THIS IS A TWO-SEMESTER COURSE.

What is love? Is it an emotion? An action? How do romance and marriage fit into love? How does love determine our identities—who we are—and our vocations—what we are called to? Is there a connection between love and war, between love and desire, even between love and death? How is love central to the meaning of life?

This course will approach these questions through great works of literature and philosophy, including Plato’s Symposium, Cicero’s De Amacitia, C.S. Lewis’s The Four Loves, and selections from great poems and stories of love, including several Shakespearean sonnets.

Class Meetings: Tuesdays, 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time
Fall Semester: September 8 – December 15, 2026*
Spring Semester: January 12 – May 11, 2027*
*Please note that there will be no class meetings on Nov. 24, 2026, and March 30, 2027.

Student Expectations: There will be weekly reading and writing assignments. Students should plan on about one to three hours of homework per week.

Student Support: The instructor is available via email, as well as by phone call or text.

Feedback/Assessment: The instructor will provide detailed feedback on all submitted assignments, both in writing and during each class session.

Materials/Supplies: The instructor will provide all required texts and resources as PDFs or Google docs.