One of the great challenges in teaching a survey course full of non-majors is making sure everyone knows how to write about literature. This past semester, I faced that challenge in my world literature course – I had a room full of students, ranging from high school students taking college-level courses to senior English majors working on their capstone papers. Continue reading “Teaching Writing and Analysis in the Literature Classroom”
Month: February 2014
Why Teach or Study Creative Writing?
A while ago, a Joss Whedon quote was being passed around the Internet. He’d been telling an audience about his frustration with repeatedly being asked, “Why do you write these strong woman characters?” His response (now immortalized in a million Facebook posts): “Because you’re still asking me that question.” Continue reading “Why Teach or Study Creative Writing?”
Starting Fresh
I always enjoy the beginning of the semester: new students, new classes, and new school supplies (I still love those, all these many years past grade school). This year, starting fresh, for me, also means a new university: I’ve recently started teaching at Heidelberg University in Ohio. Continue reading “Starting Fresh”
Why I Teach
The final assignment I give my MFA students is one they often hate, to write a “Why I Write” essay. Lately it seems the “Why I Write” has become a genre onto itself, a rite of passage for amateur and professional alike. And even a cursory reading in the genre suggests many of us write for many of the same reasons:
- To learn
- To leave the world better than we found it Continue reading “Why I Teach”
Working with Context: Letting Students find the Connections
In my world literature course, I’m using The Bedford Anthology of World Literature, which has – among other features – some nice chapters on context. For my class today, I had students read the section called “Society and its Discontents,” which includes selections from Zola, Nietzsche, Maupassant and Nitobe. Continue reading “Working with Context: Letting Students find the Connections”