ENGLISH 370A - Great Books? Part I

It is not a term you hear much nowadays. The so-called “Great-Books course” has been shrouded in controversy since it first arrived in the modern university more than a century ago with compelling arguments on both sides about whether or not the whole idea should even exist. And yet, these courses and the literary works therein persist (even as the number of English majors declines precipitously), and they continue to get mobilized to justify or attack the concept of a general humanities education. “Great” Books is designed as a two-part course—part I from Homer to the Bible in Fall 2022, part, II, from Vergil to Woolf in Spring 2023—but students can, if they must, sign up for one semester only. In addition to providing a wide-angle view of literary history—with a lineup that includes Herodotus, Plato, Aeschylus, Vergil, Augustine, Dante, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Montaigne, Dostoevsky, and Woolf—we will also engage with a variety of critical debates about the history and uncertain future of the Great-Books course.
Units: 4
Course Type: Seminar