Popular Courses – English Literature
Austen, Jane – Pride and Prejudice
Elizabeth Bennet has four sisters. One of them must marry to inherit the family estate. Mr D’arcy is quite a catch.
Atwood, Margaret – The Handmaid’s Tale
-In Atwood’s retro-future, puritanism and patriarchy govern in the former USA. Offred delivers her story.
Bradbury, Ray – Fahrenheit 451
-In Bradbury’s dystopia, books have been banned. The job of the firemen is now to burn paper, which ignites at 451° F
Delaney, Shelagh – A Taste of Honey
-Delaney’s trailblazing 1961 drama was among the first to deal with working class issues in working class language.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott – The Great Gatsby
-Jay Gatsby is the talk of New York society, but does anyone really know that much about him?
Golding, William – Lord of the Flies
-What happens when you maroon a group of schoolboys on a desert island? Nature can be savage.
Hemingway, Ernest – The Old Man and the Sea
-If the title was any more honest, it would mention the fish. Hemingway’s greatest novella is a simple joy.
-Dennis Kelly’s 2008 play deals with a harrowing story of teenage bullying and peer pressure. The darkest of comedies.
– Witches were everywhere in 17th century Massachusetts…or so they would have you believe.
-The book that gave us the adjective, Orwellian. 1984 is a picture of a grim future under mass surveillance.
-All animals are created equal, but some are more equal than others. Orwell’s political analogy is not a petting zoo.
Priestly, J.B. – An Inspector Calls
-One night in pre-war Britain, a family dinner is interrupted by the arrival of a mysterious stranger who already knows their darkest secrets.
-Mary Shelley’s Gothic horror is considered by Brian Aldiss to be the forerunner of the Science Fiction genre.
Shakespeare, William – The Merchant of Venice
-Shylock’s bond entitles him to a pound of Antonio’s flesh. Would he attempt to collect on such a debt?
Shakespeare, William – Romeo and Juliet
-‘In fair Verona where we lay our scene’ – Maybe the greatest work of romantic literature ever created.
Shakespeare, William – Macbeth
– Witches, horses eating each other, and lots of bloody murder. This play is not one for date night.
Shakespeare, William – The Tempest
-The original desert island love story. Now with extra magical bits!
Steinbeck, John – The Grapes of Wrath
-The great depression along with the weather event known as the Dustbowl forced many Americans west. They were not made to feel welcome.
-Being teenage is never easy. In 1972 Meena is about to start that journey. Anita is her guide.
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