Literature

JANE AUSTEN AND BEETHOVEN:

CULTURAL CONTEMPORARIES

Anatole Sykley | Historian and Member of the WWI Historical Society The novels of Jane Austen are full of early 19th century English upper-class romances and other intrigues . But Austen’s novels also talk almost as much about the importance of being cultured and entertained . Music was an important part of the life of Jane Austen’s characters, and of Austen herself . Contemporaneously but far away, Beethoven was composing his symphonies . In addition to his symphonies, he composed music that ordinary people with moderate musical skills might play in their salons or drawing rooms, often consisting of sonatas and popular folk songs . What kind of music did Jane Austen (and ipso-facto, her characters) know? What were the “hit tunes” that young people discuss and play for each other in Jane Austen’s day? Join us for a short romp into popular musical culture with a literary bent .

COURSE CODE: AUBE Sec. 01: Tuesday, 3-5pm. Jun. 1 | $50

LITERATURE

MEET AGATHA CHRISTIE’S PARTNERS IN CRIME: TOMMY & TUPPENCE BERESFORD

Olga Turcotte | Jungian Consultant and Instructor The Beresfords are young and audacious . Unlike Miss Marple and Poirot, they are quite restless and at times a little reckless, and like the rest of us, they age with time . At Blunt International Detective Agency, their slogan is “Any Case Solved in 24 Hours” but can they really deliver? Join us to read their sundry adventures and cases, which are full of danger and mischief. Please acquire “Partners in Crime” ISBN 978-0-06-207436-2 by William Morrow Paperbacks.

COURSE CODE: BLNT Sec. 01: 6 Thursdays, 1-2:30pm. Begins Apr. 8 | $180

EDITH WHARTON: HOUSE OF MIRTH AND AGE OF INNOCENCE

Margery Sabin | Lorraine Chiu Wang Professor of English Emerita Born into New York high society in 1862, Edith Wharton drew on her background to present closely observed, emotionally rich fiction. In The House of Mirth (1905) she recounts Lily Bart’s unhappy struggle to secure her place in the aggressively materialistic American society . In The Age of Innocence (1920) she tells a poignant story of thwarted love, made into a brilliant film by Martin Scorsese . Wharton’s life and art dramatize the emerging importance of female perspectives in the early 20th century .

COURSE CODE: EDIT Sec. 01: 8 Thursdays, 10:30am-12pm. Begins Apr. 8 | $240

THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV

Paul Karpuck | Emeritus Professor, Central Connecticut State Fyodor Dostoevsky, one of the world’s great writers, was a consummate literary craftsman, philosopher, religious thinker, moralist, psychologist, and even a prophet . The Brothers Karamazov is his crowning achievement, a grand synthesis of the ideas he developed while penning several other acknowledged masterpieces . Like Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov is a tightly-woven murder mystery, a meticulously constructed work of literary architecture,and a profound philosophical treatise .

YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN THE ERA OF LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN ON PAGE 41

ENGLISH SHORT STORIES

Susan Glassman | Ph.D., English, University of Rhode Island Join us in reading short story masterpieces by a variety of both well-known and lesser known English authors . These include Anthony Trollope, Rudyard Kipling, Aldous Huxley, P . G . Wodehouse, and other important writers who demonstrate skill in characterizing the human condition . We will analyze themes, characters, settings, symbolism, and style, as well as look at contemporary interpretations, which will lead to lively discussions . For the first class please read D.H. Lawrence’s “The Man Who Loved Islands” in English Short Stories, edited by A . S . Byatt (ISBN 978-0-19956160-5) .

COURSE CODE: ENGL Sec. 01: 8 Tuesdays, 10:30-11:45am. Begins Apr. 6 | $230 Sec. 02: 8 Tuesdays, 2-3:15pm. Begins Apr. 6 | $230

POETRY TO SAVE THE WORLD

Ravi Shankar | Professor, Author of Correctional, Pushcart Prizewinning Poet One of the highlights of President Biden’s inauguration was a stunning poem “The Hill We Climb” by Amanda Gorman, the youngest inaugural poet in U .S . history . In this course, we will look at the role poetry has played over time in helping heal and catalyze social change . We will consider historical and international work, like Bengali poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, Urdu poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Russian poet Anna Akhmatova, Chinese poet Bei Dao, and Persian poet Forugh Farrokhzad . We will consider Anglo-American poet W .H . Auden’s contention that, “a poet, qua poet, has only one political duty, namely, in his own writing to set an example of the correct use of his mother tongue which is always being corrupted.” What is correctness and what is corruption, and how do these ideas help provide poetry with the power to communicate to large audiences and can provide collective medicine for difficult times?

COURSE CODE: SAVE Sec. 01: 8 Tuesdays, 5:30-7:30pm. Begins Apr. 6 | $270

SELF-EXPLORATION THROUGH LITERATURE

Jane Katims | M.Ed., Author, Dancing on a Slippery Floor Certain fictional characters seem as real as our friends and adversaries, because their authors write with insight and intuition about human emotions . By examining our unique reactions to stories, we achieve increased self-understanding . We’ll use contemporary works as points of departure as we ask ourselves: What are our feelings and attitudes about the story characters and memoirists? What do these emotional responses reveal about ourselves and the wider world? Students will be asked to read approximately 60 pages per week . Please buy or locate the following books: The Night in Question by Tobias Wolff; To Be a Man by Nicole Krauss, and Fabrications: New and Selected Stories by Pamela Painter. Before the first class, please read for our discussion, the following stories in The Night in Question: “Powder,” “The Life of the Body,” and “Flyboys.”

COURSE CODE: WTSE Sec. 01: 8 Wednesdays, 12-1:30pm. Begins Apr. 7 | $240