Kafka

Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer based in Prague, who is widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature.  

The poet W. H. Auden called Kafka "the Dante of the twentieth century". The novelist Vladimir Nabokov placed him among the greatest writers of the 20th century. Gabriel García Márquez noted the reading of Kafka's The Metamorphosis showed him "that it was possible to write in a different way".  Others, such as Thomas Mann, see Kafka's work as allegorical: a quest, metaphysical in nature, for God

In this SDG, we will start with reading Kafka’s Letter to his Father and then  Dostoevsky’s Notes from The Underground in order to start getting to know him and keep Dostoevsky in mind who heavily influenced him - Kafka called him his blood relative.  We will then dive in reading his work starting with Metamorphosis while  comparing and discussing similarities and influences and analyzing and trying to understand his role in existentialism and absurdism of life.

The Bully Pulpit: Teddy Roosevelt, William Howard Taft and Golden Age of Journalism

The Bully Pulpit, the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Doris Kearns Goodwin, is a multiple biography of two former Presidents, their personal sagas and their turbulent times- Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft.  It is also a tale of the Progressive Era and its crusades against the trusts, corruption and the rising inequality of income, and for the working people.  It is also a tale of the famous muckrakers, the editors and writers who were indispensable allies of progressive politicians, both Republican and Democrats- Sam McClure, Ida Tarbell, Lincoln Steffens, Ray Baker, William White, Upton Sinclair.  But the book is much more than this.  It is the story how two Presidents used the media they had available to get their message out to the public.  Theodore Roosevelt was an impactful speaker: while Taft was not.  Teddy was full of himself, full of boundless energy. Taft was not.  Yet the two formed a unique alliance in the history of the presidency- until it foundered.  The book also provides us with stunning parallels to our own times, and the opportunities to compare and contrast the use of presidential power, the role of political parties, the influence of the media and investigative journalism.  This study of a turning point in our history (1880-1912) will illuminate our own times as well: the balance of power between governments and corporations, conservation of natural resources, power of money in politics, concern about powerful banking and corporate interests, the interplay between labor, capitol and government, trade policy, inequitable taxation, the growing gap between rich and poor, the power of the press and the significance of personal relationships.

Germany: A History 1500-2000

Although the German state did not exist until 1870 when Bismarck unified the various German states under Prussian leadership, we begin our study of “Germany History” in 1500 as it was then that people began to refer routinely to the Holy Roman Empire as the German Nation. This is also when a common form of the language emerged. Equally important, this was the time when humanists began to write about a place called “Germany” inhabited by people called “Germans.”

Using Germany in the World: A Global History, 1500-2000 by David Blackbourn, we will approach our subject by looking at Germany in a global context. Far from being a landlocked country interested in its own affairs, we will see Germans as involved in the expanding worlds of Europe. We will find German soldiers, ship gunners, merchants, surgeons, and scientists on the ships of European exploration. Germans helped shape the Atlantic world. However, with no German state, there was no German Empire, and we will see how this fact influenced how Germans viewed themselves and their culture. By looking at German history from a global view, we will see familiar events, such as the Reformation, in a new light. Likewise we will study the rise of German nationalism, as a failure in 1848 and finally a success in 1870, as part of a worldwide nation building during a large shift that reset the global order in the last half of the 19th century.

Join us for lively discussions as we look at German history with fresh eyes and a new view.

Haruki Murakami’s Short Stories and Films

“I think memory is the most important asset of human beings. It’s a kind of fuel; it burns and it warms you.” --Haruki Murakami

Japanese writer Haruki Murakami’s work is often philosophical and haunting, touching on themes of sexual identity and love, loss and detachment, nostalgia and memory. As a young writer, Murakami was greatly influenced by the Western canon of writers that he admired; so much so that his fresh, direct and raw style changed the face of Japanese fiction writing that followed. He counts such diverse writers as Kafka, Dostoevsky, Raymond Chandler and Kurt Vonnegut as major influences. Murakami is that rare literary writer who revels in telling an exciting story without sacrificing his unique, singular vision. His use of magic realism, surrealism, the fantastic and a sly sense of humor are all signs of his fearlessness as a writer. Murakami has won numerous literary awards including the coveted Kafka Prize, and his legions of international fans wait expectantly year after year for the esteemed 74-year old writer to be awarded the Noble Prize in Literature.

In this 10-week SDG, we will be visiting stories from one of Murakami’s earliest collections,  as well as two of his latest compilations. We will also watch two highly acclaimed films based on two of his short stories, Burning (2018) from Korean director, Lee Chang-dong and Drive My Car (2021) from Japanese director, Ryusuke Hamaguchi. Expect the usual mesmerizing atmosphere and a wry sensibility that might leave you with more questions, perhaps, than answers.

Literature, Music, and Art of the Harlem Renaissance

In little more than a decade during the 1920's and 1930's a new generation of African-American writers, artists, musicians and intellectuals burst through the conventions of the time, determined to describe their own lives and their own world frankly and without compromise.  The Harlem Renaissance was born.  The purpose of this SDG is to educate, entertain and open a window into the life and times of African-Americans in the 1920's and 1930's.

The Delicious History of Chocolate

Who doesn't like chocolate? Although humans consume about 16 billion pounds a year of the stuff, not every chocolate lover knows its fascinating history. So let's explore that history, from a beverage considered the "food of the gods" in the New World to an inexpensive candy in North America and Europe, and beyond.

The core book, by two anthropologists, The True History of Chocolate, starts with the earliest known consumers, the Mayans, and moves to the Aztecs who used cocoa beans as currency as well as a source of a drink reserved for the elite. Europeans then transformed the drink and developed chocolate candy. When demand exceeded supply, they turned some of their colonies near the equator into chocolate plantations. Eventually enterprising chocolate lovers were determined to bring affordable chocolate to everyone, but at considerable cost to the growers and harvesters in Africa. And today's entrepreneurs are responding to a renewed interest in innovative high quality chocolate candy. 

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution

Their shows are American classics: “Oklahoma!,” “Carousel,” “The King and I,” “Sound of Music” and “South Pacific,” to list just some of them.

Their songs are classics of the American Songbook. Inspirational, but perhaps a little corny (“Climb Every Mountain,” “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “My Favorite Things.”) 

But few people know that Rodgers & Hammerstein were the radical pioneers of the “book musical” (where the songs were integrated into the story, as opposed to just dropped in for fun like the old vaudeville shows that proceeded them). And they were the first musicians to tackle serious subjects such as spousal abuse, suicide, male chauvinism and, especially, racism — in a time when even the movies wouldn’t touch such subjects. 

This SDG will not only take us through their work — show-by-show (and, of course, we’ll be listening to some amazing music and seeing some spectacular video along the way) — but will also tell you who these two very different men were, what was their relationship and how they made it work - until it didn’t anymore.

Besides their songs, which will be the soundtrack to this SDG, the core book will be Todd Purdum’s brilliant “Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution,” which explores their fascinating lives and collaboration, show-by-show.

Don’t believe us. Here’s what The New York Times has to say about the book: “Something Wonderful” offers a fresh look at the milieu and circumstances that contributed to the creation of some of the musical theater’s greatest and most enduring treasures.”

Don’t believe the Times? Here’s what The Washington Post has to say: 

“Todd S. Purdum offers a great introduction for newbies and enough fresh insights to engage readers familiar with the story. A veteran political reporter, Purdum goes moonlighting to delightful effect in “Something Wonderful.” His journalistic skills are evident in this affectionate tribute to the team that rewrote the rules for American musical theater. “Something Wonderful” is thoroughly researched and briskly written, seamlessly blending a chronological narrative of the productions with cogent analyses of their effect on American culture.”

So what’s not to like? Great songs, great stories (and some great gossip thrown in) — led by two show tune-loving hosts!!

G-MAN: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century

The core book by Yale Professor Beverly Gage is a "masterpiece" and has garnered the Pulitzer Prize for Biography, the National Book Critics Circle Award in Biography, the Bancroft Prize in American History, the LA Times Book Prize for Biography and many other awards. Gage details a Hoover who was born, raised and educated in Washington D.C. who joined the Justice Department as a young lawyer who went on to create and build the FBI in his own image (white, male, college educated, Christian and socially conservative.) He also brought professionalism to the Bureau and oversaw the huge growth in its responsibilities. Among the issues and personalities that will be examined are: the Palmer Raids, the transformation of the FBI from a resource to crime fighting, espionage, the Red Scare, the Rosenbergs, freedom summer, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, COINTELPRO, organized crime, FDR, JFK, LBJ, Nixon, Clyde Tolson, Mark Felt and much more. The book is sure to jump start spirited discussions about the man, his legacy and the America that both created him and that he shaped.

An Immense World: How Animals Senses Reveal The Hidden Realms Around Us

This course is centered around Ed Yong's fascinating book, "An Immense World", which won the New York Times award for the of the best non-fiction book of 2022. We will explore the astonishing world of animal senses. This course wiill take us through the often bizarre ways that animals perceive their surroundings, far beyond the capacities of human senses. 

In each session, we'll examine different senses and the range of animal perception that they enable. We'll explore echolocation in bats and dolphins. the magnetic sense in migratory birds, and the complex chemical communication of insects. We will discover together the diverse, complex and often mystifying sensory abilities that enable animals to interact with and navigate their world.

We will have lively discussions, and critical analysis, and In the process, you'll acquire a profound understanding of the myriad ways animals perceive and respond to their environment.

This course should be an exciting prospect for anyone intrigued by the extraordinary capabilities of the animal kingdom. Join us in unraveling the sensory marvels that define the animal world and extend your understanding of perception beyond the human experience.