GREAT BOOKS GREAT DISCUSSIONS
Specialty Seminars
We know that not everyone is going to start their relationship with the Great Books by committing to our multi-year Core Conversation reading program.
We also know that a big-picture program doesn’t allow enough time to give each book the attention it truly deserves.
Which is why we offer our Specialty Seminars: short, medium, and long studies that focus on a specific book, topic or author.
Our Deep Dive seminars delve into the text to examine the subtleties of the author’s work, while our Practical Wisdom seminars focus on the applicability of the great ideas to our lives today.
Specialty Seminars range in length from 2-week to full-year studies, so please browse our offerings to find something that interests you and works with your schedule.
And if you there’s a particular book, author, or topic you’d like to read and discuss, let us know!
The Complete Greek Tragedies: Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides
44-meetings
Sunday evenings
Beginning January 2026
Twenty-five hundred years after they were written, Classical Greek tragedies still have the power to transfix us with their keen insight into human emotions and motivations.
This year-long seminar will read all 33 of the extant Greek tragedies over the course of one year.
Genesis: For All Readers
10-week seminar
Thursday afternoons
Beginning October 16, 2025
No book is more foundational than the biblical Book of Genesis. It has shaped the cultural, religious, intellectual, mythopoetic, and artistic realms of the European tradition.
This deep-dive seminar will give readers from all backgrounds and beliefs the opportunity to explore the many dimensions of this inexhaustible text.
The Two Faces of Socrates: Plato's and Xenophon's
6-week semimar
Monday afternoons
Beginning November 17, 2025
Socrates has become the symbol of the truly philosophic life. But who was he? What did he really do and say?
Most of us know Socrates through the writings of his pupil Plato. But another of his students, Xenophon, also wrote dialogues featuring his teacher. We’ll read key dialogues from both authors.
What the Great Books Can Teach You About Writing
6-meeting seminar
Sunday evenings
Beginning January 18, 2026
You know the Great Books make you smarter, more thoughtful, and more confident. Do you also know that they can help you become a much more effective writer and speaker in your everyday activities and special projects? Let GBGD’s Malachy Walsh show you how in this six-meeting Specialty Seminar.
Wisdom, Folly, and Coping with the World
12-week seminar
Monday evenings
Beginning January 05, 2026
What is wisdom? How are we to act in the world when the world does not behave as we expect?
In this study we will proceed chronologically through a dozen classic texts, ancient through modern, that invite a deep exploration of these questions.
A Year of Homer: The Iliad and Odyssey
Two, 24-week seminars
Tuesday afternoons
Beginning January 2026
Of the many books we read in a lifetime, a small percentage are worth going back to — to really read. Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey are two of those books.
Join us for a year-long deep read of these two greatest of epic poems.
Event #1
Free – October 11th, 2024
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus, Aurora Borealis, Veni Vedi Vici.
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus.
Event #2
Free – October 11th, 2024
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus, Aurora Borealis, Veni Vedi Vici.
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus.
Event #3
Free – October 11th, 2024
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus, Aurora Borealis, Veni Vedi Vici.
Lorum Ipsum, Senatus Popolusque Romanus.
We're Here for Your Learning
Let us know how you would like to engage with great books―what authors, what books, and when. We’ll do our best to make it possible!