415 - The Languor of Youth and the Uses of Memory: Reading Brideshead Revisited (SU21)

Charles Ryder, a young aspiring painter, attends Oxford and meets Sebastian Flyte, the second son of an aristocratic Catholic family, and becomes inextricably entwined in that family’s struggles with cross-currents of tradition, change, hope, and sin—that is, with the human condition common to all—and spies along the way paths to beauty and truth that can lead to redemption. Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited is one of the most venerated novels of the 20 th century yet one requiring deep-mining knowledge and sympathy to understand aright. Together we will read the story, discuss the background, delineate the characters, relish the scenes, taste the language, and piece out possible meanings for souls, both lost and found.

520 - Classical Pedagogy (S21)

This course will offer an overview of teaching through the reading of classic texts on how best to teach and learn. It will cover the three modes of teaching, their origins in Aristotle's rhetoric and their modern manifestation in Mortimer Adler's "Three Columns." The student will also learn the best method of approach to the teaching of certain specific subjects such as the basic skills of reading, mathematics, and penmanship; classical languages; the trivium subjects of grammar, logic, and rhetoric; as well as the proper teaching of the humanities and the natural sciences. Participants will also gain a basic knowledge of important modern pedagogical debates, with an emphasis on the debate between traditional education and modern progressivism. 

540 - Introduction to the Great Books (S21)

In this short course, we will overview what you can expect from the Great Books curriculum established by Mortimer Adler that you will use at Memoria College.  We will discuss the ideas of a "Great Tradition" or a "Great Conversation," and critically examine how these approaches to classical material might interact with a purely Christian education.  We will also examine Adler's division and selection of texts and his enumeration of "Great Ideas" or themes that we will trace throughout these texts.  Finally, we will discuss ways that you may profitably supplement Adler's canon and follow up texts or authors that you find of particular interest.

413 - Behind and Beyond The Lord of the Rings (S21)

J. R. R. Tolkien, one of the best-loved and bestselling authors of all time, might need no introduction as the author of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, but the faith and philosophy that animates his works and motivates his characters is less well-known. In this five-week seminar, Joseph Pearce, author of three books on Tolkien and his works, will introduce Tolkien in this deeper sense. After taking this course, students will learn to see The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings on a much deeper and more satisfying level of comprehension.

510 - Introduction to Classical Education (S21)

This course will address the question "What is classical education?" We will discuss what education itself consists of, how classical education differs from other, modern definitions of education, how classical education fits in to the history of education, the relevance of classical education to STEM education, and the relationship of classical education to religious belief. This course is generally similar to the course of the same title from summer of 2020, but will use slightly different readings and will vary slightly in its coverage.

530 - The Virtues and Methods of Learning (SU21)

In this short course we will learn some of the practical studying and writing skills that will help you to get the most out of your courses with Memoria College.  We will discuss methods of reading, taking notes, and annotating great texts.  We will practice strategies for fruitful conversations both in class and in our online discussion forums.  Most importantly, however, we will reflect on the kinds of mindset and character that produce a flourishing intellectual life.


412 - Introduction to G.K. Chesterton (SU21)

G. K. Chesterton is one of the most important and influential writers of the twentieth century. A major influence on C. S. Lewis's conversion to Christianity, and on the development of Tolkien's understanding of the imaginative process, Chesterton continues to inspire new generations of readers. In this five-week seminar, Joseph Pearce, author of Wisdom & Innocence: A Life of G. K. Chesterton, will lead us through some of Chesterton's most important works, discussing the ideas that animate them.