logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2020
41m 49s

The Stowe-Byron Controversy

Slate Podcasts
About this episode

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

When Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote an exposé of Lord Byron's incestuous affair in 1869, it nearly destroyed The Atlantic Monthly, and threw the reputations of two literary icons into chaos. This is a story about 18th century scandal, cancel culture, and Bad Literary Men, that isn't so different from how these stories play out in our own time.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Up next
Oct 8
What the Cuck?!
Earlier this year, a tweet went out from the official account of the Democratic Party, tagging the Trump advisor Stephen Miller. It was an image of what appeared to be a simple hotel room chair. But for those in the know, it was much more than that: It was a “cuck chair,” an onli ... Show More
56m 13s
Sep 24
Why Do Actors Act Like They Can Sing?
When an actor opens their mouth to sing in a movie, chances are high that the voice you hear will be their own. Even in music biopics, movie stars without much singing experience regularly go to great lengths to impersonate the most beloved vocalists of our time. Why not simply p ... Show More
1h 1m
Sep 10
Jane Fonda’s Workout, Part 2: Hanoi Jane’s VHS Revolution (Encore)
In part two of our special two-part episode, we return to the 1982 VHS tape that created the at-home video industry: Jane Fonda’s Workout. On this episode, originally released in 2020, we deconstruct the tape itself, how it was made, and why anyone thought it was a good idea in t ... Show More
52m 59s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2023
Lord Byron: Incest, Adultery & Daddy Issues
How debaucherous do you have to be to be remembered as the original bad boy? How mad, bad and dangerous to know was Lord Byron? And how much of it did he get from his family? For this episode, Kate is joined by Emily Brand, the author of ‘The Fall of the House of Byron: Scandal a ... Show More
47m 14s
Apr 2020
Do I like them or am I just bored?
In this episode of Thick & Thin I discuss dating, revisiting old flames during this period of social distancing, and why we tend to obsess over the ones who don't love us back. I also tell a crazy story about the 1812 love affair between poet Lord Byron & Lady Caroline Lamb. Lord ... Show More
47m 36s
May 2022
The Invisible Thread: Life after Slavery in Pompeii (With Elodie Harper)
What happened to people in ancient Rome who were freed from slavery? Turns out there were still invisible threads--economic pressures, imbalances of status, and debts owed to wealthy patrons--that kept many of them in bondage. On the streets of Pompeii, freedom came at a steep pr ... Show More
1h 2m
Mar 2024
Scandalous Sex Lives of Royalty
We've been fascinated by royalty for hundreds of years, but what do we know about their sex lives? Quite a lot, it turns out. Today we're revisiting an episode Kate recorded with bestselling author Eleanor Herman to find out about what it took to not just be a mistress of a royal ... Show More
42m 55s
Oct 2022
452 Charles and Mary Lamb | A Letter To My Transgender Daughter (with Carolyn Hays)
In this episode, Jacke takes a look at two topics. First, the story of Charles and Mary Lamb, whose children's book Tales from Shakespeare (1807) was published more than two hundred years ago and has never been out of print. Part of the literary circle that included Romantic-era ... Show More
1h 2m
Aug 2018
The Clinton Impeachment | 1. Deal or No Deal
For 11 hours, Monica Lewinsky faced off against federal prosecutors who wanted her to help them take down the president and threatened her with decades in jail.Want more Slow Burn? Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately access all episodes of Slow Burn (and your other favorite Sl ... Show More
41m 25s
May 2023
Incest
Incest. It’s not the lightest topic of conversation, we wouldn’t recommend bringing it up as an icebreaker on a date, or when you’re trying to impress new people at a party - but it’s one which has fascinated many of us for centuries nonetheless. But has it always been taboo? How ... Show More
47m 42s
Mar 2012
From Brontë to Bell and Back Again
The Brontë sisters quickly rose from obscurity to notoriety after their three novels were published under the Bell pseudonym. Join Sarah and Deblina as they discuss the sisters' rise to fame and the scandalous suggestions about their lives and morals. Learn more about your ad-cho ... Show More
31m 36s
Apr 2024
441. Lord Byron: Scandal, Sex and Celebrity (Part 2)
By 1809, Lord Byron found himself untethered and debt-ridden. Disenchanted with politics, frustrated by his literary career and haunted by his illicit homosexuality, he abandoned an oppressive England and set out upon his legendary Eastern adventure. First plunging into a Europe ... Show More
1 h