that…

Mar 15 •

18:08

The Blacksmith to Saint Luke

This monologue from The Hundredfold is spoken by a fictional character to Saint Luke, who is visiting the village to learn of Jesus's words and works…

Mar 8 •

16:42

The Boy Who Brought Some Food

This monologue is spoken by an old man to his two grandsons. He tells them that as a boy he followed the Preacher who was roaming the country, teaching…

Mar 1 •

14:51

February 2024

The Centurion to His Woman

In today's poem a Roman centurion speaks to the Jewish harlot he has loved for a long time. Each of them has heard of a strange prophet preaching in the…

Feb 23 •

15:10

Today and each Friday in Lent, I’ll be reading one of the dramatic monologues from my book-length poem, The Hundredfold.

Feb 16 •

16:30

"The Lotos-Eaters"

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Feb 2 •

12:48

January 2024

Whittier writes of a snowstorm so great that his childhood home was banked up for days. It's a simple reminiscence, from a man with a pure heart, if…

Jan 26 •

33:51

"The Lady of Shalott"

For Poetry Aloud this week, we’ve got a poem that once everyone loved, “The Lady of Shalott," by the great poet, Tennyson. Listen now!

Jan 19 •

8:46

Resending This Week's Poetry Aloud

"The Star-Splitter" by Robert Frost

Jan 15 •

6:34

The Star-Splitter

Here’s a whimsical narrative poem by Robert Frost, that challenges us, in a gentle way, to think again about what the really good business in life is.

Jan 12 •

6:34

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