High School Literature 4 Live: The Modern Era, Fall Semester (Part 1)

This is an annual course that has been divided into semesters for payment purposes. Part 1 and Part 2 are meant to be taken together. Both semesters must be taken in the same school year, and Part 1 is a prerequisite to take Part 2.

Classical Track

The tricky part of creating a syllabus for the late 19th and 20th centuries is deciding what to leave out. There's so much to read and so little time, but this is an amazing course with a stunning and challenging syllabus. Literature 4: The Modern Era is perfect for the literary-minded high school junior or senior. We span a wide variety of works including books by Dickens, Dostoyevsky, Twain, Faulkner, Hemingway, and Orwell, and finish with a memorable novel from the 21st century. Each semester is 16 weeks long. See course book list below.

This class meets on Wednesdays at  12 pm, Eastern Standard Time.

Note: Space is limited. Be sure to enroll early to secure your spot.

Student Expectations for Live Classes:

• Attend a one-hour, weekly, live course session
• Complete each week’s assigned reading
• Take a short, online, comprehension quiz
• Answer a weekly, online, discussion question each week
• Submit two literary analysis papers and one creative project

Book & Reading List

There are many options for acquiring these books. You can purchase them from a local or online retailer. You can check them out of the library. For most, you can download electronic versions or access them online and read them on your computer screen.

If a particular edition or translation is listed, it is important to acquire that version. If no specifics are included, any version will work.

David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens

Miscellaneous Poems by Whitman and Dickinson (No need to buy anything. Digital versions are provided.)

Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Pevear & Volokhonsky translation)

The Return of the Native, by Thomas Hardy

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain

The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Modernist Poetry (No need to obtain anything; digital versions are provided.)

Our Town, by Thornton Wilder

Go Down, Moses, by William Faulkner

Animal Farm, by George Orwell

The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway

The Crucible, by Arthur Miller

Lord of the Flies, by William Golding

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Flannery O’Connor Short Stories (No need to buy anything. Digital versions are provided.)

• “A Good Man is Hard to Find”

• “Everything That Rises Must Converge”

Peace Like a River, by Leif Enger