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Reading Great Nature

LIT1     Session I: February 28: March 7,14, 21

Thursdays      10:45 - 12:00 noon

How do we people fit into what we call the natural world?   Beginning with Henry David Thoreau, we'll take a look at (mostly) American attitudes about the world that surrounds us.   Our reading will include other essayists such as Bill McKibben, Annie Dillard, Bill Gilbert and Alaskan Sherry Simpson.

Instructor Frank Soos, UAF Professor of English Emeritus, is author of the award winning Unified Field Theory: Stories, Bamboo Fly Rod Suite with Kes Woodward, and a new book Double Moon with Margo Klass.

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Classic 20th-Century Poems

LIT2       Session II: April 1, 8, 15, 29  **No class April 22**

Mondays     10:45 am - 12:30 pm

The poems we’ll discuss are considered to be among the best of the previous century and very representative of their authors’ artistry and attitudes as well as their times. Each week we’ll study at least one poem very closely but also highlight thematic and prosodic elements of the companion texts. Please (re-)read the assigned poems, available online, before class; however, be wary of online commentaries.

•   Class 1: Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall,” “After Apple-Picking,” “Birches,” “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”

•   Class 2: William Butler Yeats’s “Leda and the Swan,” “The Second Coming,” “Sailing to Byzantium,” “Easter 1916”

•   Class 3: Sylvia Plath’s “Metaphors,” “Lady Lazarus,” “The Colossus,” “Daddy”

•   Class 4: T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”

I nstructor Joe Dupras, Professor of English Emeritus (UAF 1979-2010), has taught introductory classes besides his 19th-century literature specialization.

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Recent Alaska Books by Fairbanks Authors

LIT3    Session II: April 1, 8, 15, 22

Mondays     2:45 - 4:00 pm       

Come enjoy a fresh installment of a popular OLLI series!   Every week a different local Fairbanks author will read from his or her recent book, talk about researching and writing the book, and answer questions.   You do not have to read the books before class.

April 1: Nicole Stellon O’Donnell’s Steam Laundry (2012) is a novel in poems based on the true story of Sarah Ellen Gibson, a miner’s wife during the Klondike and Alaska gold rushes, who came to Fairbanks in 1903.

April 8: Alex Hills’s Wi-Fi and the Bad Boys of Radio (2011) tells the story of the author's experiences in the Alaska bush and how they ultimately led to the creation of the world's first Wi-Fi network.   It's a story of how innovation happens -- and a story that explains why your wireless device sometimes does strange things.  

April 15: Frank Keim’s Whitewater Blue: Paddling and Trekking Alaska’s Wild Rivers (2012) documents nearly 40 years of travel along Alaska’s wild rivers by boat and on foot.   In the book, Keim strives to capture the spirit of the rivers, the country they flow through and the wildlife that call them home.

April 22: Claus-M. Naske’s Alaska: A History (2011) is a detailed study of the history of Alaska. Topics include Vitus Bering's discovery of Alaska, the development of Russian America, the sale of Alaska to the U.S., the development of Alaska under U.S. ownership, statehood, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, the development of the oil industry and Alaska politics through the resignation of Sarah Palin.

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Willing Suspension of Disbelief: Shakespeare’s Jacobean Romances

LIT4    Session II:   April 9, 16, 23, 30

Tuesdays      9:00 am - 12:00 noon   **Special dates: Starts April 9**

In this class, we will watch and discuss two of Shakespeare’s late plays – Pericles, Prince of Tyre and Cymbeline -- once classified as romances but now termed tragicomedies. These plays were wildly popular with Shakespeare’s contemporaries for their creative mixture of fairy tale, myth, tragedy, comedy and satire.   Not as often performed in recent years, Pericles was presented by FST within the past decade, and Cymbeline appears in the lineup for the 2013 Oregon Shakespeare Festival season. No previous experience with Shakespeare necessary, just enthusiasm for the adventure. Please bring a copy of Pericles to the first class.  

Instructor Susan Stitham retired after 30+ years of teaching English at Lathrop High School, where her favorite course was always “Shakespeare Classics” for remedial students. She has served on the State Board of Education and the UA Board of Regents.

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Oui, je parle français un peu!

LIT5    Session II: April 5, 12, 19, 26

Fridays       2:45 - 4:00 pm

This class is designed for students who have completed OLLI's "Oui, je parle francais" class or have attained a similar skill level in conversational French through other means. Emphasis will be on listening and speaking with the benefit of some reading later.   More personal topics, hobbies, travel, food, etc., will be emphasized.   Some grammar, cognates, and French expressions used in English will be included.

Instructor Madame Judy Tolbert taught French for 30 years at Ryan Jr. High and Lathrop H.S.   She believes monolinguism can be cured and she thoroughly enjoyed her OLLI students' enthusiasm and continuing progress in "Oui, je parle français."