Life Lessons from the Great Books

Overview

Course No. 2180
Professor J. Rufus Fears explores timeless wisdom through 36 masterpieces of Western literature, examining:

• Six universal themes: human resilience, aging, love, courage, humor, and patriotism
• How classic works from Homer to Orwell remain relevant today
• Practical guidance for modern life drawn from 3,000 years of literature
• Connections between ancient wisdom and contemporary challenges

Discover how these enduring texts offer profound insights into the human condition across centuries.

Video Lessons

The Unconquerable Human Spirit

1. Seneca’s “On Providence” (32 min)
   Stoic wisdom on facing adversity
2. Gospel of John (30 min)
   Spiritual power vs. earthly empires
3. Boethius & MLK (30 min)
   Conscience and moral courage
4. Dostoevsky’s Brothers Karamazov (30 min)
   Wrestling with existential questions
5. Wiesel’s Night (30 min)
   Holocaust survival and human resilience
6. Schweitzer’s Autobiography (30 min)
   Reverence for life in action

Youth, Age, and Life’s Journey

7. Goethe’s Young Werther (30 min)
   Romantic passion’s dangers
8. Shakespeare’s Hamlet (30 min)
   The perils of vengeance
9. Sophocles’ Ajax (30 min)
   Pride’s destructive potential
10. Plato’s Epistle VII (30 min)
    Philosopher’s personal failures
11. Cicero “On Old Age” (30 min)
    Wisdom of experience
12. Singer’s The Penitent (30 min)
    Spiritual growth in later life

Love’s Many Faces

13. Euripides’ Alcestis (30 min)
    Self-sacrificial love
14. Euripides’ Medea (30 min)
    Love turned to vengeance
15. Tristan and Isolde (30 min)
    Medieval passion and betrayal
16. Antony and Cleopatra (30 min)
    Love vs. political duty
17. Macbeth (30 min)
    Ambition disguised as love
18. Brave New World (30 min)
    Society without true love

Adventure and Courage

19. Homer’s Odyssey (30 min)
    Archetypal journey home
20. Sophocles’ Philoctetes (29 min)
    Wartime suffering and redemption
21. Song of Roland (30 min)
    Chivalric honor’s limits
22. Nibelungenlied (30 min)
    Destiny and heroic ideals
23. Lewis & Clark Journals (30 min)
    Exploration and friendship
24. Lawrence’s Seven Pillars (31 min)
    Desert warfare and legend

Laughter and Irony

25. Aristophanes’ Comedies (30 min)
    Ancient political satire
26. Menander’s The Grouch (30 min)
    Finding true happiness
27. Machiavelli’s La Mandragola (30 min)
    Renaissance sex comedy
28. Erasmus’ In Praise of Folly (30 min)
    Human foolishness exposed
29. More’s Utopia (30 min)
    Imagining the ideal society
30. Orwell’s Animal Farm (30 min)
    Political allegory and satire

Patriotism and Leadership

31. Josephus’ Jewish War (30 min)
    Freedom’s ultimate cost
32. Addison’s Cato (30 min)
    Revolutionary inspiration
33. Washington’s Farewell (31 min)
    Founding wisdom for America
34. Lincoln & Patton (30 min)
    Wartime leadership contrasted
35. Roosevelt’s Autobiography (31 min)
    Character forged in wilderness
36. Conclusion: Eternal Wisdom (32 min)
    Why great books remain essential