Note: Due to technical difficulties, there's some interference and muffled audio on Daniel's side of the conversation but it shouldn't disrupt things too much. We'll make sure it's sorted out by the next episode.

Some days you just want to pass out in a pleasant field and have all your major misdeeds wiped from existence. Welcome to the first act of Faust Part 2 in which the whole of Faust Part 1 is either negated or ignored. Will Faust find redemption? Is Gretchen damned? Who cares! There’s a new emperor in town and he wants to party and man is Faust lucky that this rowdy king is in need of a conjuror! Let’s ignore the ponderousness and follow Faust and Mephistopheles as they pull their P.T. Barnum act and put on a show. Join Daniel and Claude as they discuss how co-opted characters from Shakespeare absolve Faust at the outset, why Mephistopheles is so keen to switch the economy to paper money, and what exactly the Mothers are in terms of chthonic deities. 

The Canon Ball is a member of the Agora Podcast Network. Be sure to check out some of the other shows on the network like Mid Atlantic, which looks at politics and current events in Britain and the US. Each show consists of American and British pundits reviewing and commenting on the most important US and British pieces of news that week with host Roifield Brown officiating. Find out more at midatlanticshow.com. 

One more announcement: Last year Claude presented at Intelligent Speech, a conference for educational podcasters. The Canon Ball will be represented again this year, but this time both Daniel and Claude will be in attendance. In light of the current pandemic the conference will be online with approximately 40 of the best educational podcasters presenting in their fields. At any point there will be up to four different conference streams to choose from. There will also be solo presentations and a series of roundtable debates between podcasters; one of them, on the gains and losses of a historical understanding, will be moderated by Claude. A one-day pass for the conference is currently priced at $10. For more information on the conference visit www.intelligentspeechconference.com.

Check us out online at thecanonballpodcast.wordpress.com, find us on Facebook @TheCanonBallPodcast, and on Twitter @CanonBallPod.

One last note: if you’re in the New York area and need reading and writing tutoring, or are interested in online tutoring, let us know. Claude has a tutoring business on the side and two kids, so he’s always looking for a few more clients. If you need some help, send an email to claudemoinc@gmail.com. We can also produce literary lectures on demand. I’m not entirely certain what situations would call for that, but for some quality literary infotainment hit us up!

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