A series of lectures and conversations on the work of reading, writing, and thinking about literature. Delivered in support of English courses at Temple College.
Three American Poets: Dickinson, Whitman, and Harper
In this last lecture of our series, I ask "Who is American Literature by, and who is it for?" In reading perhaps the two most famous American poets alongside a poet I believe should be one of the most famous, we are positioned to ask this question, and to interrogate our own understanding of what it means to be American. Is literature all about beauty? Existential questions? Formal experiments and mastery? Politics? Untold stories? Dominant narratives? Marginalized ones? The answer is up to you.
30 Aug 2024
Life Together: Puritan Values, American Lives
In this lecture, I'll be exploring the roots of Puritan theology in the Protestant Reformation, and the exciting new possibilities, tensions, and problems that this revolutionary theology created for early English settlers in American in the seventeenth century. I'll focus on the speech of John Winthrop, first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, to a group of 700 colonists on the importance of modeling Christian charity not only for their own survival, but also to prove the viability of their religious practices before the eyes of the world. This is also known as Winthrop's famous "City Upon a Hill" speech, which later became a byword for the Cold War notion of American Exceptionalism, or the idea that America represents a "chosen people" responsible for modeling virtue to the rest of the world (and thus subject to certain privileges and responsibilities). What connections do you see between Winthrop's speech and our own society? What ideals do you think have survived in American culture from these Puritan beginnings?
30 Aug 2024
Providence and Prejudice: Phyllis Wheatley's Revolutionary Poetics
In this short episode, I introduce the work of African-American poet Phyllis Wheatley as no less revolutionary than the writing of Thomases Paine & Jefferson. Enslaved, taken forcefully from her home continent under brutal conditions, named for the ship that carried her and the man who bought her, Wheatley lived and wrote under extreme and traumatic circumstances. Her poetry subtly blends classical allusions and religious principles to assert the moral, intellectual, and literary equality of enslaved Africans to an audience primarily composed of white Europeans, many of whom were implicated and involved in the practice of slavery themselves. If you are interested in learning more about the publication of Wheatley's first book (the first written by an African-American), or about her life, I recommend this blog post from Wake Forest University. There is also a powerful poem written by Eve L. Ewing in response to Wheatley's life and work, written in connection with the 1619 Project.
11 May 2021
"Parting is such sweet sorrow" - Reflecting on What We've Learned
In this conversation, a few of your classmates and I reflect on what we've learned in the class, skills we might carry forward, and texts that were meaningful to us. I also offer an overview and study strategies for the final exam. Thanks for joining us!
4 May 2021
"Once More Into The Breach" - Drafting, Reviewing, and Revising
Now that many of you have finished your Annotated Bibliographies, you will be spending this week drafting your papers. Here are some practical tips for completing your first draft, while making sure you are grounded in the text:
1. Figure out your thesis. Remember, it needs to be an interpretive, literary claim. If you're not talking about what a specific text and/or author is doing or showing in your argument, you are off-track. It also needs to make an argument, not just an observation. See the (Hypo)thesis lecture to refresh your memory on what I mean here.
2. Assemble your best quotes from the text(s) you're writing about. Think of at least 4 or 5 moments in the text that help demonstrate your thesis.
3. Now, assemble your quotes from your secondary sources. These could be claims that support your own; that highlight a concept or example you find important; that demonstrate a connection between your argument and an existing conversation or topic; or they could be pieces of biographical or historical information that help the reader understand something necessary about your text. Paste them separately.
4. Now, using your method of choice, create an outline for your argument. You can physically print and cut out both pages and move them around, or you can cut/paste in your word processor. The point is, you want to begin by thinking about how the text itself can help prove your argument, and how you want to present that argument. Then, it's just a matter of filling in the missing pieces: the topic sentences, the transitions connecting your ideas, etc.
4 May 2021
"My library was dukedom large enough" - Finding, Selecting, & Presenting Evidence
This week, I discuss using databases and quality sources to begin developing your thesis into a longer project, and offer some tips and advice for completing the upcoming Annotated Bibliography assignment.
4 May 2021
“Though this be madness, yet there is a method in’t” - Building a (Hypo)Thesis
In this lecture, we talk about taking an observation about a literary text and turning it into a claim: moving from the "what" of a text (plot, context, etc.) to the "so what?" (meaning, significance, interventions) of a text.
4 May 2021
“Is not the truth the truth?” - Reading Texts Critically
This week, we’re going to practice reading a story alongside what literary scholars have to say about it—we’ll be reading texts with the experts, and working to become experts ourselves.
4 May 2021
"Everyone can master a grief but he that has it.” - Reading Texts With their Authors
This week, we're starting to think about reading texts not only based on what's inside them (close reading) or what's outside them (context), but also on what other people have to say about them. We're going to start by looking at what the texts' author may have to say, and we'll move on to what other folks—critics and scholars, or other expert—have to say next week.
4 May 2021
What is the City but the People?" - Reading Texts in Context
Last week, we touched on some of the practical uses of reading: building your vocabulary, appreciating beauty, learning to notice things and remark upon them critically. This week, we'll be digging in to some of the things that literature has to teach us: the kinds of social, historical, political, ethical, and personal knowledge it can unlock for us.
4 May 2021
"They Stumble That Run Fast:" Reading Texts Closely
This episode discusses close reading strategies, including 4 easy steps: Paraphrase, Describe, Contextualize, and Analyze. Really, it's all about looking, listening, and collecting your thoughts and observations before jumping to conclusions. Think of it as practicing good manners with the text. Remember: Always read out loud (if you can), and always read it twice.
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