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If History is a Poem, what does it mean?

Thu 29 Jan - Thu 2 Apr 2026

10 Weeks

WEA Sydney

Anne Harbers , Hugh Tranter , Sonya Thompson , Georgina Kenyon , Michael Taylor , Sandy Killick , Lanning Bennett , Michael Pyne , Michael Hauptman , Jan Scherpenhuizen

When	Where
Thu 29 Jan 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 5 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 12 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 19 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 26 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 5 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 12 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 19 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 26 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 2 Apr 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney

Join ten thinkers as they improvise on the theme If History is a Poem, what does it mean? Each brings their own voice to an unfolding conversation about how we interpret the past, live in the present, and imagine the future. Together, they explore the enduring philosophical questions of what is true, good, and beautiful — and how these ideas shape our understanding of history, art, and human meaning. From the philosophy of poetry and interpretation to the dilemmas of today’s changing world, this series invites you to listen, question, and think along with minds that analyse, improvise and synthesise.

DELIVERY MODE

Face-to-Face

COURSE OUTLINE

[What] Can history tell us about the future?" (Michael Taylor)
If history is poetry, Vedanta is the best guide to this inexhaustible epic (Jan Scherpenhuizen)
"I have nature, art and poetry, and if that is not enough, what is?" - Vincent van Gogh (Anne Harbers)
Ozymandias and The Painted Veil: Shelley, illusion and the nature of life (Georgina Kenyon)
Humankind - a hopeful history (Sandy Killick)
Life is poetry - ambiguous, romantic, tragic. How does this shape the human condition? (Lanning Bennett)
Redeeming History Through Art: The Ideas of Walter Benjamin (Michael Hauptman)
History is the great leveller: it puts us in our place (Michael Pyne)
Tennyson’s Charge of the Light Brigade (Sonya Thompson)
Unwritten verses? Pondering the knowns and unknowns of a 'history poem' (Hugh Tranter)

WEA Sydney

72 Bathurst Street

Sydney 2000

Sessions

When	Where
Thu 29 Jan 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 5 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 12 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 19 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 26 Feb 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 5 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 12 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 19 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 26 Mar 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney
Thu 2 Apr 2026 9:30am - 11:30am (UTC+11:00)	Classroom TBA - WEA Sydney