Seeing the City Afresh
MIT OpenCourseWare offers this writing seminar that treats the city as a subject and a genre. Students read poets, novelists, journalists, historians, ethnographers, and filmmakers who have written about urban life, then use that reading to shape their own longform nonfiction. The syllabus centers on three forms, the essay, the memoir, and literary narrative, with sustained attention to the writer-editor relationship and revision as a way of sharpening thought rather than just polishing prose. Coursework builds toward a substantial piece of city writing developed through multiple drafts and feedback. Materials include the reading list, assignments, and course structure as taught at MIT; there is no certificate, and all materials are free to access under MIT's open license.