MIT's OpenCourseWare initiative has brought education from the banks of the Charles River to all corners of the globe. One of the latest additions to the MIT OpenCourseWare site deals with the importance and nuances of major European novels, which in this case include Don Quixote, Père Goriot, Madame Bovary, and Anna Karenina. Taught by Professor Alvin Kibel, one of the motivating premises behind the course is that "it will not deal with the actions of persons of immense consequences-kings, princes, high elected officials and the like-but rather with the lives of apparently ordinary people and the everyday details of their social ambitions and desires." It's a glorious idea, and one that is reflected throughout the materials here. On this site, visitors can read the course overview and take a look at the paper assignments and the discussion questions for each novel.