Literature   

Some of the most wonderful and mysterious moments in our lives are shared with non-human creatures: our own pets, bird and wildlife watching, a visit to an aquarium, walks in nature parks. We'll be inspired by three beautiful texts: “How to be a Good Creature, a Memoir in Thirteen Animals” (by Sy Montgomery, author of “Soul of an Octopus”); “A Wolf Called Romeo” (Nick Jans); and “Planet Walker” (John Francis, PhD) The emphasis will be on discussing these books in class, and for those who wish, writing and drawing about the creatures in our own lives. This is all about exploration and enjoyment!

NOTE: These books are readily available at a reasonable price on Amazon. Copies are also available from the public library in both hard copy and e-book formats.

In her essay, “Why You Should Read Children’s Books, Even Though You are So Old and Wise,” Katherine Rundell suggests that, at its best, children’s literature “renders in their purest, most archetypal forms hope, hunger, joy, fear. Think of children’s books as literary vodka.” Maurice Sendak certainly brought us a pure, heady distillation. Some of his themes are perhaps even more thought-provoking for adults than for children. Using lecture, discussion, video, and art reproductions, this class will investigate the breadth and depth of Sendak’s thought, writing, and art. We will also explore the important influences on his work, and the ways in which his life, enthusiasms, and art were intimately intertwined. Through group discussion, we will give special attention to “Outside Over There” and to “In the Night Kitchen.” Students should obtain their own copies of these two books. No previous knowledge is necessary to enjoy the class. 

In his dedicatory epistle to Shakespeare’s First Folio, Ben Jonson referred to the author’s “small Latin and less Greek.” Seven years later in the Second Folio, John Milton referred to Shakespeare as “Fancy's child” warbling “his native woodnotes wild.” Was Shakespeare unlearned as these contemporaries imply, or is there evidence that the Bard was influenced by both classical and vernacular literary sources, many untranslated or not published in England during Shakespeare’s lifetime? Scholars today attest to over 200 literary sources identified within the canon. This course will follow the historical perception of Shakespeare’s literary sources and explore what the documentary and literary records suggest regarding the popular consensus of our playwright and poet’s education and erudition. Stephanie Hopkins Hughes’ book, “Educating Shakespeare: What He Knew and How and Where He Learned It” (2022) will provide guidance to the discussion with an emphasis on Shakespeare's 'Greek.’

NOTE: Students are encouraged but not expected to buy the book. Much of the information will be available at Stephanie Hughes’ website, https://politicworm.com/

No previous knowledge or subject matter background is required to join this class where we will discuss Wallace Stegner’s Pulitzer prize-winning novel, “Angle of Repose.” We will explore questions of narrative style, character, family, responsibility, obligation, sacrifice, creativity, aging, and the clash between cultures and generations. Much of the material is relevant to contemporary issues. The book also treats themes of regionalism, the creation and preservation of history, and its relationship to facts and to the truth. It will be conducted as a discussion group, with encouragement for all participants to share their insights, questions, and perceptions. Students can expect to come away from this class with an enriched appreciation of the history of the west after the Civil War, as well as the cultural shifts that found their birth in the 1960's of the Berkeley/San Francisco area. Please read the entire novel before the first class.

NOTE:   Any edition of the book is acceptable. New and used copies are readily available at a reasonable price.

Michel de Montaigne invented the essay in the 16th century, naming it for a French word that meant “to try,” “to test.” While the genre quickly expanded to include any short, non-fictional treatment of some subject matter, essays that retain the hallmarks of Montaigne’s—personal, exploratory and with a structure that resists outlining—tend to be the most literarily satisfying. We will read and discuss three collections: James Baldwin’s “Notes of a Native Son” (1955), Joan Didion’s “Slouching Toward Bethlehem” (1968), and Loren Eiseley’s “The Immense Journey” (1957). They are still available, and class participants should be able to acquire them all for about $35. A syllabus of weekly reading assignments will be sent before the course begins. 

Irony and Inheritance is a close reading of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice.” Participants will learn to detect and delight in the author’s deft use of irony as the story is told. Because we will be learning from shared reflections, it is essential to come to each class with roughly eighty pages read, starting with the first 16 chapters of Volume One. We will spend five weeks together on our voyage of discovery. Week by week we will reflect on the pages read, in a safe environment where honest reactions, objections, and insights are welcomed. Please come to class with the week’s reading FRESH in your mind.

Before shots were fired at Ft. Sumter, Broadway had already gone to war. How Northern playwrights spread the message of abolitionism in the decade before the war will be shown in "Uncle Tom's Cabin," "Osawatomie Brown," and "Neighbor Jackwood." Two wartime plays, "Off to War" and "Guerrillas," representing the North and South, respectively, will also be examined. Theatre conditions, both North and South, will be discussed. We'll also take a long peek at minstrel shows and the songs they made popular. The final class will be given over to readings from the play that marked the real end of the Civil War, "Our American Cousin." The class will get to hear the part that Lincoln missed.

NOTE: This is a course that will allude to topics such as slavery and racism and will include reference to historical language, images, and ideas that were prevalent in the 19th century. Some students may find the material discussed or presented to be offensive or emotionally disturbing. Please contact the OLLI office if you have any questions or concerns.

This seminar requires no text, no prerequisites, and no prior knowledge of the genre. Students will be exposed to a wide range of materials. Through reading, reviews, and discussion, students' understanding and enjoyment of the genre will be enhanced. We will examine various writing styles, settings, and characters by focusing each week on a mystery author who has produced more than one series and sleuth. Bibliographies will be provided as guides, but other appropriate selections are welcomed. Each student will select and sample a book, short story, or YA title, and present a brief oral review for each class session. Authors were selected to provide a random range of mystery types, locations, periods, and characters, beginning with Agatha Christie and ending with Alexander McCall Smith. Students who will miss the class should email a review to Mrs. Clark before 8 a.m. on the day the class meets.

Felicia Bornstein Lubliner, a Polish survivor of the Auschwitz and Gross-Rosen Nazi concentration camps, wrote and spoke publicly afterward about her Holocaust experiences. Her son, the course instructor, invites you to delve into her written stories and oral presentation transcripts, published as “Only Hope: A Survivor’s Stories of the Holocaust.” Each story will be read aloud, either by the instructor or by students who have the book. Participants will be invited to share their reactions, questions, and insights. We will discuss the historical context and lessons to be learned about that period, the universal human responses that the narratives evoke, and the relevance of the subject matter to challenges we face in modern times. 

NOTE: Purchase of "Only Hope" is optional. It is available as a paperback book for $15.99 and as a Kindle download for $5.99. 

In this class we will take our time reading through the wonderful but often dismissed fourth novel by Thomas Pynchon, “Vineland.” Set in 1984, mostly in Northern California but frequently flashing back to the sixties, and with a definite anti-establishment attitude, “Vineland” should resonate with many of us. Vineland of the eighties is a place where the dream of a new age of peace, love and harmony has withered in the face of Reagan era authoritarianism. Yet, in this novel steeped in paranoia, the outlook is still weirdly hopeful. It is also hilarious, filled with typical Pynchonian zaniness. Though we may all get a kick out of the many references in the book to popular culture of those years, we will also be called upon to recognize the damage that the escape from reality, which pop culture encouraged, did to the promise of the counterculture movement of the sixties. We'll talk about what we have read and offer our own reflections on that strange and fascinating era. 

NOTE: You will be expected to provide your own copy of “Vineland” by Thomas Pynchon. Expect to read 40 to 50 pages per week.