ENGLISH 370B - Great Books? Part II

t 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. In this second part of a two-part course we will read works by Augustine, Boccaccio Dante, Shakespeare, Cervantes, Montaigne, Dostoevsky, Woolf, and W.G. Sebald. At various points throughout the semester, we will also engage with a variety of critical debates about the history and uncertain future of the Great-Books course. Preference will be given to students who completed Part I.
Units: 4
Course Type: Seminar