In 2006, a senior in Education Seminar class posed a striking question: Why doesn’t public education teach us about love? Inspired by this question, School Within a School (SWS) English teacher Keira Flynn-Carson set out to address it by proposing the creation of a new class about love the following school year.
For 18 years, Flynn-Carson has taught Literature of Love, a semester-long class in the SWS program. Literature of Love, like all English classes in SWS, was selected by student votes. Literature of Love starts with the science and biochemistry of love, before moving on to units on philosophy, psychology and literature. Students read and discuss mythology, fairy tales, and a selection of classic novels including “Pride and Prejudice” and “Love in the Time of Cholera.” Through these explorations, students gain insights that extend beyond academics, shaping how they think about relationships in their own lives.
Flynn-Carson said that one of the key aspects of the class is the inclusion of stories from a variety of authors with different viewpoints.
“The stories that you expose yourself to train you to expect certain things of love,” Flynn-Carson said. “So the first assignment is to check their own stories that they’ve consumed a lot and that they think have had a big influence on what they expect from love.”
Junior Alice Michelson, who took the class in her sophomore year, explained that in one project, students select a question about love that captivates their curiosity and then interview other students about their research question. They then present their findings in the form of a paper, podcast or video. Michelson said that this project, and others like it, were her favorite parts of the class.
Michelson said that some of her friends and her siblings urged her to take the class, emphasizing how impactful and worthwhile the experience had been for them.
“I would definitely encourage people to take the class because I think about that class probably every day and all the philosophies we learned have really helped me,” Michelson said. “It was just so interesting and a great intro to SWS.”

Flynn-Carson said that as relationship trends shift, many students feel pressured to conform, even when it doesn’t align with what they truly want.

“Relationships are subject to trends the same way that fashion is, and right now people should be having whatever kind of relationship they want, but the dominant thing in our high school is hookup culture,” Flynn-Carson said. “Sometimes people feel like they’re doing it wrong if they want something different, and I think all of those things are artificially limiting.”

Flynn-Carson said it’s essential to provide a space where students can explore their thoughts on relationships without judgment and connect with other students who share similar experiences to them.

“It’s a safe place to talk about something that’s deeply personal without having to do any disclosure or feel embarrassed about what you haven’t or have experienced,” Flynn-Carson said.
Junior Cal Barrett explained that she signed up for the class for sophomore year, despite not knowing anyone who had taken it. She said she was intrigued by the description of the course and by the idea of exploring love from deep philosophical and scientific perspectives.
“It was such a rounding experience,” Barrett said. “I feel like it’s given me a new perspective on things, and I can take my experience in that class and bring it into other classes.”
Flynn-Carson explained that former students sometimes reach out to her years after graduating to share that they’ve found themselves in a relationship. They tell her they revisited their Literature of Love folder and notes to understand why something was making them feel a certain way.
Barrett said the class has a good balance of sophomores, juniors and seniors, making it a fulfilling and enjoyable experience.

“The seniors in that class were so smart and they were super dedicated to making the space feel good for people and being inviting for sophomores,” Barrett said. “They were such intelligent people and I was so inspired by their work and their writing.”
Barrett said the class completely transformed her perspective, giving her a much deeper understanding of the world and people around her.
“I try not to be pretentious by bringing it up all the time, but I just feel like it’s such a good experience,” Barrett said. “It was such a formative class to take and I encourage everybody to.”