Classics

Following the recent publication of her new guide to teaching Fyodor Dostoevsky's masterpiece, The Brothers Karamazov, Jeannette DeCelles-Zwerneman talks to Andrew Zwerneman about her new guide, what issues the novel raises, and how to teach this classic to high-schoolers.

In honor of the bicentennial of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s birth, Andrew Zwerneman and Professor Gary Morson of Northwestern University discuss all things concerning the great author of Russian literature. The conversation covers Dostoevsky’s biography, his great literary feats, and how to teach his best works.

The perfect accompaniment to Jeannette DeCelles-Zwerneman’s latest guide, Leading a Seminar on Plato’s Republic, this episode features an interview with the author herself. She and Cana Academy President, Andrew Zwerneman, cover some of the background to the writing of the Republic and discuss why this is an excellent text to study with high-schoolers.

Cana Academy Director of Writing and Master Teacher, Mary Frances Loughran, has recently written an insightful and useful guide to leading a seminar on Charles Dickens' classic of the French Revolution, A Tale of Two Cities. In this episode, hear who her favorite characters are, including her unique take on the oft-underrated Lucie Manette.

Andrew Zwerneman strongly believes that the seminar method is the best way to conduct an education in the humanities. In this episode, he discusses 11 reasons why this is true.

In this episode, Andrew Zwerneman sits down with Cana Academy master teacher Jeannette DeCelles-Zwerneman to discuss the subject of her most recent teaching guide, Leading a Seminar on Locke’s Second Treatise of Government. To purchase the guide, please visit our online shop here.

Andrew Zwerneman talks to Cana Academy master teacher Mary Frances Loughran about Plato's dialogues, with a special focus on Plato's Phaedo, the subject of Mary Frances' most recent teaching guide. To purchase the guide, please visit our online shop here.

Cana Academy’s Jeannette DeCelles-Zwerneman has an interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby that is fresh and insightful. Here is Andrew Zwerneman’s conversation with her about this widely loved classic.

In preparation for the release of Cana Academy's upcoming guide, Leading a Seminar on Dante's Inferno, Andrew Zwerneman sits down with the author of that guide and Cana Academy's Director of Instruction, Jeannette DeCelles-Zwerneman. They discuss what makes the Inferno such a worthwhile classic to study with high-school students and some advice for teachers who might find this an intimidating text.

Listen to the conclusion of Andrew Zwerneman’s conversation with Hunter Rawlings as they continue to discuss Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War.