Literature is a body of written works of imagination characterised by excellence of style, expression, themes and genres of enduring interests. This eight-session course maps the knowledge we know about the important forms, concepts, themes, movements and historical periods in literature. The course provides unique opportunities of learning by guiding students through an overview of theories about the nature of literature, its meaning and thinking behind literary concepts and moveme... [More]

For intending tourists and armchair travellers, this course provides an overview of the places, history, art, and architecture of Sicily – a spectacular island where one of the most dramatic and complicated cultures of the Mediterranean has been shaped by invaders and settlers, who include the ancient Greeks, the Arabs, and the Normans. We take illustrated tours of the main towns and tourist sites with in depth, interactive discussion of history and culture, including the ancient Gr... [More]

Since the 19th century, in every area of art – painting, sculpture, architecture, literature, music – Russia was in the forefront, bringing to the world dramatically new concepts of beauty. The names of Russian thinkers, writers, artists, architects, and musicians are known all over the world as the symbols of everything that is daring, beautiful and free. In the 20th century, the tremendous creative surge of experimentation continued. Through discussions, extracts from films and do... [More]

This course is a continuation of ‘Bede and Cultural life in Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Britain.’ It will present a more in-depth study of the world of the the Venerable Bede, the ‘father of English history’ and one of the most prolific and influential writers of the early Middle Ages. It will concentrate on his varied achievements as a writer, studying his work as an educationist, historian of both official history and daily life, and poet. The course will also examine the important sub... [More]

The Unbearable Lightness of Being is an unforgettable exploration of the nature of happiness and sorrow, unity and fragmentation, being and becoming. We examine its major themes, its stylistic innovations, its form, and it is at times funny, at times sad, but always intriguing and often illuminating reflections on human being, freedom, love, exile, narrative, meaning and the pursuit of happiness. Course Content The Unbearable Lightness of Being The major themes Structure and style L... [More]

‘The Great Gatsby’ is widely regarded as F. Scott Fitzgerald’s greatest work and one of the key works of American modernism. It portrays with unforgettable lucidity an age of “miracles, art and excess”, of innocence, corruption, decadence, romance, passion, love and death. We look closely at its major themes, characters, structure and style, and its enduring relevance and significance. We also look at the film version directed by Jack Clayton in 1974 with Robert Redford as Gatsby, a... [More]

What is that dark and fascinating place beneath the conscious mind, and how does it manifest itself in conscious thought? Many philosophers have proposed that ‘poetic thinking’ is a key to the unconscious. Starting with Blake’s ontology of the ‘living dead’, and Coleridge’s ‘opium dreams’, we will explore ideas of the unconscious through literature. We will then analyse four of the most powerful texts of the 20th century: Joyce’s Ulysses; Kafka’s Metamorphosis; D. H. Lawrence’s Sons... [More]

An introduction to the unusually rich and varied nature of contemporary detective fiction. This genre has moved far beyond earlier formulaic plots and stock characters. Writing about detectives, their methods for solving crime and the settings for their investigations has been transformed through social change. A new breed of detective fiction writers provides engrossing ways for readers to approach the moral dilemmas of our times. Topics covering these changes will include the curr... [More]

What is Australian Literature? Is it possible to have a ‘National Literature’ in a global age that still speaks to us as Australians? Australia and Australian literature went through an astonishing transformation in the 70’s and 80’s, which continued with intensity over the following decades. While ‘celebrating’ the bi-centennial, Australian literature found itself coming of age. No longer culturally cringing, writers could be proud of a rich tradition behind them. With energy and i... [More]

Poetry is a common language all over the world but it has taken awhile in the evolution of English poetry for the great, unknown non-European voices to be translated and published. This has brought new ways of seeing and things seen—deserts instead of daffodils, onion-domes instead of spires. The impact has been immediate and intense, enriching and revitalizing the Western poetic tradition. This course will introduce many of the most important and interesting of these masters from R... [More]