EdX

Masterpieces of World Literature (edX)

Masterpieces of World Literature (edX)

Embark on a global journey to explore the past, present, and future of World Literature. This literature course explores how great writers refract their world and how their works are transformed when they intervene in our global cultural landscape today. No national literature has ever grown up in isolation from the cultures around it; from the earliest periods, great works of literature have probed the tensions, conflicts, and connections among neighboring cultures and often more distant regions as well.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Focusing particularly on works of literature that take the experience of the wider world as their theme, this course will explore the varied artistic modes in which great writers have situated themselves in the world, helping us to understand the deep roots of today's intertwined global cultures.

What you'll learn:

  • The history of World Literature
  • How literary works and books are transformed by cultural transmission
  • How to critically analyze literary works
  • The significance of major technological advances in writing

Syllabus

Section 1: Goethe and the Birth of World Literature
Section 2: The Epic of Gilgamesh
Section 3: Homer, The Odyssey
Section 4: The 1001 Nights
Section 5: Murasaki Shikibu, The Tale of Genji
Section 6: The Lusiads
Section 7: Voltaire, Candide
Section 8:Lu Xun and Eileen Chang
Section 9: Jorge Luis Borges, Ficciones
Section 10:Wole Soyinka, Death and the King's Horseman
Section 11:Salman Rushdie and Jhumpa Lahiri
Section 12: Orhan Pamuk, My Name is Red

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Shakespeare on the Page and in Performance: Tragic Love (edX) EdX
Wellesley College

Shakespeare on the Page and in Performance: Tragic Love (edX)

Explore Shakespeare's mature plays of tragic love, Othello and King Lear, and learn what makes them so powerful and enduring. This literature and theater course will study two of the most sublime and gut-wrenching plays in the English language: Othello and King Lear. We will try to understand the reasons for their centrality to literary history as well as their continuing power to mesmerize audiences in theatres and cinemas across the world.

No sessions available
4 Weeks
Letteratura latina, dalle origini all'età augustea (edX) EdX
University of Naples Federico II,FedericaX

Letteratura latina, dalle origini all'età augustea (edX)

Una panoramica dei generi letterari tra repubblica e primo impero. La nascita e lo sviluppo della letteratura latina furono profondamente condizionati da un lato dall'influenza della cultura greca con la quale i Romani entrarono in contatto a partire dal II sec. a. C. soprattutto per la loro politica espansionistica nel Mediterraneo e poi in Oriente; dall'altro dalle pressioni esercitate dal potere politico che richiedeva al cittadino di prestare la propria attività innanzitutto a favore della res publica.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Poetry: How to Read a Poem (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of York

Poetry: How to Read a Poem (FutureLearn)

Discover what poetry can tell us about human emotion and learn key ideas and techniques for understanding and interpreting verse. Dive into the wonderful world of poetry and learn how to analyse a poem. Humans have communicated their thoughts, ideas, and feelings through poetry throughout history. At its best, it tells us new truths about the human experience. However, it’s often presented as hard to understand without expert knowledge. On this course, you’ll build your confidence in reading and enjoying poetry.

Self Paced
4 Weeks
Reasoning Across the Disciplines (Coursera) Coursera
University of North Carolina

Reasoning Across the Disciplines (Coursera)

Critical reasoning skills are a key success factor for students entering their first year of college. They must be able to think logically and form arguments. This course, designed with incoming college freshmen in mind but open to anyone, provides an essential grounding in critical reasoning skills. Faculty from multiple disciplines at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offer guidance on applying critical thinking skills in the context of specific disciplines. By developing these skills, students will learn more, enjoy their courses more, and experience greater academic success.

Nov 2nd 2026
5-12 Weeks
Ancient Masterpieces of World Literature (edX) EdX
HarvardX,Harvard University

Ancient Masterpieces of World Literature (edX)

Examine how cultures of the ancient world defined themselves through literature and how their vision of literature contributes to our understanding of civilization, culture, and literature today. This short literature course, based on the first half of the Masterpieces of World Literature edX MOOC, examines how civilizations and cultures of the ancient world defined themselves through literature and how that literature has continued to contribute to our understanding of those civilizations and cultures today.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Writing and Disseminating Grey Literature (Coursera) Coursera
Indian Institute for Human Settlements

Writing and Disseminating Grey Literature (Coursera)

If you are a researcher, academic, student, development sector professional or a practitioner who is keen to reach the research-based knowledge you have created to a wider audience, this course is for you. Vast amounts of knowledge are produced by educational and research institutions through rigorous research and fieldwork. Yet, there is a dearth of access to this knowledge among non-academic communities (which includes practitioners, policymakers, and citizens) due to the language used. Researchers can bring visibility to grey literature if they engage with alternate public writing forms.

Oct 19th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Uncovering the Voices of Japanese Literature (edX) EdX
Waseda University,WasedaX

Uncovering the Voices of Japanese Literature (edX)

This course explores issues of agency in premodern and modern Japan. Discover many facets of the Japanese literary, theatrical, and intellectual traditions which, although important, are rarely taught around the world. This course will provide you with an introduction and a basis for further study in Japanese history, culture, literature, arts, and other areas which you may intend to explore in the future.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Online Games: Literature, New Media, and Narrative (Coursera) Coursera
Vanderbilt University

Online Games: Literature, New Media, and Narrative (Coursera)

Intended for both newcomers who are curious about video games and experienced gamers who want to reflect on their passion, this course will explore what happens to stories, paintings, and films when they become the basis of massively multiplayer online games. The Lord of the Rings trilogy—the novels, films, and video game—are our central example of how “remediation” transforms familiar stories as they move across media.

Oct 12th 2026
5-12 Weeks