Coastal Senior College, serving Lincoln and Knox counties, is accepting registrations for its spring term courses. Among the offerings will be “Dickens’s Magic Tricks,” taught by John and Maryanne Ward as a hybrid class, both in person at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Newcastle and on Zoom. The class will meet on Tuesdays, beginning on April 8, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. 

“Could you write an insightful novel full of caricatures and stereotypes; merge comedy with tragedy; make shady types lovable and sympathetic; cast the leading lady as a sociopath whom the reader will pity; and make the central character so clueless that he doesn’t see that great expectations are a fool’s errand?” ask the instructors. “Then, could you sell such a mixed bag to a publisher? How did Dickens pull these contradictory and unlikely elements together to create Great Expectations, one of the nineteenth century’s greatest novels, a tale whose popularity a century later is undiminished?” 

Instructors John and Maryanne Ward have each earned PhDs in English literature and have taught for many years at the college level. They also share a special interest in novels of the 18th and 19th centuries. 

Vigorous class discussions in Coastal Senior College courses offer an opportunity to learn and connect with other students who are primarily 50 and older. 

Among the 13 spring term courses offered by CSC, six are offered on Zoom, five are offered in person, and two are offered in a hybrid in-person Zoom format. Information about Coastal Senior College and the spring term courses can be found at coastalseniorcollege.org.