Literature   

In this OLLI workshop we will discuss Agatha Christie’s famous character Hercule Poirot. He of the “little grey cells,” the outsized ego and amazing deductive abilities of even the most convoluted mysteries. Christie remains a best seller whose suspenseful narrative style still leaves many of us unable to figure out any of her endings ahead of time! Come discuss with the two Annes why this author remains fresh and engaging. New in-person workshop. Format includes discussion.

This will be the third of three courses on Tolkien’s novel The Lord of the Rings and will focus on The Return of the King. This is a masterwork, and Richard is prepared to build the case from a literary perspective and also to share how Tolkien drew from other great myths of the world: Celtic, Norse, Anglo-Saxon, Finnish, Greek, and Indian. His goal was to create a myth for his “northern” people, and he did so borrowing from many other traditions. This is not unlike what “Homer” and other great writers of the past did with their great myths. This will be a page-by-page examination, like you might experience in graduate school. (It is essential that students have the same edition as the instructor. See below) New remote course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOK: The Return of the King, J.R.R. Tolkien, ISBN 9780547928197 (pbk.), Mariner Books

“Woke up, fell out of bed, dragged a comb across my head…” Most days are routine, as the Beatles sing, until the unexpected happens, causing us to reevaluate our lives and self concepts. We’ll explore novels and films (seen outside of class) that capture a single extraordinary day for people whose epiphanies in the midst of sudden change might recall our own awakenings. Please read James Joyce’s short story “The Dead” (free online in Dubliners at Project Gutenberg) and see John Huston’s 1987 film adaptation (free on Kanopy) before our first class. More information and links to come for enrolled students. New in-person course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOKS: The Dead, James Joyce, ISBN 9781835940303, A Single Man, Christopher Isherwood 9780374533878, On the Calculation of Volume, Book 1, Solvej Balle, ISBN 9780811237253, The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue, ISBN 9780316499033

Welcome to Da Bronx, it is a wonderful place. “Wonderful” in the literal sense: full of wonders. Wonders everyone’s heard of, like the Bronx Zoo and Yankee Stadium; wonders that make presidents cry, as Jimmy Carter famously did in 1977, standing in the rubble of the South Bronx; and wonders only Bronxites seem to know about, like Wave Hill, City Island, and Arthur Avenue. From the South Bronx to Fordham Road, from the Bronx Zoo to Lehman College, from Sedgwick Avenue to yuppie Riverdale, it’s all here. Crime stories that hint at the cultural, social, and economic range of the only New York City borough on the mainland of North America. New in-person course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOK: Bronx Noir, Ed. S J Rozan; ISBN 9781933354255

Please join enthusiastic readers and thinkers to explore a different prize-winning collection: The Story Prize (yes, that’s how the title appears), edited by Larry Dark. It’s a selection of one winner from each year of the prize since its inception in 2004. If you’ve not approached short stories for various reasons, you might find yourself enjoying these shorter pieces by some well-known novelists, including Tobias Wolff, Anthony Doerr, Mary Gordon, Edwidge Danticat, Elizabeth Strout, and others. New in-person course. Format includes discussion.

REQUIRED BOOK: The Story Prize, ed. Larry Dark, ISBN 9781936787630

Reading a story in translation is an invitation to step into a different consciousness, shaped by distinct landscapes, histories, and cultural rhythms. This course will explore the art of the translated narrative, examining how world- class authors use fiction to tackle universal themes — time, mortality, justice, and the delicate threads of human connection. From the fjords of Norway to the Trans Siberian railway, we will navigate works that help define the global literary landscape, including masterpieces by two recent Nobel Prize laureates. Together we will explore what is gained in translation, and how these “foreign” voices help us better understand our own world. Guided by experienced facilitators, we will read and discuss two novels and four novellas in eight weeks. The class is highly participatory so come prepared to immerse yourself. Please read The Ferryman and His Wife for the first class. New remote course. Format includes discussion.

REQUIRED BOOKS: The Ferryman and His Wife, Frode Grytten, translated by Alison McCullough, ISBN 9781643757452; On the Calculation of Volume Book 1, Solvej Balle, translated by Barbara J. Haveland, ISBN 9780811237253; Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, Olga Tokarczuk, translated by Antonia Lloyd-George, ISBN 9780525541332; Eastbound, Maylis De Kerangal, translated by Jessica Moore, ISBN 9781953861504; The White Book, Han Kang, translated by Deborah Smith, ISBN 978 0525573074; Kafka on the Shore, Haruki Marakami, translated by Philip Gabriel, ISBN 9781400079278

It’s now time to enjoy and to learn how this epic and this play spin magic and instill wisdom. We become like kings and queens hearing Homer’s beautiful and deadly story. With Oedipus we join Athenian citizens watching the trauma and healing of a civic life much like our own. These ancient authors make us feel brilliant as they open familiar pathways that lead us to deep social understanding. Class sessions will feature lectures, video from very recent productions, and our own responses shared in full-group and Zoom breakout group discussions. Repeat remote course. Format includes lecture, discussion, and film.

REQUIRED BOOKS: The Odyssey, Homer, Robert Fitzgerald, translator, ISBN 0374525749; Three Theban Plays, Sophocles, Robert Fagles, translator, ISBN 10:0140444254

In this course, we will examine the dramatic circumstances that gave rise to the Beat Generation in the 1940s. Together, we will examine three famous Beat works: Howl and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg, On the Road by Jack Kerouac, and Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs. We will focus on historical events involving Beat writers, important passages of Beat literature, and the literary movement that spawned the 1960s counterculture.

This course is for everyone who wants to read, discuss, and write poetry, whether you’ve written before or not. We will select topics and exercises from The Discovery of Poetry by Frances Mayes to discuss at the beginning of each class, respond to prompts in class, and share our spontaneous work on a voluntary basis. In the second hour of class, we will read and respond to each other’s work. We believe that writers learn best with both praise and friendly questions in a nurturing setting of fellow learners. Bring an open mind, a sense of fun and discovery, and a readiness to read and write. Repeat in-person course. Format includes discussion and hands-on learning.

REQUIRED BOOKS: The Discovery of Poetry, Frances Mayes, ISBN 0156007622; Real Sofistikashun: Essays on Poetry and Craft, Tony Hoagland, ISBN 13: 9781555974558

If you find pleasure and beauty and wisdom in poetry and would like to share your experience with like-minded classmates, this class is for you. Each week we will bring a favorite poem, recite it, and discuss it. There’s no one correct interpretation and no one superior type of poem. We will be guided by what our fellow students are most moved by. From Rumi to Pound, from the psalms to Dr. Seuss, your favorites are welcome. No one’s an expert. We’re just sharing what we love. Repeat in-person course. Format includes discussion.

We will explore ancient anti-Judaism, the Gospels, St. Paul and Christian fathers. We touch upon the middle ages (blood libels, the Black Death, and the pictorial record in Spain) and jump to the modern era beginning with the Dreyfus trial in France, the emergence of antisemitism the birth of Zionism, the depiction of Jews in literature (Oliver Twist, Gentlemen’s Agreement, and others), film, the stage (The Merchant of Venice), and music. Finally we will consider the normalization of antisemitism both in America and worldwide, the importance of the Hamas attack on Israel, and the new wave of antisemitic violence and failure of leadership to protect Jewish students on college campuses. Repeat in-person course. Format includes lecture, discussion, and film.

The Woman in White (1860), by Wilkie Collins, is an early mystery novel, a sensational Gothic tale, and a discussion of the legal rights of women in Victorian Britain. Collins was a friend, colleague, employee, and competitor of Charles Dickens, with a more liberal political and social outlook. A popular and prolific novelist, Collins sought to entertain but also to illuminate social issues he found important. The novel uses many of the sensational tropes of the period — Kidnapping! Insanity! Mistaken identity! Sinister foreigners! Inheritance theft! — and, of course, also, many kinds of love stories. New in-person course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOK: The Woman in White, Wilkie Collins, ISBN 9780141439617

We will open up the term with an overview of progress to date, complete the Cyclops Episode, and move on to Nausicaa, the episode that prompted the initial banning of the book. If you have ever picked up Ulysses and then put it down, here is an opportunity to finish the book! Repeat in-person course. Format includes lecture and discussion.

REQUIRED BOOKS: The New Bloomsday Book, Harry Blamires, ISBN 0415138582; Ulysses, James Joyce, Annotated, D. Gifford with R.J. Seidman, ISBN 0520067452