An epic tale of freedom and slavery, love and war, and the potential futures of humankind tells of a twenty-first century California clan caught between two clashing worlds, one based on tolerance, the other on repression-- such is the novel "The Fifth Sacred Thing" by Starhawk.  Join Dawn "Sam" Alden and Sean Marlon Newcombe as they discuss this seminal work of matriarchal science fiction. 

Join us as Dawn "Sam" Alden regales us about the colorful and incredibly exciting life of Mary Ann Evans, the woman known in India as "Fearless Nadia."  A pioneer of women's action films, this British woman slipped through the conventions of colonial Anglo-Indian culture to become one of the most beloved stars of Indian cinema.  Remembered best as the masked, whip-wielding star of Hunterwali (in which she did her own stunts) Nadia was a star for decades working well into her sixties-- becoming a fitness guru after her film retirement in her seventies!  A life that spanned most of the 20th Century with all its contradictions and triumphs, this is a woman whose story you should know! 

Could matriarchy provide an alternative to the predatory corporatism that defines the global economy? Join us as we bring bring back our third member of the Make Matriarchy Great Again team, Vicki Noble, to discuss the Gift Economy with special guest Genevieve Vaughan.  Genevieve Vaughan is a scholar of semiotics, a peace activist and a feminist who has championed the concept of the "Gift Economy," a means of exchange where goods are given among people rather than bought and sold.  The Gift Economy uses the matriarchal mother-child paradigm as a key basis of its structure.  Given the current painful state of economic affairs in the world, is it finally time for a matriarchal solution?

Returning to chat with us again is Professor Ping Yao of Cal State Los Angeles.  A specialist on gender and religion in Premodern China, Dr. Yao joins us to do a deeper survey into the important aspects of gender systems and gender practices throughout Chinese history, from the earliest period to the modern era.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Madeline Miller's beautiful and lyrical novel, "Circe," Is one part mythology, one part biography and one part half-remembered dream.  It is a work that explores Greek myth from the perspective of a female character-- and does so with insight and poetry.  Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they discuss this marvelous book. 

Sex and war.  Magic and death.  These are the realms of the great Goddess Freyja.  Seemingly rising from the chthonic myst of power in the matriarchal past, Freyja is both unknowable and all-encompassing.  Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they extol the great Lady of battlefield and bedroom.  (*Recorded during the eclipse of the blood moon.)

The Goddess Timeline is a chronological record of archaeological images of women and goddesses on a uniform time scale from 30,000 BCE to the present.  Join us as we talk to Constance Tippett about her creation of the timeline, its historical significance and its relevance to the matriarchy movement today. We are joined by Make Matriarchy Great Again member and inspiration Vicki Noble.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host. 

We chat with filmmakers Matia Karrell and Hilary Prentice about their documentary on the American female military aviators of World War II, the WASPs.  Overlooked then erased from history, these women brave aviation trailblazers who served a crucial role in the war effort.  It would take decades, but they would eventually be acknowledged and honored for their service.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Ellen Snortland is a writer, director and producer who has been a women's self-defense advocate and instructor for most of her career. Her seminal work, "Beauty Bites Beast" has gone from book to film and chronicles not only her own journey in self-defense, but the journeys of women across the world who have developed a powerful sense of confidence and self-esteem as they have developed their potent ability to physically defend themselves. Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

In describing the punishment that Zeus would levy upon the world for the "transgression" of man using fire, Hesiod wrote, "At once he made an affliction for mankind..."  What was that "affliction," you ask?  Women.  And so begins our journey into the world of Hesiod, a man whose writing shaped the Greek view of the world in such a way that misogyny was considered the norm-- a norm that would echo down through the ages and affect the world that we live in today. 

Elaine Pagels is one the most celebrated scholars of early Christianity in the world.  She is the author of such popular works as "The Gnostic Gospels," "Adam, Eve and the Serpent" and "Beyond Belief: The Secret Gospel of Thomas."  Dr. Pagels talks with Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden about the role and identity of women in early Christianity including the radical early movement known as "Gnosticism."

It is a tragic echo of earliest civilizations that an army would sweep out of the Crimean to attack a people in Ukraine.  As when the Indo-European warriors stormed the towns along the shores and rivers of Old Europe, so we watch a conflict between two countries take place eerily  in the footsteps of this millennia earlier clash that transformed the world. Join Vicki Noble as she contextualizes this conflict within the history and current debate over the story of the matriarchal people of Old Europe.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host. 

Matron of the Amazons. Goddess of the moon.  Sister of the hunt.  The OMG-- Original Mother-Goddess.  She is Artemis and we LOVE her.  Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they sing her praises. All hail Artemis!

Mary Mackey is a beloved novelist and poet whose work centers on matriarchal and ecological subjects.  Her historical novels take place in the matriarchal, goddess-centered cultures of Old Europe.  Join us as we discuss with her about her matriarchal writings, her relationship with Marija Gimbutas and her current work. 

An illuminating and deeply personal discussion with an Assyrian priestess of Ishtar.  One of the Great Goddesses, she was also known as Inanna in Sumer, and is a counterpart of the goddess Astarte.  Lady of love and of battle, fertility and storms, she was goddess of the storehouse - overseeing the allocation and distribution of food to the people.  Join us in praising Ishtar!IG: @the_assyrian_priestess PATREON: www.patreon.com/theassyrianpriestess 

Have you heard the tale of Gallus Mag and Sadie the Goat?  These two very colorful characters lived in the 19th Century in New York City, and despite their rocky beginning, eventually found peace with one another.  Enjoy their rollicking tale!Written by:  Sara AtaiiyanDirected by:  Lisa Nicole LennoxNarrator:  Rachanee LumaynoGallus Mag:  Sandy BorglumSadie the Goat:  Maggie RobertsonSound Design & Editing:  Victoria Rose SampsonMusic:  Raspberry Heaven written by Aedan MacDonnell; performed by Aedan MacDonnell, Robyn Heller & Ashleigh Hill

Join us as Vicki Noble guides us through the story of how the religious rites of The Goddess were turned into the wedding rituals of the patriarch. Long ago, the wheeled-wagon invaders overran the matriarchies and coopted and subverted the matriarchal lineage of female spiritual and temporal power. Today we see that barely recognize that lineage in its transformed state as contemporary wedding rites.  How did this happen and what does it mean for female power?Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Join us as we take a fun dive into the history of the British suffrage movement and the untold story of the women who became martial arts experts and protectors of the movement.  Tony Wolf, author of the graphic novel "Suffrajitsu: Mrs. Pankhurst's Amazons," talks to us about his novel and the marvelous and colorful history of these Suffrajitsu women. 

A special crossover episode of the Broads You Should Know podcast. (https://broadsyoushouldknow.com/) Today it's our own Dawn "Sam" Alden joining the Broads You Should Know gang to talk about the dashing South American swordswomen, The Valiant Ladies of Potosi!

Catalina de Erauso, who in 1599 escaped from a Basque convent dressed as a man and went on to a life of adventure and violence throughout South America posing as a man. 

Join Dawn "Sam" Alden as she talks with Vicki Noble about her experience working with Jeannine Davis-Kimball and their journey into the land of ancient women warriors.  Sean Marlon Newcombe discusses meeting Dr. Davis-Kimball and her influence on his research.  Dr. Kimball was a pioneering archaeologist whose work helped uncover the truth that warrior women were not a myth, but existed all throughout the Ancient World. 

We start the new year with "In Praise of the Goddess"!  This time it's Sekhmet and Bastet. Join us as we explore these powerful divine females and set 2022 ablaze with the spirit of matriarchy!

Join us as we discuss the roles of women in Ancient China with Prof. Ping Yao of  Cal State Los Angeles.  What were gender relations like in Chine before and during the first dynasties (2700 BC - 221 BC)? What kind of roles did they have in governance, education, warfare and marriage?  Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host. 

Celebrating the centennial of Marija Gimbtutas' birth, the Association for the Study of Women & Mythology held a symposium on her life and works.  "Make Matriarchy Great Again" inspiration and charter member, Vicki Noble, chaired one of the discussions and joins us to talk about the symposium and the celebration of the life of Marija Gimbutas.

They dragged themselves through the streets at dawn and staggered across tenement roofs illuminated just like the men-- but very few of us know the names of these gifted writers.  They were the women of the "Beat" literary movement, The Beat Generation, and their contributions to this period of American writing was vast but unheralded.  Now it's time to say their names and share their work.  Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they talk with Kimberly Rockwell about the Women of the Beat Generation.

We continue our discussion of Naomi Alderman's haunting sci-fi novel, "The Power."  The story of a dystopian future where women rule, in part two we discuss the dark slide into brutality that the women take once their power spreads.

Deliberately erased from history, the story of the women of the Mongol Empire was one of tremendous achievement.  Genghis Khan encouraged equality of the genders and his daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law took advantage of that to great success.  Prof. Jack Weatherford is one of the foremost scholars of Mongol history and a New York Times Best Seller author.  He has recovered the stories of these powerful women and shares the tales of their amazing lives with Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden. 

Professor Walter Penrose returns to discuss the life and work of one of the most famous literary women in history-- Sappho. 

One of the most original works of the last few decades, Naomi Alderman's "The Power," is a sci-fi dystopian masterpiece.  What sets it apart is that in this dystopia, it is the women who seize control and the men who are in fear.  There is so much to unpack in this wonderful book, that we are going to stretch the discussion over multiple episodes.  Joins Dawn "Sam" Alden and Sean Marlon Newcombe as they discuss "The Power."

Controlling female sexual behavior is one of the foundations of patriarchy.  In cooly efficient Ancient Rome, it was through law, of course, that the restriction of women's sexuality was achieved.  Join us as we explore the history and nature of what have been called "The Julian Laws," a series of legislation in the 1st century BC that were meant to promote "family values" by controlling women's bodies. 

Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they talk with two women in the world of sports: Jill Morely, a former professional boxer and Emily Halpern, a former professional basketball player (and current jiu-jitsu black belt). What are the challenges that sportswomen face today?  Are distorted notions of femininity still affecting how we perceive women who devote their focus to athletic pursuits?  Women have been athletes for thousands of years, but what is the state of women's sports today?Join us for a very revealing and eye-opening episode!Please check out Jill's women boxing web site:https://www.flagboxingla.com/

Oh, this was a spirited one!  Join Dawn "Sam" Alden and Sean Marlon Newcombe as they discuss a modern romance novel and what it says about gender in entertainment today.  A passionate and fun discussion reveals many insights into gender relations in culture and the entertainment that reflects it. 

What to Expect When You're Expecting doesn't tell you everything to expect! Two very recent 1st time Moms share stories of the things that happened that they didn't expect.  Don't worry, though, they both have happy endings! 

The sine qua non of this podcast: Matriarchy.  What is it and why is it desirable.  Dawn "Sam" Alden and Sean Marlon Newcombe have an open and frank discussion on the topic of "matriarchy."  This is sure to be a defining episode for this series. 

A fascinating exploration of the wonderful ancient sagas of the peoples of the Black Sea region and the powerful women that their stories extol. Join us as we talk with John Colarusso, linguistic professor and translator of the Nart Sagas. The "Nart Sagas" are a collection of heroic tales from the Caucasus which are notable for their stories of warrior women and mystical matriarchs.  In the Classical World, Caucasia was known as the land of the fearsome female fighters whose name would pass into history as "Amazons."  The history of these people, their languages, their stories and their powerful women will amaze.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Conditions that affect hundreds of thousands of women, and yet they are misdiagnosed, mistreated and misunderstood.  Hear first hand accounts of our guests' journeys with these conditions. 

Join Vicki Noble as she chats with us about the legacy of her friend, Marija Gimbutas, a woman whose theories on the role of women in the neolithic period and in the creation of civilization are starting to be confirmed by modern DNA and archaeological research.  Marija would've been 100 years old this year.Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they chat with Vicki Noble about the scope of Gimbutas' scholarship in the worlds of archaeology, history and mythology, how she revolutionized the view of women in the Ancient World and why her work is under attack in academia today. 

Just a quick pause to let you know about some updates and upcoming events this weekend.  We have a new account for donations for the podcast.  If you like what you've been hearing, please support the cause.  https://www.patreon.com/34Circe  Thanks! Also, Vicki Noble tells us about some events that she thinks you all might find interesting.  Check out the listings here as well:https://womenandmyth.org/https://www.opusarchives.org/More fun things coming!

A new series exploring the often overlooked, elided or trivialized misogyny of the founders of Western patriarchy.  In the first episode, we set the tone for future discussion by introducing Aristotle's writings on women.  Let's just say... he wasn't a feminist.Aristotle was, in many ways, the father of Western science and logic.  He shaped the approach to serious inquiry of our world and its workings from the time of Ancient Greece and Rome, to Early Christendom, Islam and Medieval Judaism, through The Enlightenment and all the way to our modern world.  The echo of his ideas can still be heard loudly today.  His analyses of the subjects from politics to poetry are the base of many of our contemporary constructions of those issues.So too his views on women.  Some will say that we've done away with his shameful and offensive views in our modern culture, but it's clear that, like a plague, his disdain and degradation of women still infect us.  We'll share some of those views as well as discuss the world that shaped him.Join Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden as they launch this bold new series.

“Was this the face that launch'd a thousand ships,And burnt the topless towers of Ilium--Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss.--"So wrote Christopher Marlowe of one of the most famous names in history: Helen of Troy.  But who was Helen and what was life like for women of that era?"  Join us as we talk to again with Max Dashu, noted scholar of women in history, about Helen of Troy and women in that portion of the Bronze Age.  Were there still strands of matriarchy in these highly phallo-centric cultures? How did women express their power in the time of the Trojan War?  What about Cassandra and Antigone and the other women immortalized in the Epic Cycle of the Trojan War?  Of course, at the center of it all is the question: Who was this Helen, the woman whose faced launched a thousand ships?Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Mistress of the Cosmos, Ruler of the House of Light-- This episode, we celebrate the mighty goddess Isis! Join us as we talk with our guest Nancy about the inspiration she draws from this great ancient deity. Isis was revered throughout the ancient world, but what does she have to say for modern people-- Women in particular? Nancy, a Moslem woman of Egyptian origin, talks to us about how Isis' relevance and importance to her in all aspects of her life.Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host.

Found primarily in Ireland and the British Isles, the Sheela na gig has been a mysterious symbol of female power for a millennia.  These 12th- to 17th-century stone carvings of supernatural females displaying their vulvas have been found in both sacred and secular architecture, from medieval churches to castles, town walls, holy wells, and gravestones.  What do they represent and how do they connect to women today? Join our guest, Starr Goode, a noted writer and teacher as well as a scholar of matriarchal history as she tells us about her lifelong study of these sacred female symbols. Sean Marlon Newcombe and Dawn "Sam" Alden co-host. 

The 34 Circe Salon has been taken over by Broads You Should Know!  Our latest episode is a crossover from the "Broads You Should Know" podcast:https://broadsyoushouldknow.com/Join the Broads You Should Know team as they discuss the life of Julie D'Aubigny, a woman who lived boldly at the turn of the 18th Century in France.  She was a professional opera singer, a fearless swordswoman and an audacious lover of women and men.  Listen in to learn more!

A further exploration of the cultural taboos around the lives of women, in this episode we discuss periods. Dawn "Sam" Alden hosts.

We've moved our podcast to a new platform. Please reach out at [email protected] if you have any problems accessing our shows!

Will our spirited heroine be able to guide our brooding hero through a world of forbidden passion to a matriarchal paradise?  Or will he simply think this stuff is a bunch of hooey? Join tempestuous Lady Dawn and rascally Lord Sean and they show us what, if anything, romance novels tell us about how our views of romance and courtship are shaped in our (patriarchal) culture.  Bodices and codpieces abound. 

Who doesn't love Wonder Woman? We all love the mighty Amazon! So join us for a fun and lively discussion with writer Teresa Jusino as we talk about this matriarchal superhero and the film which tells the story of her creation, "Professor Marston and the Wonder Women." William Moulton Marston, the creator of Wonder Woman, was a Harvard psychologist who co-created the lie detector. With his two life partners, psychologist Elizabeth Holloway Marston and psychology student Olive Byrne, the trio pursued a stable polyamory lifestyle and a continual quest of spread the gospel of matriarchy to the world. Elizabeth was a gifted scholar in her own right and created the lie detector alongside William. Olive was also a student of psychology and part of a lineage of Suffragettes-- her aunt was Margaret Sanger. Elizabeth and Olive had their own amazing relationship with each other which lasted several decades after William's death. An incredible story behind the creation of an incredible hero... Wonder Woman!

Misunderstandings around miscarriages threaten women's lives. The guilt and isolation is an unnecessary addition to the grief and loss that they experience. In today's episode Dawn "Sam" Alden talks with women who have had miscarriages and how they navigated their tragedy.