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'Trousers. That's the secret...Put on trousers and the world changes. We walk different. We act different. I see these girls and I think: idiots! Get yourself some trousers!'

In a journey through the Discworld series, from The Colour of Magic to The Shepherd’s Crown, there is huge progress on the Disc as it journeys from the Century of the Fruitbat into the Century of the Anchovy. Inventions, enterprises and cultural progress are at the forefront of Terry Pratchett’s industrial revolution-based books. All the Industrial Revolution books follow a different form of technology as it is introduced to the Disc, and we get to see how these impact upon the inhabitants’ lives. For example, The Truth is about Ankh-Morpork’s first ever printing press, and Raising Steam looks at what happens when steam trains are brought to the Disc. Like any other world, though, change is not always easy, and Pratchett shows us via his trademark satire and humour how challenging – and how illuminating – progress can be.

Over the eight classes we will read the six books, in publication order, with one book being discussed in each of six classes. Two classes will be built in that will allow for further discussion of the themes raised in this series.

Please stay tuned...This page will be updated later on!

Please stay tuned...This page will be updated later on!

Please stay tuned...This page will be updated soon!

Please stay tuned...This page will be updated later on!

Sir Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy is widely regarded as a modern classic, has been described by The New Statesman as “the most ambitious work since The Lord of the Rings,” and has been adapted onto stage, radio, and screen. The series is also deep and complex, drawing from a rich array of literary, philosophical, and theological ideas.

In this three-module series we will read, successively, the three novels in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, juxtaposing each with selected materials that will allow us to read Pullman’s work both on its own and in conversation with other works.

Note: Students can join one, two, or all three modules. There are no prerequisites.

Join Ms. Elise for a cozy and relaxed Book Club as we read and discuss the magic of C.S. Lewis’s highly esteemed series, The Chronicles of Narnia.

Although they were never completed in his lifetime, JRR Tolkien wrote what he considered his three "Great Tales" of the Elder Days and intended them to be a significant part of his wider Silmarillion. This series each of his Great Tales in turn, namely, The Tale of Beren and Lúthien, The Children of Húrin, and The Fall of Gondolin. Some parts of these Tales can be found within the published version of The Silmarillion, but the more recently available individual books provide additional and extensive details for each story.

In Mob Psycho 100, Shigeo Kageyama ("Mob") is an ordinary middle school student who also happens to have strong psychic abilities. Between his part-time job as an exorcist's assistant, his desire to fit in at school, and the weird things that tend to happen to him, he struggles to find the ordinary life he craves. This series turns many of the tropes of battle-shounen anime on their head, while also exploring what it means to be a good person and find the life you want -- while also including some incredible action sequences. Please join us for a discussion of the themes, tropes, and characters of this unusual show.

Module structure:
Session 1: Episodes 1-3
Session 2: Episodes 4-6
Session 3: Episodes 7-9
Session 4: Episodes 10-12 (end of season 1)
Session 5: Episodes 13-15
Session 6: Episodes 16-19
Session 7: Episodes 20-22
Session 8: Episodes 23-25 (end of season 2)

This is the parent page for our Children's Literature modules which introduce students to the breadth and depth of texts available for study. Each month, our preceptors survey the group to see which text students are most interested in exploring next.

Children's books are full of unforgettabel characters, settings, and adventures. They take us to magic, often dangerous lands, and they also evoke beautiful imagery and deep feelings. In these modules we will explore from the gentleness of Japanese children's books to the wild Pippi Longstocking. We'll talk about their themes, setting, worldbuilding, and imagery.

Each module stands on it own, and no previous knowledge is required. Some of the texts we could explore in a given month include:
• Nordic Madness: Exploring Children's Literature in Three Nordic Authors
• Japanese Fairy Tales and Children's Literature

Note: Please refer to the Required Texts section on a month's iteration page to see which texts the group has decided upon for a given month.

Sudying fairy tales takes us back to a time when stories where passed from culture to culture. These stories, replicated around the world, deal with fears and axieties, but they also give us hope as it is the smallest and most vulnerable the one who usually triumphs.

In these modules, we will explore different authors and fairy tales from around the world. Students will have the opportunity to read and re-read the Grimm brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, Andrew Lang, Oscar Wilde and fairy tales from differnet cultures such as Russia, and Japan. Each month, our preceptors will survey the group using to see which text students are most interested in exploring next.

We offer the following Fairy Tales Studies modules:
• Fairy Tales: An Adventure from the Writer's Perspective
• Fairy Tales: From Apples to Bears
• Fairy Tales: Rats, Mice, and Birds
• Fairy Tales: Tricksters, Fools, and Villains
• Introduction to Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales
• Introduction to Oscar Wilde's Fairy Tales: A House of Pomegranates
• Introduction to Oscar Wilde's Fairy Tales: The Happy Prince and Other Tales
• Japanese Fairy Tales and Children's Literature
• Russian Fairy Tales: Journeys, Quests, and Chicken Legs
• Yōkai and Legends: Exploring the Weird in Japanese and Latin American Cultures
• Encountering the Japanese Weird through Lafcadio Hearn's Kwaidan
• Exploring Smith of Wootton Major and Farmer Giles of Ham
• Fairy Tales: Beauty and the Beast

Note: Each module stands on its own and no previous knowledge is required. The idea is to read and discuss these stories, their themes, imagery, and see how we respond to them.

Description forthcoming!

Description forthcoming!

Description forthcoming!

JRR Tolkien is one of those rare authors whose poetry is as accomplished as his prose writing. Up to this point, though, those who wished to focus primarily on Tolkien’s poetry had to access a significant number of books and online resources to do so, as they were scattered far and wide. Now, a Most Delightful Event has occurred – for the first time, a collected volume of Tolkien’s poetry is available, and it is a Tome of Significant Size!

In this hybrid course, we will read and discuss a selection of these poems, enjoying them for their aesthetic appeal as well as analysing them for Tolkien’s style, use of language, and the poetic forms he employed. This is a hybrid course, in which one class per week will be a lecture and the second class will be group discussion.

There are so many poems in these volumes that the intention is to spread the course over several months. If you can’t make one or more of the months, feel free to dip in and out as suits you!

I am also delighted to announce that one lecture session per month will be led by the one and only James Tauber, who will focus on language and the formal elements of the poetry