Welcome to SPACE, our adult continuing education program which offers interactive monthly courses for personal enrichment! Learn more here.
A Module in Tolkien and the Romantics
• Non-Sequential Series
Discussion-based
•
Low intensity
This class needs 3 more votes by July 1 to get confirmed.
This module is a standing candidate which means it will be ready to launch as soon as it gets enough interest. Token holders can set aside a Token to reserve their seat for this candidate and help it get confirmed.
J.R.R. Tolkien's revolutionary depictions of nature have inspired many to respect and cherish the environment. However, if we journeyed back two hundred years, we would discover that radical British Romantic authors were also challenging how readers perceived their surroundings! In this module, we will use ecology to explore the many parallels and contrasts between Tolkien's Arda and the Romantic's portrayals of nature big and small: mountains and meadows, woods and wildernesses, daffodils and dead marshes. This will include examining how characters react to the environment, nature's existence as separate from our own, and the broader concern of the Industrial Revolution's destructive potential.
The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:
The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below:
| Outline | 8-Session Structure |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | Lecture 1: Visions of Nature |
| Discussion 1: What do your Elf-eyes see? | |
| Week 2 | Lecture 2: All things Sublime and Beautiful |
| Discussion 2: Sublime, Beautiful, or both at once?! | |
| Week 3 | Lecture 3: I want to see mountains! |
| Discussion 3: One with our environment | |
| Week 4 | Lecture 4: Ecology without Humanity |
| Discussion 4: What is actually out there beyond the Human sphere? |
Required Texts
There is no pre-reading required for this module and no secondary material required. All extracts from texts used throughout this Tolkien and the Romantics' module will appear on the presentations and class workbooks.
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This will be a Hybrid class (4 lectures & 4 discussion sessions). Each week will consist of 1 hour of recorded lecture and 1 hour of live discussion (not recorded) for a total of 8 class hours over the course of the month.
DELIVERY PLAN
1. The first session each week will be a lecture session (live-recorded), shared with all students afterward in case they wish to review the session or were unable to attend it live.
2. The second session each week will be a live discussion session (not recorded)
DELIVERY PLAN
1. The first session each week will be a lecture session (live-recorded), shared with all students afterward in case they wish to review the session or were unable to attend it live.
2. The second session each week will be a live discussion session (not recorded)
Days and Times
As soon as we obtain enough interest in this class we will be in touch to work out a meeting time that works for the group. Thank you for keeping your August 2025 availability up to date!