Allegory, Symbolism and Imagery

What is allegory? How is symbolism used in literature and myth? How do writers use imagery to convey themes and moods in fiction and poetry? How do symbols and allegories express the deepest strands of our psyches?

These are some of the questions that will be examined in this course, which will introduce students to Allegory, Symbolism and Imagery through works such as “The Allegory of the Cave” from Plato’s Republic, Everyman, Pilgrim’s Progress, “The Masque of the Red Death”, Animal Farm, Tolkien’s story “Leaf by Niggle”, various poems and more. In addition, the Symbolist movement in art and literature will be examined, as will Freud and Jung’s approach to the analysis of symbols and “archetypes” in myths and dreams.

SPRING 2025: 15 Sessions - Wednesdays at 11:00 am Pacific; Noon Mountain; 1:00 pm Central; 2:00 pm Eastern from Jan. 15 to April 16, 2025, with no meeting on Wednesday, March 12 for Spring Break and Wednesday, April 23 for Easter Break.

Age Range: High School

Offered through Royal Fireworks Online Learning.

About Me

I'm Kevin O'Brien! I am a creative and passionate online teacher. Here are a few things about me ... Professional Actor and Comedian Many years ago, I made a living as a stand-up comedian. I also owned my own singing telegram company and performed over 2,000 singing telegrams in the St. Louis metro area. In 1991, I performed at military bases around the world with an Old Fashioned Comedy Melodrama that I wrote and produced, on a USO-style tour. Since 1989, I have been producing and performing in my own interactive murder mystery dinner theater shows. I appear in about 150 live performances a year, at venues such as mansions, wineries and dinner trains. I write all of the scripts and we perform a different script every month! Click on the photo below to visit my murder mystery website. To get a better idea of the kind of shows we do, check out the promo video I put together for George R. R. Martin, who hired us to perform murder mysteries on his train in New Mexic...

Rave Reviews!

"I cannot tell you what a difference your class has made this semester for [my daughter]. She came downstairs the other day and said, 'I'm so sad that Mr. O'Brien's class is over.' This semester I watched some of your classes with [my daughter] because she'd say, 'Mom, you're going to love this! Pull up a chair!' You are an outstanding teacher ... We are so grateful for your impact on my daughter's life," "We love Mr. O'Brien!! Our son is really enjoying his class this semester. Thank you so much!" You are so very real and down to earth, so spontaneous. You're not afraid to just be who you are. You are alive and that's what your students love. Of course you can throw in a great sense of humor and intelligence to boot. Thank you for drawing all your friends more deeply into the mysteries of life. We can't help but think about the deeper things, the most important things in life...you lead us ...

The History of American Theater and American Musicals

The American Theater has a spirit all its own! Students will learn about the History of American theater in the Fall Semester and the History of American Musicals in the Spring Semester. The survey will cover the years 1752 to today. Each week, a different play by an American author will be read (as homework) and discussed (in class). Students will have a chance to read aloud and play parts in scenes from each play during the live class sessions. The context of American Theater in the larger history of Drama will be explored, as will the thrills of Broadway, Vaudeville, Tent Shows and Showboats. Each play will be analyzed in regard to its characters, plot, settings and themes, and typically American recurrent themes will be noted. In addition, the development of American Musicals on stage and screen will be studied, focusing on the relation of American Musicals to other genres of music, inlcuding opera, show hall, pop, rock and rap. FALL 2025: 14 Sessions - Wednesdays at 7...

Classes with Kevin

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