Crash Course: Literature

Season 2

John Green argues that reading is about effectively communicating with other people. Unlike direct communication, writers have to communicate with strangers, through time and space. So how's that going to work?

Where to Watch Crash Course: Literature • Season 2

9 Episodes

  • The Odyssey & The Oedipus
    E1
    The Odyssey & The OedipusIn which John Green takes us on an epic journey that is THE ODYSSEY. In part two, we learn about fate and the wrath of the gods in Sophocles' most famous play, OEDIPUS REX.
  • Shakespeare's Sonnets and Romeo & Juliet
    E2
    Shakespeare's Sonnets and Romeo & JulietIn which John Green gives us an overview of Shakespeare's best-known sonnets. Plus, we'll take a look at some of the most famous star-crossed lovers in ROMEO and JULIET and the structure of the play.
  • Love or Lust: Romeo & Juliet and The Great Gatsby
    E3
    Love or Lust: Romeo & Juliet and The Great GatsbyIn which John Green continues with Shakespeare's ROMEO and JULIET, examining whether they were truly in love or just a pair of impulsive teenagers. In part two, we'll shift gears to F. Scott Fitzgerald's Jazz Age classic THE GREAT GATSBY, looking closely at the novel's rich symbolism.
  • Slaughterhouse-Five and a Dash of Dickinson
    E4
    Slaughterhouse-Five and a Dash of DickinsonIn which John Green discusses Kurt Vonnegut's most famous novel, SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE. John explores how the book functions as an anti-war novel, the idea of free will and PTSD. Following, we examine the life and poetry of Emily Dickinson, and how her poems have remained relevant over the decades.
  • Macbeth
    E5
    MacbethIn which John Green talks Shakespeare's Scottish play, MACBETH. We will examine how the play deals with gender and fate.
  • Hamlet
    E6
    HamletIn which John Green teaches us about HAMLET, Shakespeare's most-performed play. John talks us through an overview of the plot as well as the major themes of the play. We will also learn about gender roles and symbolism.
  • Their Eyes Were Watching God and Invisible Man
    E7
    Their Eyes Were Watching God and Invisible ManIn which John Green reads Zora Neale Hurston's novel, THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD, and how interpretations of the book have changed over time. In part two, we're reading INVISIBLE MAN, Ralph Ellison's novel about the Black experience in America following WWII.
  • The Handmaid's Tale
    E8
    The Handmaid's TaleIn which John Green teaches us about Margaret Atwood's speculative dystopian fiction THE HANDMAID'S TALE and the impulse to return to an imagined golden era in the world of Gilead.
  • Lord of the Flies and Candide
    E9
    Lord of the Flies and CandideIn which John Green reads William Golding's LORD OF THE FLIES and disagrees with the novel's central thesis: that everyone has evil in their hearts. In part two, John takes us through Voltaire's Enlightenment novel CANDIDE, a story about the unattainability of best of all possible worlds.

 

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