Essential Questions:

What is the chief purpose of man?        

What is rhetoric? What is the importance of rhetoric?

        What is the purpose of government?

        Where does the idea of equality come from?

        What role do we play in ensuring life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all Americans?

        Should people engage in revolution to enact change?

        What is the purpose of human expression?

What does it mean to be a leader?

How does literature affect a culture?

Course Overview: 

Get ready for a whirlwind year of radical reading and writing! This year we'll be encountering revolutionaries, romantics, and realists as we examine the ideas and literature of early America, the American revolution, the Civil War, and the Civil Rights Movement.  

Great Books is an honors-level class that incorporates historic primary documents, quality literature, and various essay writing skills. This is a gently challenging course for those who want a superior, classical education. Together, we will discover the ideas contained in the Great Books of American Literature that have shaped Western civilization and filter these ideas through the lens of Scripture.

The emphasis of the class will be to annotate literature and share in class discussions. Based on notes and discussions centered on essential life questions, students will demonstrate understanding of themes as they learn to construct a variety of essays designed to encourage a modern culture to engage with and embrace timeless lessons from classic literature. Types of essays include: Definition, Persuasive, Expository, Narrative, Literary and Poetry Analysis, Comparison, and creation of an original poem. 

Literature selections/excerpts include*: 

Plimouth Plantation; The Scarlet Letter; Common Sense; The Declaration of Independence and The Constitution; The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin; The Last of the Mohicans; Walden, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass; Uncle Tom's Cabin; The Killer Angels; Tom Sawyer; The Great Gatsby; Of Mice and Men; and selected short stories and American poetry.

(*Note - selections may change)

Course Duration: 34 weeks, 221 hrs. (1.5 hrs./wk. in class + 5 hrs./wk. reading, writing and revising at home)

Equivalent to 1.5 credits for transcript.