Join this American Literature course on one of the greatest books of all time. Learn the author’s major themes, philosophies, and conclusions -- and crack the code of this whale of a good story!
How to get the most out of Moby-Dick: Americans and the Hunt for God with Henry Russell, Ph.D.:
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First, read the course materials below before the first class meeting.
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Then have a notebook ready and available for class notes each live session.
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Read assignments before class meetings
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Watch that week’s recording if you need to revisit information from our live session.
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Do the assignments, quizzes, and any extra work assigned for that week.
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Once the course is completed to the parent's and professor’s satisfaction, there is a Certificate of Completion at the end to be filled in for your records.
Special Notes: This course only takes 20 students. We recommend registering early.
Total Classes: 14
Duration: 55 minutes
Prerequisite: The ability to read and enjoy the book as well as separate main points from many details.
Suggested Grade Level: 11th to 12th grade or advanced 10th grade
Suggested Credit: One full semester American Literature or English
Meeting Location:
Instructor: Henry Russell, PhD
Instructor Email: maryshire@gmail.com
Course Description: This tale of God-hating Ahab and relativistic Ishmael, of Fate versus Free-Will, and tyranny versus democracy is at the heart of our present experience as Americans. America’s greatest book was described by one contemporary reviewer as a cracking good whaling tale interrupted by too many digressions on philosophy. Not a bad description, except that the chapters on philosophy and theology are some of the main objects of Melville’s exciting work. In this course, your student will read through all of the books, and the focus of our class time and testing will be on the chapters that best establish Melville’s many themes and conclusions. That way, the student will not feel hopelessly at sea in the details of this wonderful and clear-headed book.
Course Outline:
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Class 1: The Air He Breathed: Melville’s world.
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Class 2: Etymology—Chapter 4
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Class 3: Ch. 5-14
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Class 4: Ch. 15-22
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Class 5: Ch. 23-32
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Class 6: Ch. 33-41
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Class 7: Ch. 42-48
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Class 8: Ch. 49-55
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Class 9: Ch. 56-70
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Class 10: Ch. 71-81
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Class 11: Ch. 82-93
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Class 12: Ch. 94-110
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Class 13: Ch. 111-128
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Class 14: Ch. 129-Epilogue
Course Materials: Herman Melville. Moby-Dick. Norton Critical Edition. There are three editions of this. Any of them will work for this course. Current ISBN: 0393285006.
Homework: There will be about 36 pages of novel reading per week. Moby Dick consists mostly of short chapters. There will be weekly computer-graded quizzes, a midterm, and a final. An hour and a half of reading per week should be average.
- Teacher: Henry Russell