The collapse of the Western empire and the transfer of the capital from Rome to Ravenna. Lady Philosophy's role and Boethius's arguments concerning predestination versus free will and the nature of the good.

The collapse of the Western empire and the transfer of the capital from Rome to Ravenna. Lady Philosophy's role and Boethius's arguments concerning predestination versus free will and the nature of the good.

The collapse of the Western empire and the transfer of the capital from Rome to Ravenna. Lady Philosophy's role and Boethius's arguments concerning predestination versus free will and the nature of the good.

The nature of Humanities in general and the role of literary studies in particular. The historical origins of the Humanist movement. Theories concerning the unchanging human heart. Seeing the world from a new emotional and intellectual center.

Introduction to early Greek philosophy and education. The sophists. The career of Socrates. The Peloponnesian War. Socrates' trial and defense speech. Socrates' imprisonment. What do you owe to the laws of your country? Socrates' view of death.

Introduction to early Greek philosophy and education. The sophists. The career of Socrates. The Peloponnesian War. Socrates' trial and defense speech. Socrates' imprisonment. What do you owe to the laws of your country? Socrates' view of death.

The intellectual crisis of the sixteenth century -- the three revolutions. The problem of Hamlet. The theological and moral solutions. The Oedipal interpretation of Hamlet. The aesthetic solution and an alternative.

The intellectual crisis of the sixteenth century -- the three revolutions. The problem of Hamlet. The theological and moral solutions. The Oedipal interpretation of Hamlet. The aesthetic solution and an alternative.

The intellectual crisis of the sixteenth century -- the three revolutions. The problem of Hamlet. The theological and moral solutions. The Oedipal interpretation of Hamlet. The aesthetic solution and an alternative.

Introduction to Periclean Athens. The function of theater in Athenian society. Oedipus the King and the Peloponnesian War. Guilt and innocence, fate and free choice. Aristotle's "fatal flaw."

Introduction to Periclean Athens. The function of theater in Athenian society. Oedipus the King and the Peloponnesian War. Guilt and innocence, fate and free choice. Aristotle's "fatal flaw."

Introduction to Periclean Athens. The function of theater in Athenian society. Oedipus the King and the Peloponnesian War. Guilt and innocence, fate and free choice. Aristotle's "fatal flaw."

Most human lives contain major turning points: crises that transform an individual’s future development. On a much larger scale, cultures undergo crises too: political, intellectual, and religious changes that alter forever the course of human history.

The impact of Roman imperialism, Greek epic, and Stoic philosophy on Vergil's poem. The limits and costs of power as the Aeneid presents them. The interactions between fate and free choice in Aeneas's experience. Optimism and pessimism in the Aeneid.

The impact of Roman imperialism, Greek epic, and Stoic philosophy on Vergil's poem. The limits and costs of power as the Aeneid presents them. The interactions between fate and free choice in Aeneas's experience. Optimism and pessimism in the Aeneid.

The impact of Roman imperialism, Greek epic, and Stoic philosophy on Vergil's poem. The limits and costs of power as the Aeneid presents them. The interactions between fate and free choice in Aeneas's experience. Optimism and pessimism in the Aeneid.

The impact of Roman imperialism, Greek epic, and Stoic philosophy on Vergil's poem. The limits and costs of power as the Aeneid presents them. The interactions between fate and free choice in Aeneas's experience. Optimism and pessimism in the Aeneid.

Voltaire's text as a re-working of classical and renaissance epic traditions. The Lisbon earthquake and its effect on Voltaire's belief system. Three solutions to the problem of evil. Candide as a critique of Optimism and Manichaeism.

Voltaire's text as a re-working of classical and renaissance epic traditions. The Lisbon earthquake and its effect on Voltaire's belief system. Three solutions to the problem of evil. Candide as a critique of Optimism and Manichaeism.