In the final episode of this season – it’s been quite a journey, hasn’t it? – we talk about states of mind that feed our imagination: awe and wonder. Whereas “wonder” is more associated with curiosity in trying to understand the world, “awe” is more related to grasping it in a more existential way. And there’s no shortage of either in learning a foreign language, is there?

They both make us feel more humble, more in tune with the universe, and should be cherished dearly.

The books mentioned in this episode are “Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life”, by Dacher Keltner, and “Orbital”, by Samantha Harvey.

The T. S. Eliot quote is from a poem called “Little Gidding”. You can find it here: https://shorturl.at/Tl71K

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Imagine spreading your language so far and wide that it becomes universal. That’s what the English did – and that’s no small feat! However, one can argue that, still, they have an identity crisis, in a post-Empire and post-Brexit world.

So, in this episode, we ask: who are the English, as a people? How do they see themselves in a country that calls itself various names? And how do they see themselves under the umbrella of “Britishness”?

The book mentioned in this episode is “The English: A Portrait of a People”, by Jeremy Paxman.

If you would like to listen to Winston Churchill’s famous wartime speech, you can find it here: https://tinyurl.com/4ehjjsxc

The 1942 patriotic film “In Which We Serve” can also be found on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/3cw7m39m

Do you like our podcast? Please share it and leave us a review. Let’s make our English adventure all the more adventurous: @beatriz_alessi

A centuries-old rivalry that goes back all the way to American Independence from Britain, in 1776. Which English is better (/ˈbet.ər/)? Or should I say ‘better’ ( /ˈbet̬.ɚ/)? British or American?

To a certain extent, the British see themselves as “guardians” of the English language, King Charles III included. But American English has made an enormous contribution to a language that has become universal. If anything, it has made English perhaps more straightforward – and less French.

In this episode, we’ll talk about this love-hate relationship and about how “the King’s English” eventually became “the people’s English”.

The book mentioned in this episode is “The Prodigal Tongue: The Love-Hate Relationship Between American and British English”, by Lynne Murphy.

Lynne also has a blog in which she explores the often subtle differences between American and British English. Check it out: https://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/

Do you like our podcast? Please share it and leave us a review. Let’s build a community of English lovers: @beatriz_alessi