Brooklyn Institute for Social Research
Classes in Brooklyn
The Brooklyn Institute for Social Research, established in 2011, offers liberal arts education and research opportunities to local communities while supporting young scholars. With a mission to engage various intellectual traditions, the institute aims to provide accessible education and foster active, engaged citizens.
11 classes with availability
Andrea Dworkin: Sex, Power, and Politics (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore the polarizing legacy of Andrea Dworkin, a fierce critic of pornography and patriarchy, whose work ignited feminist debates and continues to provoke reflection in the #MeToo era. Delve into her writings, speeches, and radical ideas to uncover insights into feminism's evolution and its liberation ideals.
Oct 21st
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Wed. Oct 21st, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Mikhail Bulgakov: The Master and Margarita (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 45 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY
Examine a landmark work of twentieth-century literature through themes of censorship, morality, faith and artistic freedom. Explore how fantasy, satire and allegory challenge political power while raising enduring questions about truth, love and conscience. Gain deeper historical and cultural insight through thoughtful discussion and close reading.
Oct 21st
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Wed. Oct 21st, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Stoicism: a Philosophical Introduction (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore the ancient philosophy of Stoicism and its ideas about tranquility, ethics, politics, and human nature. Examine influential writings from Greek and Roman thinkers while considering questions of happiness, justice, freedom, and self-improvement. Reflect on the enduring relevance of Stoic thought in modern life.
Nov 16th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Mon. Nov 16th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Annie Ernaux: Shame and the Politics of Memory
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 81 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY
Examine the work of a Nobel Prize-winning author whose writing transforms personal experience into a powerful exploration of memory, class and gender. Through close readings of key texts, you'll explore themes of identity, politics and autobiography while considering the evolution of contemporary autofiction and literary voice.
Nov 17th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
3 Seats Left
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Tue. Nov 17th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Andrei Tarkovsky: the Poetics of Cinema (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore the distinctive cinematic language of Andrei Tarkovsky through four landmark films and selections from his writings. Examine how memory, spirituality, nature, art and symbolism shape his work while considering Soviet film culture, philosophy and visual art. Reflect on the enduring questions of creativity, humanity and artistic expression.
Nov 17th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Tue. Nov 17th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Queer NYC: After Stonewall (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 304 Bond St., Brooklyn, NY
Explore the history of queer life and activism in New York City from the 1950s through the era of marriage equality. Examine Stonewall, community organizing, the AIDS crisis, and the evolving politics of gay rights through influential writings by queer activists, artists, and scholars.
Nov 18th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Wed. Nov 18th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
King Lear: Madness, Soveriegnty, and Crisis (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore Shakespeare’s portrayal of political instability, power, and social upheaval through close reading and historical context. Examine philosophical influences from Montaigne and Machiavelli alongside theories of monarchy in early seventeenth-century Britain. Consider how the play’s themes of sovereignty, community, and political fracture remain relevant today.
Nov 19th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Thu. Nov 19th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Thomas Bernhard: The Arts Trilogy
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 75 Broad St, New York, NY
Examine a powerful collection of modern literary works that explore art, memory, grief and isolation through an uncompromising narrative style. Engage with philosophical and historical perspectives while analyzing recurring themes of ambition, friendship and artistic integrity. Ideal for readers interested in literature, critical theory and intellectual discussion.
Oct 20th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Tue. Oct 20th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Thomas Mann: The Magic Mountain
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 30 Irving Pl, New York, NY
Delve into Thomas Mann's literary masterpiece, 'The Magic Mountain,' at the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research. This course invites exploration into the profound themes of love, loss, time, and the human condition against the backdrop of prewar Europe. Analyzing Mann's work alongside medical journals, reviews, and lectures, participants will ponder questions of health, the evolving nature of time in modernity, and the pursuit of enchantment in a rapidly changing world.
Nov 16th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Mon. Nov 16th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
Critical Theory and the Now: An Introduction to the Frankfurt School
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 75 Broad St, New York, NY
Examine influential ideas that shaped modern critical thought through the writings of leading twentieth-century philosophers and social theorists. Explore concepts connecting culture, politics, history and art while considering their relevance to contemporary society. Engage with thought-provoking texts that encourage deeper analysis of today's world.
Nov 18th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Wed. Nov 18th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
The Subway: Urbanism, Infrastructure, and Social Life
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ Online, New York, NY
Explore the intricate relationship between urbanism, infrastructure, and social life through the lens of the New York City subway. Investigate its historical, sociological, and economic impact, from its role in urban expansion to its influence on everyday life and politics. Delve into the subway's cultural representations and envision the kind of life it enables and could enable.
Nov 17th
6:30–9:30pm ET
Meets 4 Times
$355
25 Seats Left
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Tue. Nov 17th, 6:30–9:30pm ET
(12 hours over 4 sessions)
More classes to explore
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From Radical Doubt to Absolute Certainty
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 18 Bridge St, New York, NY
Descartes’ Meditations: From Radical Doubt to Absolute Certainty “To demolish everything completely and start again right from the foundations…to devote myself sincerely and without reservation to the general demolition of my opinions.” This is the project that René Descartes sets forth in the first of his Meditations on First Philosophy: to dismantle all acquired belief, then start science over from scratch. In this course, we will...
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
The Good, the Bad, and the Evil
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
The Good, the Bad, and the Evil: an Introduction to Moral Philosophy Why should we be good? What makes an action moral—and how can we know? If an act is moral here and now, is it necessarily moral there and then? Is goodness in some way connected to happiness? And, what constitutes a moral judgment—is it an exercise of reason, or merely an expression of feeling? In this class, we’ll investigate the nature and scope of morality as it’s been...
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Fiction and Inner Life: Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Can words describe what Virginia Woolf calls “the daily drama of the body”? Can literature verbalize our interiority: physical and spiritual change, the home, the mind, and the relationships between them? In her celebrated novel Mrs. Dalloway, Woolf’s eponymous protagonist is plagued with perpetual anxiety: Clarissa Dalloway is always on the verge of sickness, waking up on a sunny morning with a feeling of “terror,” “overwhelming incapacity,”...
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The Abyss I am Made Of: an Intro to Clarice Lispector
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
The Abyss I am Made Of: an Introduction to Clarice Lispector Compared over the course of her life to Marlene Dietrich, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, Franz Kafka, Rainer Maria Rilke, Arthur Rimbaud, a sphinx, a she-wolf, a “foreigner on earth,” and a hurricane, the Jewish Brazilian Clarice Lispector, born to Ukrainian parents who fled to Brazil from interwar pogroms, made an indelible stamp on the literature of her adopted homeland—and...
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 45 Main St , Brooklyn, NY
Delve into the world of Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, a masterpiece exploring love, lust, and the social upheavals of 19th-century Russia. This course examines the novel’s portrayal of family, gender, religion, and modernity, addressing how personal choices intertwine with political and societal shifts during a period of transformation.
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Ruins: Beauty, Feeling, and Catastrophe (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Step into the allure and complexity of ruins as aesthetic objects, conceptual phenomena, and spatial practices in this thought-provoking course. Examine the cultural, political, and historical significance of ruins and how they appear across literature, art, and architecture. See the transformative power of ruins and their relationship to preservation, environmental destruction, and adaptive reuse.
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Emanation and Return: an Introduction to Neoplatonism (In-Person)
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore a philosophical tradition that unites metaphysical inquiry with spiritual practice, centered on the teachings of Plotinus. Examine key ideas on the nature of reality, the soul and its ascent toward unity. Engage with influential texts and their impact on major religious and philosophical traditions. Gain insight into philosophy as both a discipline and a way of life.
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
God or Nature: Spinoza’s Ethics
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Discover the revolutionary philosophy of Spinoza as we delve into his magnum opus, the Ethics. Explore Spinoza's monistic materialism and his groundbreaking notion of God or Nature. Uncover the enduring legacy of Spinoza's ideas across philosophy, politics, science, and religion.
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Late-Capitalist Architecture
Brooklyn Institute for Social Research See all classes by this school @ 68 Jay St, Brooklyn, NY
Explore the intersections of architecture and late capitalism. Delve into the material, formal, and ideological dimensions of architectural manifestations under financialized capital. Analyze how architecture reflects and responds to the instabilities and crises of contemporary life, offering insights into collective political agency amidst commercial imperatives.
This class isn’t on the schedule at the moment, but save it to your Wish List to find out when it comes back!
Reviews of Brooklyn Institute for Social Research
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Late-Capitalist Architecture
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Reading the Iliad
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Solarpunk: Theory, Fiction, and Radical Futures
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Herman Melville: The Confidence-Man
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Architectural Experiments: Revolutions in Design
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Emanation and Return: an Introduction to Neoplatonism (In-Person)
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Kierkegaard: Either/Or
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Ruins: Beauty, Feeling, and Catastrophe (In-Person)
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Leo Strauss: Philosophy Between the Lines
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Hysteria, Dreams, and Psychoanalysis: an Introduction to Freud
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Leo Tolstoy: Anna Karenina (In-Person)
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The Subway: Urbanism, Infrastructure, and Social Life
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Vergil’s Aeneid: Myth, Empire, and Ruin
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Vergil’s Aeneid: Myth, Empire, and Ruin
First, I was really out of my element. I was lost from the start! I found the reading difficult….and I think I had the wrong book. Second, the discussions were tedious and baffling. The “class” was filled with Aeneid groupies who tried one-upping each other at every turn; I didn’t get anything out of that except being annoyed that everyone was trying to impress each other with their academic prowess. It just was the wrong class for me. I’m sure the students I’m referring to loved it! But it was really beyond me. And that’s on me. -
Mining: Industry, Ecology, and Capitalism
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James Joyce: Ulysses
It was not easy, but I didn't expect it to be. I got some very useful insight into the book, which will help in my second reading. I will be looking for more classes taught by Professor Porte. -
Hannah Arendt: The Human Condition
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Proust in Time: The Prisoner
pretentious, and unwelcoming professor -
Henry James: The Portrait of a Lady
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Don DeLillo: Underworld
