Columbia University's Core Curriculum represents America's oldest and most enduring Great Books program. Launched in 1919 as "Contemporary Civilization," this revolutionary approach required all students to grapple with foundational texts that shaped Western thought. The program emerged from a bold educational philosophy: every undergraduate, regardless of major, should engage deeply with humanity's greatest intellectual achievements.
Students spend their first two years in small seminars, wrestling with works from Homer's Iliad to Morrison's Song of Solomon. This intimate setting transforms passive reading into active intellectual combat, where students debate Plato's cave allegory one week and Woolf's stream of consciousness the next. The curriculum has evolved significantly, incorporating diverse voices after decades of student advocacy.
What makes Columbia's approach distinctive isn't just the prestigious reading list—it's the democratic ideal that these transformative conversations belong to everyone, not just literature majors.