We take a deep dive into shame through the lens of the poem “Do Not Be Ashamed” by Wendell Berry. Our cover art image—which fits perfectly with this poem—is a 2000 watercolor by Elizabeth Wang called, “I remember being outwardly carefree, but I was inwardly pierced by a shame so intense I could hardly go on, sometimes nearly groaning out loud.” Her title is a good summary of where we go in this personal episode. Take a look at the chapter titles below to see more of the ground we cover. As usual, the music in this episode was written and produced by Jack Baumgartner.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the Poem and Its Impact 04:02 Memorization and Performance of Poetry 06:50 Exploring the Themes of Shame and Comfort 10:07 Analyzing the Poem's Structure and Language 13:02 Personal Reflections on Shame and Anxiety 15:54 The Role of Light and Darkness in the Poem 18:44 The Concept of Walls and Barriers 21:34 The Nature of Guilt and Misunderstanding 24:42 The Influence of Others and the 'They' in Our Lives 31:54 The Paranoia of Shame 37:13 Shame as a Tool of Manipulation 42:22 The Power Dynamics of Shame 45:47 The Loss of Light and History 52:15 Night Knowing vs. Cartesian Clarity 58:01 The Burden of Shame and Redemption 01:05:58 The Nature of Candor and Confession 01:08:26 True vs. False Confession 01:10:25 Inward Clarity and Self-Acceptance 01:12:35 The Spiritual Journey Within 01:15:08 The Power of Acceptance and Self-Knowledge 01:18:15 The Cycle of Shame and Redemption 01:21:20 Defiance vs. Acceptance 01:24:18 Death, Resurrection, and Transformation 01:27:08 The Symbolism of the Heron 01:29:48 The Complexity of Human Experience 01:32:44 The Poetic Journey and Its Lessons
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