The Great Books of the Last 500 Years

This course will explore all the Western tradition has to offer through works of great literature. Students will be given an overview of the last 500 years of history, and learn how different genres emerged through that time. Students will also begin writing essays related to the works they read. Mostly, however, they will have a great time reading what the great books have to offer.

Course Objectives:

1. Introduce students to great authors and their works.
2. Outline the basic history of the last 500 years.
3. To explore different genres of humane letters.
4. To understand and practice thoughtful reading.
5. To value clear written and spoken communication.

Texts:

• Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther by Roland S. Bainton
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare
• The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan
• Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
• Rules of Civility by George Washington
• Select fairy tales from Hans Christian Andersen
• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
• The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald
• Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
• Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
• The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
• The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde
• The Call of the Wild by Jack London
• The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Graham
• The Sword in the Stone by T. H. White
• Animal Farm by George Orwell
• Short story and poetry selections