College is a crucial institution in which our society works through its expectations for young people. This course explores the purposes of college education through the first great book on the philosophy of education, Plato’s Republic. We read The Republic in conversation with other thinkers including Aristotle, Confucius, John Stuart Mill, Virginia Woolf, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. For the 325th anniversary of Yale’s founding, we also explore the changing conception of college education at Yale over the centuries and read some of the college’s and the university’s key founding documents. Themes include the development of personal character, participation in a community, preparation for citizenship, and conversation with others on intellectual matters. We also explore some of the social and economic functions of college education.
Pericles Lewis
Dean of Yale College and Douglas Tracy Smith Professor of Comparative Literature
Dates & Location
Fall 2026
Mondays and Wednesdays
2:30 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.
O.C. Marsh Lecture Hall
260 Whitney Avenue
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Course Format
Two hours of lecture weekly. Undergraduate students enrolled for credit will also have one hour of weekly discussion section. Regular attendance required.