Discussions

unSILOed Podcast with Greg LaBlanc, April 1, 2026 It’s one of the oldest debates in political philosophy: Do good laws make good men, or do good men make good laws? Minds have been wrestling with this question since the days of Petrarch and Machiavelli, but both sides may have insights that can inform modern political philosophy. James Hankins and Greg LaBlanc discuss Renaissance humanism, sparked by Petrarch’s response to 14th‑century crises, and explore humanist education f

Conversations with Coleman, March 10, 2026 In this conversation with Coleman Hughes, James Hankins discusses the controversy surrounding the Western canon, and how professors should respond when students without Western backgrounds feel excluded from courses centered on the Judeo-Christian tradition. Ultimately, Hankins argues that curricula should prioritize teaching the Great Books because of their intellectual importance, even if that means the authors studied don’t have d

In conversation with Kathleen O'Toole on the Hillsdale College K-12 Classical Education Podcast (February 16, 2026) In this conversation with Kathleen O’Toole, associate vice-president for K-12 Education at Hillsdale College, James Hankins discusses the first volume of The Golden Thread and the importance of classical education. They explore the nature of the Western tradition, the tension between civilization and barbarism, the importance of historical knowledge, and the f

Unherd, December 26, 2025 Prof. Hankins speaks with Freddie Sayers of Unherd about the precarious state of the Western tradition and the burgeoning resistance movement in classical education. Moving through a 2,500-year narrative arc from the ancient Greek invention of reason to the modern-day “cult of innovation,” he warns that elite institutions are suffering from a dangerous cultural amnesia. But, despite the degradation of the canon, he offers a defiant hope rooted in his

Conversation with Michael Fontaine of Cornell University, Classical Wisdom, December 4, 2025 Have We Broken the Golden Thread? Why the West's Future Depends on Remembering Its Past The West’s greatest peril is forgetfulness, its loss of cultural memory. Without knowing where we came from, how can we know what to defend, or even what to value? In an age when history itself is contested ... when the past is either dismissed or distorted ... The Golden Thread reminds us why th

The Saad Truth, Oct. 20, 2025 On this episode of The Saad Truth with Gad Saad, Prof. Hankins discusses The Golden Thread , the deeper meaning of civilization and the West, the potential for cultural renewal, and his lifelong friendship with his coauthor Allen Guelzo. Prof. Guelzo continued the conversation with Gad Saad about The Golden Thread on December 2. The Saad Truth, Dec. 2, 2025

New Humanists, ep. 87 (May 1, 2025) In this podcast interview, Prof. Hankins joins Ryan Hammill and Jonathan Roberts of the Ancient Language Institute to discuss his book Political Meritocracy in Renaissance Italy , which focuses on the life and thought of Francesco Patrizi of Siena (1413–1494). Although Niccolò Machiavelli is often held up as the paradigmatic political philosopher, Hankins argues that he is in fact an outlier. Instead, it is Patrizi and his focus on virtue t

American Politics and Government Summit, Intercollegiate Studies Institute, June 10, 2024 This compelling conversation with Dan McCarthy...

Classical Wisdom, May 26, 2021 Can we understand the Classics without the classroom? A guide to getting (really) educated with James...

September 24, 2020 James Hankins speaks with Luca Politi, graduate student in Italian at Harvard University, about the concept of virtue...