Online Course Format
Our courses are asynchronous, so you can log in any time of the day or night to access the course materials, but they have a weekly Zoom meeting that all are encouraged to participate in (they will be recorded and posted). To facilitate the flow of discussion in the online course forums, each course is divided into units. You will be encouraged to progress through the course alongside the other course participants. A two-week period at the end of the course is provided for you to reflect on what you have learned, to consider how your learning can be applied to your daily life, to give feedback on your learning experience, and to complete any outstanding readings or assignments.
"The Way that can be spoken of is not the unchanging Way."
The first line of the Daode jing offers a strange introduction for a text that precedes to speak about the Way for five thousand words, but it is also a fitting introduction to one of the world's most puzzling and profound books.
The Daode jing—or Laozi, as it is usually called in Chinese—is among the most popular and most frequently translated books in the world. It has influenced poets, philosophers, and ordinary people for over two millennia for good reason. In spite of being intentionally enigmatic and often paradoxical, it is beautiful and inspiring and can offer meaningful advice on how to live in a difficult world.
In this class, we will look at the historical context in which the Daode jing was written and how it became the text we know today. We will discuss what kind of text it is and how it should be read and then perform a close reading of all eighty-one chapters. We will conclude by looking at different ways it has been understood in Chinese antiquity and modern times before asking how we might make use of it in our personal and community lives.
Faculty: Stephen Boyanton
Tuition: $150 (tuition discounts available)