Class Description
Explore the history of Chicago over most of the twentieth century, through two lenses: Mike Royko’s biography of Richard J. Daley, the man who most shaped the city we live in today, and Royko’s columns on a variety of topics.
Boss is a panoramic consideration of the city, especially its politics and corruption; the columns are close-ups of countless smaller topics. Both sorts of text are written in Royko’s inimitable Chicagoese. This course will include framing lectures but will focus on guided discussion.
After the course, on July 31, there will be an optional in-person tour of the exhibition “Chicago Style: Mike Royko and Windy City Journalism” at the Newberry (video and other images will be provided to out-of-town participants).
Bill Savage is Professor of Instruction in the English Department at Northwestern University. A lifelong Chicagoan and reader of newspapers, he has taught seminars at the Newberry since 1992. He is curator of the exhibition "Chicago Style: Mike Royko and Windy City Journalism."
Materials List
Order from the Newberry Bookshop here!
Required
- Mike Royko, Boss. Plume, 1988. ISBN: 978-0452261679
- Mike Royko, One More Time: The Best of Mike Royko. University of Chicago Press, 2000. ISBN: 978-0226730721
- Various columns from Royko's other collections will be provided by the instructor.
Cost and Registration
4 Sessions, $200 ($180 for Newberry members, seniors, and students). Learn about becoming a member.
We now offer our classes at three different price options: Regular ($200), Community Supported ($190), and Sponsor ($210). Following the models of other institutions, we want to ensure that our classes are accessible to a wider audience while continuing to support our instructors. You may choose the price that best fits your situation when registering through Learning Stream.
To register multiple people for this class, please go through the course calendar in Learning Stream, our registration platform. When you select the course and register, you’ll be prompted to add another registrant.
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