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WEA courses
Displaying 1 - 10 of 48
Displaying search results for: "literature"
Literature: Classic American Short Stories
This day school focuses on three short stories from the American literary tradition by Alice Walker, Ernest Hemingway, and Edith Wharton. The session includes tutor presentations and group discussions about each story. Resources will be available before the session for pre- and post-session reflection. During the day, we will analyse specific excerpts and broader cultural contexts, exploring how fiction connects to the real world. Join us for an engaging exploration of these iconic American authors and their contributions to literature.
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Course Information
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Dates:Sat 19/10/2024 -
Sat 19/10/2024Times:10:30am - 4:30pmDuration:1 sessionsLocation:Norwich Millennium Library (Norwich)
Millennium Library
The Forum, Millennium Plain
Norwich
NR2 1AWTutor:James ClarkeCourse code:Q00017993How you'll learn:In venueAvailability:7 places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £25.20
Literature: Victorian Literature Through the Decades - The 1840s
During this course we will consider a wide range of novels that were pubished in the 1840s as a continuation of an exploration of literature published through the decades of Victoria’s long reign. We will consider a range of novels by both male and female writers: Barnaby Rudge (Charles Dickens 1841); The Luck of Barry Lyndon (W M Thackeray, 1844); Sybil (Benjamin Disraeli, 1845); Agnes Grey (Anne Bronté, 1847); Shirley (Charlotte Bronté, 1849). The 1840s were a prosperous time for many but but this decade was also known as the Hungry Forties. The 1840s also saw the growth of the realist novel.
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Course Information
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Dates:Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 01/04/2025Times:2:30pm - 4:30pmDuration:13 sessionsLocation:Exeter Community Centre (Exeter)
17 St. Davids Hill
Exeter
EX4 3RGTutor:Greta DepledgeCourse code:Q00016886How you'll learn:In venueAvailability:10+ places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £100.80
History: The Rise of the Greeks
How did ancient Greek culture emerge from the end of the Bronze Age? The course aims (over two terms) to give a detailed and wide-ranging account of ancient Greek society and civilisation is it emerged in the so-called "Archaic Period", and is primarily intended for those who would like to pursue an interest in the nature of ancient history. You will learn about the historical development of ancient Greece from the 8th century BC down until 7th century BC in all its various aspects, both cultural, artistic, social and military, focusing in particular on the evidence for the earliest city-states and reasons for their predominance.
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Dates:Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 25/03/2025Times:7:15pm - 8:15pmDuration:11 sessionsLocation:OnlineTutor:Gary SlatorCourse code:Q00020757How you'll learn:OnlineAvailability:10+ places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £40.70
History: British History Through the Lives of 10 Women
This 10-week course is a re - run of the Autumn course and offers a unique exploration of British history by examining the lives and contributions of ten remarkable women who left indelible marks on society, culture, and politics. From ancient warriors to pioneering scientists and influential writers, each woman represents a distinct era in British history, shedding light on the struggles, achievements, and societal changes of their times.
Throughout the course, we will delve into the lives of these extraordinary women, analysing their impact on British society and their enduring legacies. By studying their stories, learners will gain a deeper understanding of key historical events, social movements, and cultural shifts that have shaped the fabric of Britain.
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Course Information
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Dates:Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 18/03/2025Times:10:00am - 12:00pmDuration:10 sessionsLocation:OnlineTutor:Kate AntoniouCourse code:Q00019208How you'll learn:OnlineAvailability:0 places remainingStatus:Waiting listFee rangeFree to £74.00
WEA Membership
WEA membership is changing: more information is coming soon!
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Membership Information
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Duration:12 monthsFee:£15
Literature: The Fables of Robert Louis Stevenson
The course presents all twenty-two “fables” of Robert Louis Stevenson, some as short as a few lines, others running to several pages, all of them challenging the reader with unexpected approaches to human life. We will read all the fables in six weeks, coming together on Zoom to share responses and questions, examine the literary merits and explore the ways the fables might enhance our understanding of ourselves and others we come into contact with day by day. There are podcasts for each fable to supplement our discussions, as well as space on the Canvas site to continue the Zoom discussions.
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Dates:Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 12/02/2025Times:1:00pm - 2:30pmDuration:6 sessionsLocation:OnlineTutor:Robert-Louis AbrahamsonCourse code:Q00019254How you'll learn:OnlineAvailability:10+ places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £33.00
British Novels in the 70s and 80s (Part 2)
This course will consider and analyse the following authors
and their texts. These are:
Strange Meeting - Susan Hill.
So Long Hector Bebb - Ron Berry.
Flaubert’s Parrot - Julian Barnes.
The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro.
Innocence - Penelope Fitzgerald.
These texts will provide a window into the different regions of
Britain during two decades of major change in the social fabric and
political nature of Britain, though several of our texts will trace
these changes back to the earlier part of the twentieth century,
and in doing so, we will encounter themes of identity, class and
the decline of Empire.
There will be much to prompt discussion and challenge our
assumptions.
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Course Information
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Dates:Wed 08/01/2025 -
Wed 19/03/2025Times:2:15pm - 4:15pmDuration:10 sessionsLocation:Rose House (London)
70 Barnes High Street
London
SW13 9LDTutor:Stephen SmithCourse code:Q00017376How you'll learn:In venueAvailability:8 places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £100.00
British Literature 1980 - 2011 (Part 2)
Part 2 of this course builds on our first ten weeks before Christmas, but as each text is studied individually, it is possible to pursue Part 2 separately.
We will explore the following texts:
On Chesil Beach - Ian McEwan.
Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell (2004)
Day - A.L. Kennedy.
Affinity - Sarah Waters.
The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes.
There will be a wealth of opportunity for discussion of these texts and their themes, which will involve memory, how narratives are structured and gender issues. The texts will also introduce concepts relating to how one reads texts closely and aligns these texts with modern literary movements.
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Course Information
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Dates:Thu 09/01/2025 -
Thu 20/03/2025Times:2:15pm - 4:15pmDuration:10 sessionsLocation:Friends Meeting House (Sutton)
10 Cedar Road
Sutton
SM2 5DATutor:Stephen SmithCourse code:Q00017594How you'll learn:In venueAvailability:6 places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £100.00
Literature: Gissing and Zola – further studies in 19th century naturalist fiction
This course will look at a range of novels by late 19th century naturalist writers George Gissing and Emile Zola. Zola is seen as the leading exponent of French naturalist fiction and Gissing is often classified as an English naturalist writer. Naturalism is a literary genre that considers human character as being determined by environment, social conditions and evolution. Naturalism is similar to realism in that both genres focus on social commentary, they reject romanticism, but naturalism emphasises scientific objectivism. The novels we will study are Zola’s: The Earth (1887); La Bête Humaine (1890); L’Assommoir (1877) and Gissing’s: The Odd Women (1893); The Nether World (1889); The Whirlpool (1897).
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Course Information
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Dates:Thu 09/01/2025 -
Thu 03/04/2025Times:3:00pm - 5:00pmDuration:13 sessionsLocation:OnlineTutor:Greta DepledgeCourse code:Q00017844How you'll learn:OnlineAvailability:10+ places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £81.60
Literature: A Tour of Dante's Inferno
Dante’s Inferno, one of the masterpieces of Western literature, is structured as a journey Dante takes through the different levels of Hell, observing the souls damned for various kinds of self-centred actions (sins) while alive, providing us with a series of insightful images and dramas, taking us deep into the psychological depths of humanity. The course takes us through the 34 cantos of Dante’s Inferno, progressing slowly so we can question, discuss and savour the literary features and the vision of human nature presented in the poem.
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Dates:Fri 10/01/2025 -
Fri 04/04/2025Times:1:00pm - 2:30pmDuration:12 sessionsLocation:OnlineTutor:Robert-Louis AbrahamsonCourse code:Q00019292How you'll learn:OnlineAvailability:2 places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £66.60
Art Appreciation: Victorian Art - Town and Country
The Victorian years saw unprecedented industrialisation which changed the face of Britain but also attitudes. Industrial developments were perceived as both positive and negative, but the countryside was viewed as a tradition, community and continuity. Yet images of the country, as well as the town, reveal the complexity of a society adapting to the modern world. Depiction of idyllic country scenes and grimy urban life reveal deep tension in Victorian society. This course will reveal that complexity and the contradictions which characterised the years 1837 to 1901 by examining paintings, engravings, photographs cartoons and the literature of the period.
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Course Information
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Dates:Fri 10/01/2025 -
Fri 21/03/2025Times:2:30pm - 4:30pmDuration:10 sessionsLocation:Grimsby Central Hall & Arts Community Ce
Duncombe Street
Grimsby
DN32 7EGTutor:Tim StimsonCourse code:Q00017917How you'll learn:In venueAvailability:10+ places remainingStatus:AvailableFee rangeFree to £84.00