Course Details

• Course Syllabus and Assignments

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• Thursdays 7:00 - 9:40 pm

Literary narrative is an important means by which we shape our understanding of our own lives as they unfold in time, as well as our understanding of our communal history.

We will explore the different ways works of literature have charted paths for this understanding. We will begin with classical works of literature wherein time arises as an aspect of a higher ordering principle – dispensed by cosmic or divine forces. We will then read works of literature that are representative of the modern experience of time as something that can be shaped and mastered by humanity.

Historical Perspective

In the modern world we often have a flat sense of history -- without depth or "perspective". For instance, we often think of Shakespeare as a figure from our remote past. In the broader view of our tradition, however, the writing of his Sonnets (1609) is much closer to us (separated by only 411 years) than:

• The time-span separating Shakespeare himself from the composition of "The Dream of the Rood" (800 CE) (809 years of separation), or

• The time-span separating "The Dream of the Rood" from Virgil's Aeneid (19 BCE) (819 years of separation), or

• The time-span separating Virgil's Aeneid from Homer's Odyssey (750 BCE) (731 years of separation).

Lecture and Reading Schedule