Virtual Reading Groups

Considered one of the first modern novels, Les Misérables examines society’s role in criminal behavior, charity, and compassion in the face of misery, poverty, and injustice. Along the way, Hugo shares his trademark social… more

Explore the American founders’ lifelong study of Roman history to assess what their study of Roman villains taught them about the need for vigilance and methods of preventing tyranny. Each of the sessions will focus on a… more

Few figures shaped the Constitution more than Alexander Hamilton and James Madison. Once united as Publius in defense of ratification, they later clashed over the scope of executive power—Hamilton (as Pacificus) arguing for… more

One notable mid-20th-century attempt came from American journalist and economic thinker Henry Hazlitt, who explored this method in his novel Time Will Run Back. In this work, Hazlitt combined dystopian fiction with classical… more

Join us as we explore Coriolanus through the lens of the two most famous accounts of his life. First, we will read Plutarch’s Life of Coriolanus, in which Plutarch tells the story of Coriolanus’s rise to greatness and the story… more

We begin with Bentham’s Letters 1, 2, 5, and 6, explaining his belief that power should be visible and unverifiable, which will lead to the betterment of the individual. The Reveley drawing helps to visualize Bentham’s plans. The… more

Can you teach economics through story? British sociologist Harriett Martineau pioneered the use of story to teach political economy in the 19th century. American Journalist Henry Hazlitt attempted the same thing in the mid-20th… more

The definition of republican government from the time of the American Revolution through the first years of the nineteenth century, drew from a diverse well of ideas about law, the nature of “The People” and the substance of… more

The contest for the crown at the center of King John is a bloody and violent one, with a surprising hero in the figure of the illegitimate Richard Plantagenet. George Orwell loved the play, but what will we make of its tangled… more

This VRG has four short readings about how chatbots are changing our lives. Questions include what it means to have a relationship with a machine. Additionally, we will discuss how interactions with chatbots are spilling over… more

This Virtual Reading Group addresses the work of Flannery O’Connor and her view of the opportunities and responsibility that individuals have to respond to the natural and divine grace that leads to self-knowledge and in turn… more

Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens is a study in misanthropy. The generous Timon believes that his gifts to his nation and his friends will secure him their faithfulness and support, but he is deserted at every turn. At last, he… more