Explore Culture, History & Humanities Courses
Explore our extraordinary range of History, Culture and Writing courses and lectures. We offer both introductory and specialist in-depth courses to suit all levels of interest and experience, from ‘How to read a film’ and World literature, to Creative non-fiction writing courses and American history and Politics courses.
Our tutors are experts in their fields and experienced educators; many have published, teach in universities or share their expertise in the media. Tutors share their knowledge and passion through presentations, readings, interactive discussion and exercises, analysis, and other activities.
Many students return to take more courses, telling us they enjoy being part of our City Lit Learning community.
Our popular courses often sell out quickly, so we invite you to browse and book your place now.
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- The Socratic philosophers: Plato
Course start date: Thu 23 Jan 2025Location on this date: Online
Tutors: John GoffPlato’s philosophy is the foundation of Western thought. It remains essential to a philosophical understanding the human condition.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Art and environment in Ice Age Europe Course start date: Thu 23 Jan 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Simone ChisenaDiscover the artistic treasures of our most remote past, when our ancestors in the Ice Age created beautiful cave paintings and astounding sculpted works.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00 - Ways into creative writing: intensive Course start date: Tue 28 Jan 2025 (and 7 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: William BradyNot sure whether creative writing is for you? Give it a try on one of these fun and supportive short courses covering the basics of fiction and poetry. Increase your confidence and produce work through guided exercises and discussion.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £75.00 - The Odyssey reading group (in translation) Course start date: Wed 29 Jan 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Justin MurrayHomer’s epic tale of Odysseus’ journey home after the Trojan War may now be over 2,500 years old but it still has much to tell us about the Ancient Greek world that is still relevant today. Explore this great work in translation.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £84.00 - Looking beyond headlines: colonialism and contemporary conflictsCourse start date: Thu 13 Feb 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Salome IetterThis course will provide a reflection on the colonial, post-colonial and neo-colonial aspects and underpinnings of contemporary conflicts.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £119.00 - Foreign films: European cinema from the fifties Course start date: Thu 13 Feb 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: John WischmeyerThey were called ‘foreign films’ in the fifties, the first films to emerge from Europe and further to a wider British and American audience: Bicycle Thieves (1948 Vittorio De Sica) Rashomon (1950 Akira Kurosawa), Pather Panchali (1955 Satyajit Ray), Seven Samurai (1954 Akira Kurosawa), The Seventh Seal (1957 Ingmar Bergman), Plein Soleil. They played at The Academy Oxford Street or The Everyman Hampstead. Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you discover a whole world of amazing films. Too many filmgoers are scared off by the notion of international cinema. In cultural shorthand, ‘foreign film’ was a euphemism for snootiness, a stereotype that kept audiences from experiencing some of the greatest movies ever made. Once you open yourself up to them you’ll find there’s nothing to be intimidated by.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Death and disasters in the ancient worldCourse start date: Thu 13 Feb 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Sean GabbThe Ancient World was a place of repeated natural disasters – plagues, famines, volcanic eruptions. It was also a place where life was often cheap, and often ended on a large scale by unnatural disasters – wars, sieges, other mass-murders. Come and find out more.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £109.00 Senior fee £87.00 Concession £71.00 - Nationalism in the 21st centuryCourse start date: Thu 20 Feb 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Caglar EzikogluExamine the rise and impact of nationalism in the 21st century, analysing key events, movements, and ideologies shaping today's global landscape.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Introduction to Buddhist art Course start date: Thu 27 Feb 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Arjmand AzizExplore the early history of Buddhist art in South Asia in this introductory course with a focus on objects in the British Museum.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00 - Race and Racism in Global politicsCourse start date: Thu 20 Mar 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Salome IetterJoin Dr.Salomé Ietter to explore the role of race and racism in today’s global politics and a framework to analyse and criticise their effects.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00 - Nationalism and indigeneityCourse start date: Thu 20 Mar 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Caglar EzikogluExplore the intersection of nationalism and indigeneity, examining how indigenous identities and movements shape and are shaped by national narratives and policies.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - The art of Byzantium Course start date: Thu 1 May 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Anita ChowdryA study of the unique visual flavour of Byzantine art and architecture, the development of a range of craft industries, and the impact of Byzantium on other cultures.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £103.00 Concession £84.00 - Get together and readCourse start date: Thu 16 Jan 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Claire AllenEnjoy talking with other people about the things you have read? Want to share great stories, poems and drama? Come along and join the conversation. The group is led by a shared reading practitioner trained by The Reader Organisation.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £75.00 - Understanding the different political systems across the United KingdomCourse start date: Thu 1 May 2025
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ian McGarvieWant to understand how the different political systems across the United Kingdom works? Join our tutor Ian McGarvie to explore!Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00 - Beyond the headlines: From exceptionalism to the rise of the Far-Right: Contemporary Issues in French politicsCourse start date: Thu 1 May 2025
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Salome IetterThis course provides an introduction to key debates and developments in contemporary French politics, connecting Republicanism, the entrenchment of neoliberalism in the 1980s and the rise of the far-Right.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00
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