Time has a way of getting away from one. In looking at the date of my last post, I realized that it has been over a year. The time duration feels every bit that long. Call it a lack of inspiration. Call it a moving on to other things. Call it extreme lassitude. I'm not sure what I would call it--likely a combination of all three. In any event, it's been a long time. Then fate intervenes, inspiration strikes, and here we are again.
For a time at work one of my unofficial duties was sorting mail. As much as I would try just to shuffle the pieces into their respective cubicles, occasionally I would catch a glance of what was being delivered. One such piece of mail was a newsletter from Hillsdale College. I don't know what drew my attention to it. It might have been an advert for a series of books on Winston Churchill. It might have been an advert for the subject of this post. It's been so long I don't remember. Certainly, I'd never heard of the school before. Anyway, I did some checking and learned that Hillsdale hosts numerous online classes on their website. One of the offerings--"Shakespeare: Hamlet and The Tempest." It definitely was of interest, and the cost (FREE) did not hurt. I filed it away for future consumption, and then let plenty of other things get in the way.
Finally I got around to the course as a workplace diversion. The flexibility of the job allows for some free time during the day, and the flexibility of the course fits nicely. The courses consist of lectures, Q & A sessions with the professor, and quizzes to test mastery. The quizzes are a very low pressure affair; even though a minimum passing score is required, retakes are permitted. They are great for keeping the student honest. It was an excuse for paying attention, taking notes, and feeling like a serious student again.
The lectures were interesting. The professor, Stephen Smith, showed a personal interest in the material and did a great job conveying that through his words. The lectures went at a fairly basic level, for me at least. I've seen and heard quite a bit on Hamlet, and The Tempest was required reading in a college Shakespeare class many moons ago. While the three Hamlet lectures did not provide much that was really new to me, it was a good refresh after being away from the topic for so long. The Tempest portion (also three lectures) gave me a chance to re-familiarize myself with the play; admittedly I didn't remember much from that long-ago course.
Another feature of the course is the Q & A sessions with the professor. Moderated by John Miller, another Hillsdale professor, they consist of short discussions about the lectures. They were interesting additions--sometimes clarifying, sometimes adding material.
Upon successful completion of the course I received a certificate, material proof of achievement. More than that, though, the course awakened something that had been missing for a bit--an interest in Hamlet. It also awakened something that had been missing for much longer--the desire to sit in a college classroom and to be a student again. Although that phase has long passed, unlikely ever to return, the Hillsdale online courses fit my current mentality and personality. They're comfortable, convenient, and interesting; a great opportunity for anyone looking for some academic stimulation.
As a postscript to this, I started a second course, this one an introduction to C.S. Lewis. It's incredibly interesting thus far, and it gave fate another chance to intervene. During the most recent lecture, the professor offered a reference to Hamlet: the C.S. Lewis work "Hamlet: The Prince or the Poem?". That rang a bell and sent me to my Hamlet shelf. I found it in the book Hamlet: Enter Critic, which I read long ago and that was the basis of many early posts on this blog. In fact, that particular Lewis work was the subject of my post on May 11, 2014. Fate, Providence. It's nice to be back!
