This dynamic series invites participants to explore masterpieces of world literature that illuminate timeless questions of politics, power, psychology, and human imagination. Together we will read Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannos and Plato’s Republic; journey through Mexico with Campobello’s Cartucho and Rulfo’s Pedro Páramo; examine Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s fearless critiques of colonialism; and revisit George Orwell’s 1984 and Animal Farm with fresh eyes for our current moment. Through lively discussion, these courses connect ancient and modern voices across cultures, offering insight into enduring struggles of justice, freedom, and truth. No prior knowledge of Greek—or any language but English—is required.
Additional details for each class are available at www.sfcc.augusoft.net.
Sophocles’ Oedipus Tyrannos (Rex in Latin) is a cold-case murder mystery in which the detective discovers that he himself committed the crime. The title itself begins a monstrous tangle of ironies since a Greek “tyrannos” is a non-hereditary usurper, but Oedipus turns out to be the son of the king he killed and replaced, engendering brothers and sisters as children in his own mother’s bed. As Sophocles plots the story, the play becomes a penetrating inquiry into human psychology (Freud’s Oedipus complex being a pale shadow), the inevitable tragedy of political life, and the limits of reason. All that aside, Oedipus is enormously fun to read, especially with others. No knowledge of Greek is required.
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