How can the novels of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky help us think differently about everyday moral dilemmas that are often seen as the prerogative of religion, politics, or philosophy?

This course considers how Tolstoy and Dostoevsky take up moral inquiry in their fiction, introduces students to philosophical texts that informed their major fiction, and asks why the novel as a literary genre may be a good forum for the discussion of ethics. We will read Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground and The Brothers Karamazov, as well as selected texts from Rousseau, Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, and others.

Class Notes:

This course has an enrollment cap, so you will need to submit a petition. A limited number of seats have been allocated for incoming students. If your petition is approved, you can claim a seat in a course if it is below capacity. Petition approval is at faculty discretion and is no guarantee of a seat in the course.

You need to commit to a timed section when you enroll. (This course does not have a placeholder section.) These sections will fill up quickly on a first come first served basis and there is no guarantee you will be able to switch to another section later on. If you cannot make any of the sections, you will not be able to take the course.