Glossop Guild for enquiring minds
Spring Term Courses
January 2020 ~ March 2020
More Stories From the American South
5 Monday Afternoons
Tutor: Creina Mansfield
Monday 13th, 20th, 27th January & 3rd,& 10th February 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
2.00 pm ~ 4.00 pm.
Fee: £32.50 Non-members £27.50 Members
In 1884 Mark Twain published what is arguably the most influential southern novel of the 19th century, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Ernest Hemingway said of the novel “All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn”.
We shall then turn to a novel set during the civil war, which was described by the author as, ‘a psychological portrayal of fear’. It was acclaimed on publication, making Stephen Crane a celebrity at the age of twenty-four.
-
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) by Mark Twain
-
The Red Badge of Courage (1895) by Stephen Crane
-
​
This course has been completed
​
Ethics & Society
5 Tuesday Afternoons
Tutor: Valerie Bryson
Tuesday 14th, 21st, 28th January & 4th & 11th February 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
2.00 pm ~ 4.00 pm.
Fee: £32.50 Non-members £27.50 Members
Do animals have rights? Are we responsible for the welfare of other people? Should we re-introduce the death penalty? Can euthanasia be justified? And what about abortion?
Most of us have opinions on these issues. This course doesn’t attempt to convert you to one way of thinking or to provide definitive answers. Instead, its aim is to try to think more clearly and logically about complex and contentious problems with the help of competing philosophical approaches to the study of ethics.
You are likely to find that some of the ideas and approaches you encounter seem friendly and familiar, and that they support your existing opinions. Other ideas may be more challenging, and you should keep an open mind and respect the opinions of others
This course has been completed
Linnaeus & Pandora's Box
10 Wednesday Evenings
Tutor: Bob Callow
Wednesday 15th, 22nd, 29th January & 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th February 4th, 11th & 18th March 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7.30 pm ~ 9.30 pm
Fee: £65 Non-members £55 Members
Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778) was the leading naturalist of the 18th Century. His publications are internationally accepted as the starting point for the naming and classification of all animals and plants. The simplicity of his ‘System of Nature’ rendered it invaluable to naturalists and explorers, its author becoming their undisputed authority. Linnaeus believed that the pattern of classification reflected the scheme of Creation. Others, notably Charles Darwin, were to interpret this evidence in a very different way. Linnaeus had unwittingly opened Pandora’s Box and, as Pandora found to her cost, once opened the box could not be closed.
Under the Lens: An Introduction to the Art of the Dutch Golden Age
Saturday Day School
Tutor: Ellie Wilcox
Thursday May 7th 2020
The Masonic Hall, 14 Henry Street, Glossop. SK13 8BW
10.00 am ~ 4.00 pm Fee £32.50 (Members £25)
​
​
The Day School will examine the work of Dutch artists during the period of the Golden Age. Spanning the 17th century and looking into the customs, traditions and innovations of the period, we will explore how Dutch artists re-created this fascinating time of ingenuity through their genre painting, landscapes, portraits and still lifes. We will also briefly examine the enduring legacy of this artistic period within the context of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.
This course was originally scheduled for January but was cancelled due to personal and urgent unforeseen circumstances.
We have re-scheduled it in the Summer term on 7th May. Bookings for the original date are valid for this new date. Any additional new bookings can be made using the button below.
Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer
Glossop Guild In Conversation with Stella Massey ~ Barrister
Thursday Evening
​
Thursday 13th February 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7:30 p.m. ~ 9:30 p.m. Fee £7 or (£9 0n the door)
​
Please note the change of date from 23rd January to the above..
Stella Massey left school at 16 and went to work for Manchester City Council in the Waterworks Department. Whilst there she took A levels and then transferred to the Social Services Department where she trained as a Social Worker. The work involved her working with young people and she often had to attend the Juvenile Court which is where she became interested in the law. After studying for a Law Degree, Stella became a barrister and has been doing this job for the past thirty years, dealing with the whole range of criminal law – usually defending.
To facilitate a varied and balanced conversation and interview with Stella, questions should be submitted in advance. You can do so by email to: glossopguild@gmail.com or send your question to: The Guild Secretary, 4 Cross Cliffe, Glossop, SK13 8PZ
​
This course has been completed
Getting the Lowdown ~ The History of Cartoons
2 Thursday Evenings
Tutor: Frank Vigon
Thursday 30th January & 6th February 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7:30 p.m. ~ 9:30 p.m. Fee £16 Non-members £14 Members
​
In 1937 Goebbels complained to Lord Halifax that the Nazis were furious about the impact of the work of the cartoonist, David Low. Low was asked by his editor at the Evening Standard to tone things down in the name of peace, which he did, briefly. Cartoons have served as the voice of conscience to politicians from Davinci who produced a series of grotesque caricatures which have formed the basis of the works of Gillray, Rowlandson, Tenniel, Partridge, Low, Giles, Scarfe and Steve Bell. This course will examine the history of cartoons and the styles and methods of talking truth to power. It will also analyse political cartoons which changed events of history and destroyed or cemented the reputation of political personalities. Finally, the subjects themselves purchase the original from the cartoonists – life imitating art?
This course has been completed
​
Minoan Civilisation
5 Tuesday Evening Lectures
Tutor: Laura Houseman
Tuesday 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th February & 3rd March 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7.30 pm ~ 9.30 pm.
Fee: £32.50 Members (£27.50)
The Minoan civilisation that existed on Bronze Age Crete (ca. 3000-1400BC), a rich and fascinating culture, has been extensively studied since Knossos was first discovered more than a century ago. This course will look to explore five different aspects of this captivating culture through a variety of archaeological materials, including its unique art and architecture, its socio-religious practices, trade with the wider ancient world, through to the Theran volcanic eruption and the eventual collapse of the Minoan civilisation.
This course has been completed
Saturday Film Day School ~ Henry V (1944)
Tutors: Creina Mansfield & Alan Sennett
Saturday 8th February 2020
Partington Theatre, Henry Street, Glossop
10 a.m. ~ 4 p.m. Fee: £32.50 (Members £25)
.jpg)
Henry V (1944) was Laurence Olivier’s directorial debut. He also starred in and co-produced the film, which is regarded as one of the best ever screen adaptations of Shakespeare’s work. Olivier had already read Henry V’s St Crispin’s day speech on the radio as a war-time morale booster:
We few. We happy few. We band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day
​
This course has been completed
The Sacred & Profane ~ The Life & Works of Evelyn Waugh
5 Monday Afternoon Lectures
Tutor: Creina Mansfield
Monday 17th, 24th February, 2nd, 9th, & 16th March 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
2.00 pm ~ 4.00 pm.
Fee: £32.50 Members (£27.50)
In this 5 week course we shall look at the life and works of one of the twentieth century’s most celebrated writers. Waugh’s reputation is of a cantankerous curmudgeon, and yet he produced highly amusing comic novels.
Our central text however (so required reading) will be Brideshead Revisited: the Sacred and Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder (1945), which deals with serious issues such as faith, love and the passing of a way of life.
Brunel's Great Ship & The Atlantic Telegraph Cable
Thursday Evening Lecture
Tutor: Anthony Brocklebank
Thursday 20th February 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7:30 p.m. ~ 9:30 p.m. Fee £7 or £9 on the door.
Cyrus West Field in New York and Isambard Kingdom Brunel in London had indefatigable will to complete projects that were at the cutting edge of new technology.
​
In the 1850s communication by telegraph was in it's infancy but it's potential for business was huge. This fact did not escape the attention of an american businessman and financier Cyrus West Field.
​
Various telegraph cables had been layed to connect communities and even countries together, but the big prize was to connect America with Britain. The imprecation for business opportunity was vast. This involved laying a cable across the Atlantic ocean. Who better to provide the ship to lay the cable than the pioneering engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
​
This course explores some of the tremendous trials and tribulations that beset the two entrepreneurs in attaining their ultimate goal.
This course has been completed
Art as a Political Weapon
Saturday day School
Tutor: Frank Vigon
Saturday Day School February 29th 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
10.00 a.m. ~ 4.00 p.m. Fee £32.50 (Members £25)
​
Please note the venue has been changed to the above.
A picture can paint a thousand words – sometimes it can express the thoughts of a whole generation. The visual image is a quick and powerful messenger delivering warning, calling to arms and in extreme circumstances a cry of despair. Art has been drafted into the ranks of political purpose to support a cause, justify an action or argue a case. From ancient times Art has been used to fortify and exaggerate national status and civic pride. In other ages it has been the iconic centre of a movement of revolutionary struggle and self-determination. It has been dragooned into the world of propaganda and in the counter position as a voice of protest. Ultimately in the face of the powerful crushing state it has been the voice of satire and resistance.
This course has been completed.
"It's a Bird it's a Plane ..... it's the Bash Street Kids"
Comics – A Cultural History of Everything
Tutor: Frank Vigon
Two Tuesday Evenings 10th & 17th March 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
7:30 p.m. ~ 9:30 p.m. Fee: £16 (Members £14)
In most Christmas stockings somewhere was a copy of the comic annual such as Tiger Tim. The comic was a creation of the Edwardian period more prevalent in America than Britain. Comics became an introduction to literacy with a text below the frame and speech bubbles for the less fluent. The textual Wizard, Boys Own was replaced by the more graphic Beano and Dandy. Post War there was an explosion of titles: Film Fun, Tiger, Whizzer and Chips. From America came Action, Marvel comics, Superheroes, and the horror comics. Comic strips such as Andy Capp and “Jane” targeted an adult audience. In the sixties a whole range of underground comics appear. Comics finally morph into graphic novels by Raymond Briggs and Brian Talbot. This course graces the history of these developments.
Hannah Mitchell - Remarkable Derbyshire Woman
Thursday Afternoon Lecture
Tutor: Eileen Murphy
Thursday 12th March 2020
Bradbury Community Centre, Market Street, Glossop, SK13 8AR
2:00 p.m. ~ 4:00 p.m. Fee £7 (or £9 on the door).
Hannah Mitchell was born in 1871 at Alport Castles Farm ten miles from Glossop in the Peak district. The course will consider some aspects of her varied life – including her childhood, her thirst for education and her dedicated work for women’s suffrage and peace. Eileen will perform a script-in-hand reading of the monologue ‘Hannah’ . Time will also be taken to discuss the various aspects raised, including Hannah’s early working life in Glossop and Bolton, her later work as a Manchester councillor and magistrate and her invaluable autobiography ‘The Hard Way Up’.
This course has been completed
Wild & Garden Plants Plus All About Easter
Thursday Day School
Tutor: Patrick Harding
Thursday Day School March 19th 2020
The Masonic Hall, 14 Henry Street, Glossop. SK13 8BW
10.00 a.m. ~ 4.00 p.m. Fee £32.50 (Members £25)
​
​
In this Day School, Patrick will cover a wide range of interesting topics:
In praise of Trees: a history of trees in Britain and a look at the many fascinating uses to which tree products have been put, plus woodland natural history and folklore. A Plant Anthology: plants in history, medicine, folklore and poetry. From bombs to glass making; Portland sago to William Wordsworth. The Plant Hunters: the lives, travels and plants of the men who helped transform British gardens from the Tradescants, Banks and Douglas to Chinese Wilson. Easter & its Customs: when is the date of Easter and why? Egg hunting, simnel cakes, Easter lilies, Maundy money, Mother’s Day and the Easter bunny.
