THE LITCHFIELD COMMUNITY CENTER, INC. 421 BANTAM ROAD ~ LITCHFIELD, CT 06759      PHONE (860) 567-8302 ~ FAX (860) 567-0328     WWW.THECOMMUNITYCENTER.ORG A PRIVATE NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION GREAT WORKS OF MODERN IRISH LITERATURE WORKSHOPS Welcoming back Professor & Author Daniel Burt Tuesday, September 30th, 6:30 - 8: 30 pm         William Butler Yeats's “Easter 1916” Yeats's remarkable poetic response to the Easter Rising, the catalyst to the Irish war of independence from Britain is one of monumental poems in twentieth-century literature. In it Yeats eulogizes the executed leaders of the Rising, meditates on implications of violent nationalism and the role of the poet in shaping political and cultural debate, while also making a last appeal to the great love of his life, the recently widowed Maude Gonne. The workshop will explore all of these issues in a close reading of the poem and its historical and artistic contexts. Tuesday, October 7, 6.30 - 8.30 pm                    James Joyce's “The Dead” Arguably the greatest short story ever written, Joyce's “The Dead” is the concluding story in his milestone collection Dubliners. Set during a Christmas party inDublin, the story's protagonist, Gabriel Conroy undergoes a series of challenges to his sense of himself, his wife, and existence itself. “The Dead” manages to combine a compelling human story with Joyce's anatomy of life in Ireland and Dublin at the turn of the century, while preparing the ground for Joyce's great novel, Ulysses. The workshop will consider how “The Dead” manages to generate its multiple meanings and significance in the canon of Ireland's master fiction writer. Tuesday, October 14, 6.30 - 8.30 pm                    Brian Friel's Translations By helping to frame the debate over issues of Irish identity and politics, no other Irish play has been as crucial as Brian Friel's Translations. Premiering in Derry at the heights of the Troubles, Translations looks back at a decisive moment in Irish history in the nineteenth century when native Irish language and culture was being “translated” by English, while considering just issues as the role language plays in shaping our understanding of self and society and the various obligations and challenges we have truly understanding one another. The workshop will examine Translations from multiple viewpoints to underscore the artistry and mastery of one of the world's greatest living playwrights. Workshop participants should come to each session having read the scheduled texts. Daniel Burt teaches literature courses at Wesleyan University's Graduate Liberal Studies Program and at Trinity College. He is the Academic Director of the Academic Enrichment Workshops held in Ireland each summer. He is the author of several books, including The Novel 100, The Drama 100, and The Literary 100, a ranking of the greatest novels, plays, and writers of all time, The Chronology of American Literature, and The Biography Book. When he is not in Ireland, he lives on Cape Cod with his wife Deborah Felder. Donations at door Please note: Class limited to 27 ~ Deadline for registration September 23, 2008