Recent Episodes
Ep. 23: Aristotle’s Politics, part 2
“Man is by nature a political animal.” Lise, Jeff, and Brian continue their conversation about Book I of Aristotle’s [...]
Ep. 22: Interview with Matt Young
Brian interviews Matt Young, Marine Corps veteran, English professor, and author of Eat the Apple, an memoir that has been described as [...]Ep. 21: Aristotle’s Politics, part 1
Jeff, Lise, and Brian roll up their sleeves and dig in to Aristotle’s Politics. How are this and other “Great Books” [...]
Ep. 20: Interview with Douglas Lensing
Douglas Lensing joins the show to talk about his path from the Navy to St. John’s College and his paper “Passion and Mind: [...]
Ep. 19: Hemingway’s “A Clean, Well-Lighted Place”
Is human life “nada” – nothing? In their discussion of Hemingway’s (very) short story, Brian, Lise, and Jeff [...]
Ep. 18: Racine’s Phedre
Can you simultaneously hate and love the same thing? What is the relationship between virtue and love? Lise, Jeff, and Brian tackle [...]
Ep. 17: Freud’s On Transience
Jeff, Lise, and Brian discuss Freud’s On Transience, in which Freud ruminates on the transitory nature life and beautiful things [...]
Ep. 16: Interview with Anne Kniggendorf
Brian interviews St. John’s College alum and U.S. Navy veteran Anne Kniggendorf. They have an engaging discussion about the [...]
Ep. 15: Shelley’s Frankenstein
“I beheld the wretch – the miserable monster whom I had created.” Why did Victor Frankenstein create his monster? What role [...]
Ep. 14: Chekhov’s Rothschild’s Violin
How should human life be valued? Is death something to suffer, or something that provides relief? Jeff, Lise and Brian discuss those [...]DONATE
Expand awareness for the great books and St. John’s College within the military/veteran ranks
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The Team
Lise Van Boxel
B.A., English Literature Specialist Degree and Political Science Major, Trinity College, The University of Toronto; M.A., Political Philosophy, Boston College; Ph.D., Political Philosophy, The University of Toronto; Professor / Tutor, St. John's College, 2001 - present.
Brian Wilson
Major, United States Marine Corps Reserve. Served in Bosnia, East Africa and Iraq as a Counterintelligence/Human Intelligence Officer. Former Defense Contractor supporting Naval Special Warfare. B.S. Mechanical Engineering, United States Naval Academy. M.A. Liberal Arts, St. John's College Annapolis, Graduate Institute.
Jeffrey J.S. Black
B.A., Trinity College, University of Toronto; Ph.D., Boston College; Associate Dean for the Graduate Program, Annapolis, 2011-2015; Professor / Tutor, St. John's College, 1999 - present.
Sanya Sarich Kerksiek
B.A., Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; J.D., Northwestern University School of Law; M.A., Liberal Arts, St. Johns College, Annapolis and Santa Fe. Former civilian interpreter for U.S. Army counterintelligence forces in Bosnia. Federal law clerk and complex corporate litigator. Sanya is the Executive Producer, Audio Engineer, Website Support and Consiglieri for the Combat & Classics program.
Our Mission
“A leader should possess human understanding for others. Men are not robots and should not be treated as though they were machines. I do not by any means suggest coddling. But men are highly intelligent, complicated beings who will respond favorably to human understanding.” -GEN Omar Bradley, US Army
Combat and Classics is a series of podcasts and free online seminars for active duty, reserve, and veteran U.S. military members, sponsored by St. John’s College. The podcasts and seminars encourage deep thought and reflection by leaders in the company of their peers. In the discussion-based seminars devoted to what a leader must be and know, participants study historical and fictional leaders from the great books of the western canon. We examine techniques and examples of persuasion and fundamental questions on the nature of man. When participants take the time to reflect, with their peers, on the principles of leadership, they find that they return to their lives and professional positions energized and focused, with a deeper understanding of the context of their decisions, decision-making processes, and leadership roles.
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