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Eight Books that Changed the World: A Four Part Course with Dr. Joseph Luzzi
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What are eight books that changed the world – and continue to impact society today? In this 4-part course, Professor Joseph Luzzi, the Asher B. Edelman Professor of Literature at Bard College, will take you inside eight magnificent works from the realms of religion, science, politics, and civil rights, to show how writers throughout the centuries have responded to crises and shaped their cultures.
In each of our sessions, Professor Luzzi will discuss two books that connect in fascinating ways, on issues of religion (Genesis and Paradise Lost); scientific discovery (The Starry Messenger and Frankenstein); political theory and practice (The Communist Manifesto and Animal Farm); and the struggle for freedom and against racism (Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas and Invisible Man). Join us for what promises to be thought-provoking look at how some of the most consequential books ever written live on, as vibrant as ever, in the present tense.
Part 1: The Bible (c. 900 BC); focus on Genesis; paired with John Milton, Paradise Lost (1667)
Part 3: Karl Marx, Communist Manifesto (1848); paired with George Orwell, Animal Farm (1945)
Part 4: Frederick Douglass, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (1845); paired with Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (1952)
Joseph Luzzi received his Ph.D. from Yale University and is a Professor of Comparative Literature and Faculty Member in Italian Studies at Bard College, where he has taught since 2002 after being a visiting faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania. A frequent contributor to publications including the New York Times, TLS, and Chronicle of Higher Education, he is the author of 5 books, including "My Two Italies," a New York Times Editors' Choice selection and "In a Dark Wood: What Dante Taught Me About Grief, Healing, and the Mysteries of Love," a Vanity Fair “Must-Read” selection. His work has been translated into multiple languages and his many awards include a Yale College Teaching Prize, Dante Society of America Essay Prize, and Wallace Fellowship at Villa I Tatti, Harvard's Center for Italian Renaissance Studies. In 2017 he was named Cittadino Onorario/Honorary Citizen in Acri, Calabria, his Italian parents' birthplace. His next book is "Botticelli's Secret: The Lost Drawings and the Rediscovery of the Renaissance," which will be published by W. W. Norton. Professor Luzzi is the founder of the Virtual Book Club, an online community of readers dedicated to exploring some of the best books ever written. Learn more at JosephLuzzi.com.
This conversation is suitable for all ages.
90 minutes, including a 30 minute Q&A.
I HAVE AN MA IN HUMANITIES SO AM FASCINATED WITH FINDING RELATIONSHIPS AMONG ART IN VARIOUS MEDIA AND DECADES. I WOULD LOVE TO CONTINUE LISTENING TO THIS BRIGHT AND TALENTED MAN EVERY DAY.
An excellent snapshot journey through some of the world's most profound books and authors. The 8 lectures will inspire you go to back and reread and refresh them for yourself.
Take time out to think about books you may have read or just not thought about for a while, then dive back into your day refreshed and curious!
2 at a time comparisons of books gives a focus to the success of ideas that effectively change common perspectives due to? Good writing!! Excellent series.