One Day University: A Morning of Literature and Film POSTPONED

9:30 am – 11:00 am

What the World’s Greatest Books Can Teach Us About Business and Life

Joseph Luzzi / Bard College

What are the some of the best novels ever written, and how can we apply their insights to life and work? How can we develop the tools and strategies to incorporate the thoughts of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers into everyday life?

In this brand new presentation, Bard College Literature Professor Joseph Luzzi will show participants how to become more effective communicators, critical thinkers, and decision makers by engaging with classics by Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare as well as more contemporary books by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Philip Roth, and Toni Morrison – along with many others. We’ll even consider how the writings of great historical figures like Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln can be considered “literature” that contains valuable lessons for leadership and strategic thinking. Participants will learn how to make successful reading a part of their everyday lives, and enable them to harness the power of truly transformative stories and narratives.

11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Six Films That Changed the World

Joseph Luzzi / Bard College

Some films have had a revolutionary impact on society and even the world, and this brand new class will focus on six that did just that. How did the techniques these films employed and the themes they developed revolutionize the way we watch movies, and why do these films still remain relevant and fascinating today? Film scholar Professor Joseph Luzzi will discuss topics including how “Casablanca” inspired patriotic feelings during key moments in World War II, how “Rebel without a Cause” helped helped usher in the new youth culture of the 1950s and into the 1960s, how “La Dolce Vita” changed the way many millions thought about sex. Luzzi will also explain how “The Thin Blue Line” resulted in a falsely accused man being rescued from Death Row and changing the way many in law enforcement evaluate evidence, how “Gandhi” brought a world leader’s non-violent beliefs to a worldwide audience, and how “Philadelphia” and its star Tom Hanks humanized a disease that had been getting less mainstream attention than it should have prior to this film.

These are the groundbreaking films that Professor Luzzi will focus on, providing in-depth analysis of these individual works while connecting them to the larger cultural and historical factors that they so profoundly influenced:

1. Casablanca, dir. Michael Curtiz (1942)

2. Rebel without a Cause, dir. Nicholas Ray (1956)

3. La Dolce Vita, dir. Federico Fellini (1960)

4. Gandhi, dir. Richard Attenborough (1982)

5. The Thin Blue Line, dir. Errol Morris (1988)

6. Philadelphia, dir. Jonathan Demme (1993)


Joseph Luzzi / Bard CollegeJoseph Luzzi is a Literature and Italian Professor at Bard College, and was previously a Visiting Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received the Scaglione Prize for his teaching. He is also the author of the audio course, “The Art of Reading.” Professor Luzzi previously taught at Yale University, where he was awarded a Yale College Teaching Prize.











When: Sat., Mar. 14, 2020 at 9:30 am - 1:00 pm
Where: Hunter College
47-49 E. 65th St.
212-396-7919
Price: $79 per class or $119 for both
Buy tickets/get more info now
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9:30 am – 11:00 am

What the World’s Greatest Books Can Teach Us About Business and Life

Joseph Luzzi / Bard College

What are the some of the best novels ever written, and how can we apply their insights to life and work? How can we develop the tools and strategies to incorporate the thoughts of the world’s greatest thinkers and writers into everyday life?

In this brand new presentation, Bard College Literature Professor Joseph Luzzi will show participants how to become more effective communicators, critical thinkers, and decision makers by engaging with classics by Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare as well as more contemporary books by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Philip Roth, and Toni Morrison – along with many others. We’ll even consider how the writings of great historical figures like Julius Caesar and Abraham Lincoln can be considered “literature” that contains valuable lessons for leadership and strategic thinking. Participants will learn how to make successful reading a part of their everyday lives, and enable them to harness the power of truly transformative stories and narratives.

11:30 am – 1:00 pm

Six Films That Changed the World

Joseph Luzzi / Bard College

Some films have had a revolutionary impact on society and even the world, and this brand new class will focus on six that did just that. How did the techniques these films employed and the themes they developed revolutionize the way we watch movies, and why do these films still remain relevant and fascinating today? Film scholar Professor Joseph Luzzi will discuss topics including how “Casablanca” inspired patriotic feelings during key moments in World War II, how “Rebel without a Cause” helped helped usher in the new youth culture of the 1950s and into the 1960s, how “La Dolce Vita” changed the way many millions thought about sex. Luzzi will also explain how “The Thin Blue Line” resulted in a falsely accused man being rescued from Death Row and changing the way many in law enforcement evaluate evidence, how “Gandhi” brought a world leader’s non-violent beliefs to a worldwide audience, and how “Philadelphia” and its star Tom Hanks humanized a disease that had been getting less mainstream attention than it should have prior to this film.

These are the groundbreaking films that Professor Luzzi will focus on, providing in-depth analysis of these individual works while connecting them to the larger cultural and historical factors that they so profoundly influenced:

1. Casablanca, dir. Michael Curtiz (1942)

2. Rebel without a Cause, dir. Nicholas Ray (1956)

3. La Dolce Vita, dir. Federico Fellini (1960)

4. Gandhi, dir. Richard Attenborough (1982)

5. The Thin Blue Line, dir. Errol Morris (1988)

6. Philadelphia, dir. Jonathan Demme (1993)


Joseph Luzzi / Bard CollegeJoseph Luzzi is a Literature and Italian Professor at Bard College, and was previously a Visiting Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received the Scaglione Prize for his teaching. He is also the author of the audio course, “The Art of Reading.” Professor Luzzi previously taught at Yale University, where he was awarded a Yale College Teaching Prize.

Buy tickets/get more info now