Basic Program of Liberal Education for Adults
Chicago Basic Program, Chicago, University of Chicago, Basic Program, UChicago, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4The Basic Program of Liberal Education for Adults was founded at the University of Chicago in 1946, in the wake of Robert Hutchins and Mortimer Adler's Great Books work, and is now run by the university's Graham School. It is a four-year, non-credit certificate program for adults with no prerequisites, tests, papers, or grades. Students progress as a cohort, taking one ten-week course in each of the Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters. Each course pairs a ninety-minute Seminar, which covers three to five texts, with a ninety-minute Tutorial devoted to the close reading of one or two texts, taught by different instructors and conducted by Socratic discussion. The core sequence below follows the four-year curriculum overview published by the Graham School; seminar and tutorial readings are marked in the notes.
- Works
- 58
- Free to read
- 53 of them →
- Years
- 4
- Official list
- graham.uchicago.edu
- Source
How this list was checked
Four-Year Core Sequence overview and per-quarter course pages, and (and sibling year/quarter pages), 2025-26 curriculum, checked 2026-09-21
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Year 4
58 works, spine out. Take one down to see its cover.Tap one to take it down.
Year 1
The first year begins with the Greeks and the questions that never go away: Plato's Socrates on the examined life, Aristotle on the good, Thucydides on power, Sophocles on fate. Read in weekly evening seminars for adults, two hours a week.
Browse these 13 →- 1AntigoneRobert Fagles translationAmazon: Antigone, Robert Fagles translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 2ApologyG. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translationAmazon: Apology, G. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translation, opens in a new tabApproachable
- 3CritoG. M. A. Grube translationAmazon: Crito, G. M. A. Grube translation, opens in a new tabApproachable
- 4Crime and PunishmentRichard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky translationAmazon: Crime and Punishment, Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 5MenoG. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translationAmazon: Meno, G. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 6The HistoriesAndrea L. Purvis translationAmazon: The Histories, Andrea L. Purvis translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 7The OresteiaRobert Fagles translationAmazon: The Oresteia, Robert Fagles translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 8Nicomachean EthicsTerence Irwin translationAmazon: Nicomachean Ethics, Terence Irwin translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 9The PrinceHarvey C. Mansfield translationAmazon: The Prince, Harvey C. Mansfield translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 10LeviathanEdwin Curley editionAmazon: Leviathan, Edwin Curley edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 11Discourse on the Origin of InequalityDonald A. Cress translationAmazon: Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, Donald A. Cress translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 12The TempestFolger Shakespeare Library editionAmazon: The Tempest, Folger Shakespeare Library edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 13King LearFolger Shakespeare Library (Simon and Schuster) editionAmazon: King Lear, Folger Shakespeare Library (Simon and Schuster) edition, opens in a new tabDifficult
Year 2
Rome, the Bible and the Middle Ages through the early Renaissance: Virgil, the Gospels, Augustine, Aquinas, Dante, and Machiavelli. The second year asks what happened to the Greek questions when faith and empire took them over.
Browse these 16 →- 1Oedipus the KingRobert Fagles translationAmazon: Oedipus the King, Robert Fagles translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 2PoeticsMalcolm Heath translationAmazon: Poetics, Malcolm Heath translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 3The BacchaeWilliam Arrowsmith translationAmazon: The Bacchae, William Arrowsmith translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 4Antony and CleopatraFolger Shakespeare Library (Simon and Schuster) editionAmazon: Antony and Cleopatra, Folger Shakespeare Library (Simon and Schuster) edition, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 5The IliadRichmond Lattimore translationAmazon: The Iliad, Richmond Lattimore translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 6The OdysseyRichmond Lattimore translationDemanding
- 7A Portrait of the Artist as a Young ManPenguin Classics editionAmazon: A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Penguin Classics edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 8A Room of One's OwnHarcourt (Harvest) editionAmazon: A Room of One's Own, Harcourt (Harvest) edition, opens in a new tabModerate
- 9The RepublicAllan Bloom translationAmazon: The Republic, Allan Bloom translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 10EssaysM. A. Screech translationAmazon: Essays, M. A. Screech translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 11PenséesA. J. Krailsheimer translationAmazon: Pensées, A. J. Krailsheimer translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 12On the Genealogy of MoralsWalter Kaufmann and R. J. Hollingdale translationAmazon: On the Genealogy of Morals, Walter Kaufmann and R. J. Hollingdale translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 13Introductory Lectures on PsychoanalysisJames Strachey translationModerate
- 14GenesisRobert Alter translationAmazon: Genesis, Robert Alter translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 15JobRobert Alter translationDemanding
- 16Gospel of MatthewOxford University Press editionModerate
Year 3
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: the scientific revolution, the social contract, and the novel. Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Hume, Kant, and Shakespeare and Cervantes read alongside them.
Browse these 13 →- 1ElementsThomas L. Heath translationAmazon: Elements, Thomas L. Heath translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 2Meditations on First PhilosophyJohn Cottingham translationAmazon: Meditations on First Philosophy, John Cottingham translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 3MiddlemarchPenguin Classics editionAmazon: Middlemarch, Penguin Classics edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 4PhysicsJoe Sachs translationAmazon: Physics, Joe Sachs translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 5On the Nature of ThingsA. E. Stallings translationAmazon: On the Nature of Things, A. E. Stallings translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 6Mathematical Principles of Natural PhilosophyI. Bernard Cohen and Anne Whitman translationAmazon: Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, I. Bernard Cohen and Anne Whitman translation, opens in a new tabFormidable
- 7On the Origin of SpeciesPenguin Classics editionAmazon: On the Origin of Species, Penguin Classics edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 8The AeneidRobert Fagles translationAmazon: The Aeneid, Robert Fagles translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 9ConfessionsHenry Chadwick translationAmazon: Confessions, Henry Chadwick translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 10Summa TheologicaFathers of the English Dominican Province translationAmazon: Summa Theologica, Fathers of the English Dominican Province translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 11Second Treatise of GovernmentHackett editionAmazon: Second Treatise of Government, Hackett edition, opens in a new tabModerate
- 12Groundwork of the Metaphysics of MoralsMary Gregor and Jens Timmermann translationAmazon: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, Mary Gregor and Jens Timmermann translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 13InfernoRobert Hollander and Jean Hollander translationAmazon: Inferno, Robert Hollander and Jean Hollander translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
Year 4
The nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the books that made the modern arguments: Tocqueville, Marx, Darwin, Nietzsche, Dostoevsky, Freud, Weber, and the writers who answered them. The program ends where the present begins.
Browse these 16 →- 1Lives of the Noble Grecians and RomansJohn Dryden, revised by Arthur Hugh Clough translationModerate
- 2SymposiumAlexander Nehamas and Paul Woodruff translationAmazon: Symposium, Alexander Nehamas and Paul Woodruff translation, opens in a new tabModerate
- 3Pride and PrejudicePenguin Classics editionAmazon: Pride and Prejudice, Penguin Classics edition, opens in a new tabApproachable
- 4History of the Peloponnesian WarRichard Crawley, edited by Robert B. Strassler translationAmazon: History of the Peloponnesian War, Richard Crawley, edited by Robert B. Strassler translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 5PoliticsCarnes Lord translationAmazon: Politics, Carnes Lord translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 6The Wealth of NationsLiberty Fund editionAmazon: The Wealth of Nations, Liberty Fund edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 7Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844Martin Milligan translationAmazon: Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844, Martin Milligan translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 8The Communist ManifestoSamuel Moore translationAmazon: The Communist Manifesto, Samuel Moore translation, opens in a new tabApproachable
- 9CapitalBen Fowkes translationAmazon: Capital, Ben Fowkes translation, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 10The Declaration of IndependencePenguin Civic Classics editionApproachable
- 11The Constitution of the United StatesPenguin Civic Classics editionAmazon: The Constitution of the United States, Penguin Civic Classics edition, opens in a new tabModerate
- 12The Federalist PapersSignet Classics editionAmazon: The Federalist Papers, Signet Classics edition, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 13Democracy in AmericaHarvey C. Mansfield and Delba Winthrop translationAmazon: Democracy in America, Harvey C. Mansfield and Delba Winthrop translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
- 14The Gettysburg AddressLibrary of America editionAmazon: The Gettysburg Address, Library of America edition, opens in a new tabApproachable
- 15BelovedVintage International editionAmazon: Beloved, Vintage International edition, opens in a new tabDifficult
- 16PhaedoG. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translationAmazon: Phaedo, G. M. A. Grube, revised by John M. Cooper translation, opens in a new tabDemanding
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