The following clip, "The Five Minute University," featuring Father Guido Sarducci (comedian Don Novello), is a few decades old, but still current:
What will you remember from English 427 in five years' time?
There are two ways to answer this question:
1) As Father Guido Sarducci would.
2) As a hard-working and idealistic college student fresh from the course would.
You can decide how to answer (giving two answers in an option).
Deadline: Friday (5/6), 5pm.
7 comments:
To be honest, I have a difficult time remembering time periods, dates, etc. For example, I might not remember that the later 18th century came after the Enlightenment and before the Romantic era. I don't know; maybe, I will, but knowing me... yeah...
However,--and maybe I'm just being idealistic--but I think there are a number of salient points that will stick with us. I don't want to speak for the entire class, but I do think that most of us will remember things like the Sublime and its vast obscurity, the Gothic and its supernatural, "WTF just happened?" moments, and the bold endeavor of some authors to claim that their literary forgeries were legitimate. And I'm sure there's a lot more that we'll be able to recall.
Now that we've reached the end of the semester, I think that the one thing that I'll remember for sure is my preconceived notion that the later 18th century does not have a one defining characteristic, but rather that it's an important, transient period from one era of literature to the next.
Thanks for a great semester!
I am going to answer this in two parts. First answer (as Father Guido):
At the five year university, English 427 would probably be about 10 seconds. There was a book about Shandy someone. Wow that stuff was hard to read. We looked for a white bear. The plays were so boring even then people didn't like them... Um... There were some people forging literature. Oh, and how could I have forgotten about the WTF moments?
That last post was rather pessimistic, so I am going to answer from the second perspective too:
Idealistically, I will remember a lot of the things I learned in the class. This period had such a wide range of things to offer. Ranging from sensibility to the gothic, the time period had more to offer than it first appeared. The forgeries themselves were interesting, from the time period they were supposed to be and how they related to the time they were written. How could we forget about Shandy and his unique writting style, and ability to float off topic at any time? Works on the Sublime and from the working class have to stick in our minds, on some level surely.
On one of the first days of class, we were discussing why this period had relatively few notable works and authors that we study today. People tossed around various reasons (e.g., few notable historical landmarks, transition between the Enlightenment and Romanticism, lack of an overarching theme), and Kirstin said something to the effect of, "What if the writing just sucked?"
That's what I'll remember -- not that all of the writing was awful, but that "the canon" and the authority we tend to give authors in the classroom can be misplaced. We spent so much time discussing authors' intentions and biases, and that, combined with units like the one on forgery, really illustrated for me that not all writing we encounter in the classroom is fantastic and important.
I'm also never going to forget Tristram Shandy, mostly because the fact that there is a postmodern novel that predates postmodernism by 200+ years is wild.
The memories I will have from 427 will definitely be about Steph Ruiz, kristen Grandberry, and Katlyn Satterfield!!
I also learned a lot about the period that I didn't know flourished during the C18. I really liked learning about print culture and how the immediacy of literature had such a profound impact on knowledge and politics. I came into the class thinking that I had a general idea about the topics we would cover about children lit, theater, middle class,the sublime and things of that nature. But, I was happy when we went in-depth in these subjects and I was entertained and intrigued with the presentations.
I probably won't remember any of the poems or prose we read from the black/blue course book. I would have much preferred taking that out of the course and reading more Shandy or another play. I will definitely remember Shandy for his sexuality and awkwardness. Everyone loves a good Shandy joke.
The memories I will have from 427 will definitely be about Steph Ruiz, kristen Grandberry, and Katlyn Satterfield!!
I also learned a lot about the period that I didn't know flourished during the C18. I really liked learning about print culture and how the immediacy of literature had such a profound impact on knowledge and politics. I came into the class thinking that I had a general idea about the topics we would cover about children lit, theater, middle class,the sublime and things of that nature. But, I was happy when we went in-depth in these subjects and I was entertained and intrigued with the presentations.
I probably won't remember any of the poems or prose we read from the black/blue course book. I would have much preferred taking that out of the course and reading more Shandy or another play. I will definitely remember Shandy for his sexuality and awkwardness. Everyone loves a good Shandy joke.
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