February 2, 2016 at 8:59 am
That Goethe is being read as part of CC202 speaks to his profound impact on literature. A writer whose works mimicked his life (or perhaps the opposite), Goethe felt a longing, a hiraeth perhaps, for something truehe wanted experience for experiences sake. Yet, can it be recounted when Goethe was last mentioned outside of the […]
If you’ve been driving yourself batty, scouring Amazon and the shelves of your local bookstores in search of a copy of Building Universes…for Dummies, we know why you’ve been unsuccessful: that particular book does not exist. However, if you’re dead-set on building your own universe, look no further than Daniel Hudon’s “How to Build a […]
March 19, 2015 at 11:21 am
CC201 students know Miguel de Cervantes as the elusive author of Don Quixote. Some of the mystery surrounding him has been recently abated: forensic scientists have uncovered his remains beneath a building in Madrid. Though badly damaged, scientists found his bones alongside those of his wife and other individuals who were buried with him. Cervantes’ […]
March 18, 2015 at 10:46 am
To current and former Core students, Dante’s Inferno brings to mind images of a nine-tiered Hell filled with sinners of various sorts. CC102 students, studious as they are, know the nine circles and their inhabitants like the back of their hands. Reporting by the Onion, though, indicates that Dante’s descriptions are out-of-date: recent years have […]
March 5, 2015 at 10:31 am
First thing in the morning, the Core office checks Arts & Letters Daily, a site run by The Chronicle of Higher Education where, each work day, links are posted to some of the best essays, reviews and articles from the worlds of criticism and scholarship. It is, in other words, our one-stop shopping destination for […]
January 5, 2015 at 12:01 pm
Homer is known to CC 101 students as the author of the Odyssey, but surprisingly enough, not much more is known about his life story. A recent article published in the National Geographic suggests that Homer wasn’t a person, but a tradition.
Summer’s in full swing, and we’ve all settled into our lazy summer habits, which include the constant struggle trying to keep warm for those of us staying in Boston. For those of you missing the Core office, don’t worry, we miss all of you too. To keep your spirits up, we found this wonderful comedic […]
March 28, 2014 at 11:42 am
Prompted by Dean Sapiro’s lecture on Mary Wollstonecraft to question why there are so few women authors in the Core Humanities, Prof. David Green had his CC 202 students this week momentarily put aside Pride and Prejudice and the question of whether happiness in marriage is a matter of chance to consider the criteria for […]
March 24, 2014 at 2:44 pm
Are you living an examined life? No, really, are you? In between texting while walking, daydreaming while note-taking, scrolling while sleeping, and sleeping while strolling, are you living an examined life? It’s ok if you are not. Few are. But it’s an important question to ask oneself, and that’s why philosophy matters. Clancy Martin, in […]
February 18, 2014 at 4:04 pm
CC202 has just moved on from Candide. Voltaire strikes even the casual reader as a captivating persona, with wit and intelligence. However, Voltaire’s role in the “Republic of Letters” is certainly worth a mention. To escape arrest, Voltaire lived at Cirey for fifteen years. He wrote a steady stream of letters to stay connected with his friends in […]
