Literature

The Nineteenth-Century Novel


Lifelong learning
12 months
Core curriculum

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Description


The main focus of this course is reading unabridged Great Books in their entirety. Instead of dividing books into American, British and world literature courses, we progress through the Great Books chronologically over multiple courses. We feel this approach better facilitates appreciation of the progression of literature over time, and eliminating nationality restrictions allows for inclusion of more relevant books.

This course consists of iconic novels that were written in Europe and the US during the nineteenth century (a couple of selections from the turn of the twentieth century are also included). We recommend trying to complete all the core readings, and taking on the optional readings as time and interest allow.

In the descriptive page for each book, we recommend a translation (where applicable) and include other helpful information. It is not necessary to read the literary essays included in many editions of these works. Instead, we suggest that you prepare to read each book by reading one or two reputable online reviews, and browsing discussions of the work in discussion forums such as Quora.

Course components


A Tale of Two Cities

By Charles Dickens

Core curriculum
Reading level 7
Aug 4, 2024 - Aug 23, 2024

David Copperfield

By Charles Dickens

Core curriculum
Reading level 7
Aug 26, 2024 - Sep 27, 2024

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