History, culture & writing

Explore History, Culture & Writing

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.

Courses available both in-person and online

We offer a range of long and short courses allowing you to choose between online and in-person learning. All our courses are live, interactive, and taught by expert tutors. No matter how you prefer to learn, we've got the class for you. See our guide to online learning for more information about accessing our live online courses.

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  1. Understanding contemporary art: ideas and origins
    Evening
    Course start date:  Mon 2 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Christopher Collier
    Ever wondered what's going on in the mind of contemporary artists? This course explores the ideas and historical background behind some of today’s most intriguing works, from Conceptualism and Video to Body Art and Installation.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £97.00
    Rating:
    90% of 100
  2. Nineteenth century French fiction
    Last Few Places, Evening
    Course start date:  Mon 2 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Megan Beech
    Nineteenth-century France was full of intrigue and squalor. Even a century after the upheaval of the French revolution, the country continued to grapple with issues of hierarchy, capitalism, and inevitable family dramas. In this course we’ll explore these themes through three of the most successful writers of this period: Zola, Maupassant and Flaubert.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £97.00
  3. America in the 50s: culture and society
    Evening
    Course start date:  Tue 3 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Pauline Greene, Mark Malcomson, Dale Mineshima-Lowe, Paul Sutton, Patricia Sweeney, Ian Tucknott
    We will explore the political, social and cultural context of 1950s America through a study of representative and



    sometimes surprisingly radical literature, history and film of the period. We will also have an overview of important



    themes of the 1950s in art and music. The course has different tutors for each specialism, providing different ways



    in to understanding the decade.



    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
  4. Colour in medieval art
    Course start date:  Fri 6 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Andreas Petzold
    Colour is an all pervasive and fundamental aspect of medieval art, but one that is largely neglected in art historical studies.This course looks at some of the main themes relating to colour such as symbolism, materials, theory and key developments.



    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 £95.00 Concession £77.00
  5. Contemporary Ukrainian fiction and poetry
    Course start date:  Thu 19 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Stephen Winfield
    Explore major novels and short fictions by three leading figures, Yevgenia Belorusets, Serhiy Zhadan and Andrey Kurkov, placed within the context of modern Ukrainian literature as a whole, the remarkable flowering that followed independence in 1991 and the resilience and imaginative vitality of its poets and novelists in face of the escalating conflict from 2014.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £97.00
  6. Themes in British politics
    Course start date:  Mon 30 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Christian Schnee
    Want to look beyond the personal politics and Brexit and explore current British politics? Join Dr. Christian Schnee to discuss British politics in our time.
    Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £97.00
  7. Art & war
    Course start date:  Tue 31 Oct 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Elizabeth Eyres
    Art representing issues of war, conflict and revolution is usually either an expression of triumph or loss. But who decides? What is such art for and what can it hope to achieve? Attitudes to war have changed significantly and this course considers responses to conflict in painting, sculpture, photography, performance art and architecture spanning the globe and across different eras.



    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 £95.00 Concession £77.00
  8. How to read a film: a beginners' guide to cinema
    Evening
    Course start date:  Tue 19 Sep 2023 (and 3 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Paul Sutton
    This course will develop your critical appreciation of the cinema by teaching you how to read and understand film texts. We will look at the elements that underpin film form – narrative, mise en scène, cinematography, editing and sound – alongside its historical development. We will consider film style by exploring classical, post-classical and art cinema and we will examine influential critical modes of analysis, such as genre, authorship and spectatorship.
    Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00
    Rating:
    87% of 100
  9. Writing romance
    Evening
    Course start date:  Wed 1 Nov 2023 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Eleanor Penny
    It is a truth universally acknowledged that a writer in possession of a single pen can compose an unforgettable romance novel. This interactive course will guide students through the plotting of modern romance stories.



    This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
    Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00
    Rating:
    100% of 100
  10. Art & money: from starving artists and forgers to merchants and collectors
    Course start date:  Thu 2 Nov 2023

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Simone Chisena
    Discover the intricacies of the art world and an artist’s support system. Explore the systems artists work within to establish support for their art.



    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 £95.00 Concession £77.00
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