Written by a pompous woman who is too attached to the past and resistant to change, The New Advocacy and the Old, details Gertrude Himmelfarb’s opinion that “the ideology of Moi” should be eliminated from all classrooms, especially English and history courses. Himmelfarb believes that subjectivity is overused, and that the use of the first pronoun, “I”, in academic writing is a form of narcissism that should not be present in academia. The absence of any idea of truth and objective knowledge does not allow for educators to judge “scholarly merit.” All personal experience should be eliminated from scholarly work.
The Rise of English, by Terry Eagleton, describes the nature of English as both a discipline for the masses (middle and lower classes) and the wealthy elite. He also makes an intriguing point that English, most specifically the study of literature, actually grew out of the failure of religion to serve as a solid ideology. Once people began to lose faith in God, they turned to literature as something to believe in. According to Eagleton, evaluating literary works is based on “deeper judgments about the nature of history and society.” Studying literature allows a reader to learn about the self.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Just for Fun
Here's the "real" Dear Abby "written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. It is the most popular and widely syndicated column in the world --known for its uncommon sense and youthful perspective." (website description)Good instructions for us!Thursday, January 29, 2009
Eagleton 100 Word Summary - note that it is precisely 100 words... ;)
Terry Eagleton describes the reasons behind “The Rise of English” as an academic course of study. The basis of his argument is that literature replaced religion, at least to a degree. In Victorian England, there was a spiritual and moral crisis, which led to a heightened sense of the value of literature as experiential and emotional. Studying literature became a way of studying all subjects, most importantly society, history, and spirituality. The original idea that literature made scholars good people was overly idealistic, but the value of literature as an exploration of humanity was recognized then and remains important now.
Don't Forget!
Don't forget to post your 100 word summaries! Good luck, and have fun. It's more challenging than you might expect, but it is a good exercise for developing your writing skill.
More thoughts...
I don't think I have a lot left to say after responding to Megan and Mar's posts, but I wanted to point out that it is really important that we do read each other's posts and the comments that others leave on those posts, as this blog is all about starting a conversation.
I'm pleased to see that it looks like at least a couple of people are becoming pretty engaged with the texts already! I know that I'm excited to study all of this again, and I really hope that I can convince everyone else to be excited about it, too! It's interesting material, at least because it relates directly to our studies, and I hope that it is interesting to you just as consumers of literature in general.
See you in class...
I'm pleased to see that it looks like at least a couple of people are becoming pretty engaged with the texts already! I know that I'm excited to study all of this again, and I really hope that I can convince everyone else to be excited about it, too! It's interesting material, at least because it relates directly to our studies, and I hope that it is interesting to you just as consumers of literature in general.
See you in class...
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Common Threads Between Vendler, Graff, and Scholes
I could not help but notice that the three theorists that we are kicking off this course with seem to agree on a few issues: Good writing originates from good reading and literature must be brought forth to students at a much younger age. I could not agree more with both of these statements.
Helen Vendler proposes giving young children adaptations of classic literature, such as a simple telling of one of Shakespeare's plays, or a shorter, more kid-friendly version of one of Homer's epics. Vendler believes that this type of familiarity with these stories will help students approach literary pieces with a "sense of intimacy and delighted recognition" (45). Students will also ask themselves how the adapation differs from the actual story or piece. For example, a high schooler may ask himself or herself how the language differs in a a true Shakespearean play and an adaptation of the play that he or she read as a youngster. Gerald Graff would argue that students must me pulled toward the realm of theory at a much younger age too. Graff did not appreciate literature until he was able to enter the great debate. "Relation to a community made the intimacy of literary experience possible" (48).
Vendler also states that "writers, easy and natural writers, have always been, first of all, readers" (33). Again, a truly intelligent and necessary statement on Vendler's part. I have been reading since I was three years old, and I think that my writing skills began to take shape at an early age as a result of this. As we heard in the introductory film about Virginia Woolf, Miss Woolf was writing avidly from the age of three on. Not to put myself in the same ballpark as Virginia Woolf, but I speak from personal experience when I say that reading has helped me acquire writing skills. I had little grammatical or stylistic training during my earlier schooling. I learned from first imitating other author's styles, and then from blending my own voice with their's. Robert Scholes dictates that students should read from a wide variety of media, or a "range of texts...in both high and low forms of textuality" (118). Reading everything literally helps students write in any format, style, or medium. Reading is, essentially, practicing writing!
Can anyone find other connections between these theorists and their stances on educating students in the discipline of English?
-Megan R.
Helen Vendler proposes giving young children adaptations of classic literature, such as a simple telling of one of Shakespeare's plays, or a shorter, more kid-friendly version of one of Homer's epics. Vendler believes that this type of familiarity with these stories will help students approach literary pieces with a "sense of intimacy and delighted recognition" (45). Students will also ask themselves how the adapation differs from the actual story or piece. For example, a high schooler may ask himself or herself how the language differs in a a true Shakespearean play and an adaptation of the play that he or she read as a youngster. Gerald Graff would argue that students must me pulled toward the realm of theory at a much younger age too. Graff did not appreciate literature until he was able to enter the great debate. "Relation to a community made the intimacy of literary experience possible" (48).
Vendler also states that "writers, easy and natural writers, have always been, first of all, readers" (33). Again, a truly intelligent and necessary statement on Vendler's part. I have been reading since I was three years old, and I think that my writing skills began to take shape at an early age as a result of this. As we heard in the introductory film about Virginia Woolf, Miss Woolf was writing avidly from the age of three on. Not to put myself in the same ballpark as Virginia Woolf, but I speak from personal experience when I say that reading has helped me acquire writing skills. I had little grammatical or stylistic training during my earlier schooling. I learned from first imitating other author's styles, and then from blending my own voice with their's. Robert Scholes dictates that students should read from a wide variety of media, or a "range of texts...in both high and low forms of textuality" (118). Reading everything literally helps students write in any format, style, or medium. Reading is, essentially, practicing writing!
Can anyone find other connections between these theorists and their stances on educating students in the discipline of English?
-Megan R.
"What We Have Loved, Others Will Love"
Of the three essays we had to read for Thursday's class, I found myself enjoying Helen Vendler's the most. Before reading it, I had just gotten into a heated discussion of why I love literature and why I am going to become a teacher to share my love. In her essay, Vendler talks about how we cannot expect everyone to share the same love, but how through our own passion for it we can share that through the education of adolescents. However, as a teacher-in-training and a writer, this one passage stuck out to me:
"There is no need to expect all teachers to be writers. Writing is a different profession from teaching, a different profession even from scholarly research and discovery, a different profession from the profession of critical thinking. Writing demands different impulses, different talents, a different temperament. Writing not done out of love will never serve to teach others how to love what we have loved." (p. 35)
I agree fully that if you something is not done out of love, how can we expect someone to love it themselves? The one quote I would have said differently in Vendler's essay is when she says "It is perhaps true that we all love different things in literature, or love literature for different reasons." (p. 36) I would not have even said "perhaps" because it is a FACT that we all love different things about literature and for different reasons.
"There is no need to expect all teachers to be writers. Writing is a different profession from teaching, a different profession even from scholarly research and discovery, a different profession from the profession of critical thinking. Writing demands different impulses, different talents, a different temperament. Writing not done out of love will never serve to teach others how to love what we have loved." (p. 35)
I agree fully that if you something is not done out of love, how can we expect someone to love it themselves? The one quote I would have said differently in Vendler's essay is when she says "It is perhaps true that we all love different things in literature, or love literature for different reasons." (p. 36) I would not have even said "perhaps" because it is a FACT that we all love different things about literature and for different reasons.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Thoughts on our reading for Tuesday, 1/27
In the introduction to Falling Into Theory, Richter points out that all discussions of theory are really debates, dialogues, opportunities for disagreement (and, we hope, agreement).
As Richter says:
"No longer does anything go without saying, and anything that can be said can be contested" (pg. 4).
"Theory, let me repeat, is the talk we talk when a consensus breaks down, when we begin to disagree about fundamental principles and to argue about which principles are truly fundamental... In a state of theory people ask us to define or clarify our terms and start contesting those definitions and categories." (pg. 9).
So treat this blog, and the class, as an opportunity to express your view, regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the theorists we read. This should be a place to explore, test, challenge, and create ideas. So don't hold back!
As Richter says:
"No longer does anything go without saying, and anything that can be said can be contested" (pg. 4).
"Theory, let me repeat, is the talk we talk when a consensus breaks down, when we begin to disagree about fundamental principles and to argue about which principles are truly fundamental... In a state of theory people ask us to define or clarify our terms and start contesting those definitions and categories." (pg. 9).
So treat this blog, and the class, as an opportunity to express your view, regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the theorists we read. This should be a place to explore, test, challenge, and create ideas. So don't hold back!
BRICOLAGE... a definition
bri⋅co⋅lage [bree-kuh-lahzh]:
1. a construction made of whatever materials are at hand; something created from a variety of available things.
2. (in literature) a piece created from diverse resources.
3. (in art) a piece of makeshift handiwork.
4. the use of multiple, diverse research methods.
1. a construction made of whatever materials are at hand; something created from a variety of available things.
2. (in literature) a piece created from diverse resources.
3. (in art) a piece of makeshift handiwork.
4. the use of multiple, diverse research methods.
Something to think about...
Here's the link to an interesting article about reading and why we do it:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/books/review/Siegel-t.html?_r=3&scp=1&sq=unsafe%20at%20any%20read&st=cse&oref=slogin
Read and enjoy!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/19/books/review/Siegel-t.html?_r=3&scp=1&sq=unsafe%20at%20any%20read&st=cse&oref=slogin
Read and enjoy!
Welcome!
Hello all!
This is the blog! Sure, the name is sort of ridiculous, but Ann Page and I thought it was funny so we went with it. We envision that this will be a place for you to ask questions, make suggestions, ponder, think out loud, and so forth in response to the theory readings which we'll be encountering throughout the semester. The idea is that I'll be available through this blog to answer questions and help clear up mysteries whenever they may arise. We also hope that you will be able to help answer each other's questions, too. Of course I'm always happy to answer questions through email, over AIM, or in person if that's what you prefer. We do hope, however, that the blog will serve as a place to start conversations about what we read, preferably before we get to class.
With all that being said, don't forget that the blog should also be a place to have some fun with what we're studying. This is an informal forum, so don't feel shy about expressing opinions, regardless of whether they're positive or negative. In class, we'll talk more specifically about what requirements for blogging there will be.
Ann Page and I are both open to suggestions about how this works, so please don't hesitate to contact me on or off the blog.
Abby
This is the blog! Sure, the name is sort of ridiculous, but Ann Page and I thought it was funny so we went with it. We envision that this will be a place for you to ask questions, make suggestions, ponder, think out loud, and so forth in response to the theory readings which we'll be encountering throughout the semester. The idea is that I'll be available through this blog to answer questions and help clear up mysteries whenever they may arise. We also hope that you will be able to help answer each other's questions, too. Of course I'm always happy to answer questions through email, over AIM, or in person if that's what you prefer. We do hope, however, that the blog will serve as a place to start conversations about what we read, preferably before we get to class.
With all that being said, don't forget that the blog should also be a place to have some fun with what we're studying. This is an informal forum, so don't feel shy about expressing opinions, regardless of whether they're positive or negative. In class, we'll talk more specifically about what requirements for blogging there will be.
Ann Page and I are both open to suggestions about how this works, so please don't hesitate to contact me on or off the blog.
Abby
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
