Writing War: Two Outstanding World War I Novels and Selected Poems

Class Description

Two novels published in the 1920s represent the major themes that writers explored about the First World War: portraits of soldiers’ courage and military honor; the senseless slaughters of battles and sieges; the horrific advent of the machine gun and heavy artillery barrages; and the distrust many soldiers felt about the orders and objectives of their commanders.

We will first read A Farewell to Arms, then move to reading and discussing All Quiet on the Western Front, and in the fifth and sixth class meetings, we will discuss some outstanding British and American WWI poems.

Joseph Heininger is a Professor of English at Dominican University. He has published articles on Seamus Heaney’s adaptations of Dante and Joyce’s use of advertising in Ulysses. Recent publication: “Representing Contemporary Life and Searching for the Sacred in Dennis O’Driscoll’s Poetry” in Christianity and Literature. 

All virtual classes are recorded and made available to participants registered in the class. These recordings are password-protected and available for up to two weeks after the class ends.

What to Expect

Format: Virtual 

Class Capacity: 24 

Class Style: Mostly discussion; participation-based 

Materials List

Required

• Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms. Scribner, 2014. ISBN: 9781476764528

• Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front. Penguin, 2025. ISBN: 9780143138761

• Tim Kendall, Poetry of the First World War. Oxford, 2014. ISBN: 9780198703204

Recommended

• Catherine Reilly, Scars Upon My Heart. Virago, 2006. ISBN: 9781844082254

First Assignment

• Please read the first 140 pages of Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms; that is, to the end of Book II in the Hemingway Library edition specified in the book list.

Cost and Registration

6 Sessions, $245 ($220.50 for Newberry members, seniors, and students). Learn about becoming a member.

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The views and opinions expressed in this class and/or by the instructor are not necessarily representative of the Newberry. We aim to ensure that in our classes, participants can have respectful disagreement to foster critical thinking. This is a space to challenge and expand our own worldviews to work towards better understanding and appreciating humanity.

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