Hey all! Sorry for the delayed update. I was sick last weekend and have been busy getting back in school mode. I had a relaxing break and was not looking forward to going back to school after a month of no classes or related responsibilities Classes are going well and I like all of them so far. Speaking of classes, here are the highs and lows are my classes
Brit Lit after 1945 (ENG 447): I have a lot of papers and reading, so I think this will be the class in which I have the most to do. We finished reading Graham Greene's The End of the Affair, which I don't hate, but don't love. One of our assignments is to watch a film adaptation of one of the books we read and I watched the movie version of The End of the Affair, which was on par with the book. Now we are reading Sam Selvon's The Lonely Londoners, which is about several men who immigrate from Trinidad to London and look for work. I like multicultural lit, so it is interesting to learn how they adapt to life in London during the 1950's. We have good discussion in class, and my professor is genuinely interested in what we have to say.
Teachers in Film and Fiction (ENG 491): I love this class, and have a pretty good feeling it will be end up being one of my favorite English classes. All of the books we read and the films we are about different kinds of teachers (hence the subject of the course title). So far we have read Goodbye Mr. Chips, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, and are starting John Updike's The Centaur. We watched The Browning Version, which is about a teacher at a prep school that is trying to shift its academic focus from a "classical" to "modern" education. Sadly, I was sick the second day we saw the film in class so I may rent it again to see what I missed. My professor is awesome--he is retiring after this semester so he is really laid back and likes to tell us stories.
Personality (PSY 370): My only complaint about the class is that it is three hours Monday nights from 7-10. Otherwise, I love the subject and professor. Personality was one of my favorite topics in my high school psych class, so I am thrilled to be able to take a class on it in college. On the first day of class, our prof told us that he is not "like our other professors." He did not give us the syllabus on the first day because he thought it would influence our personalities too early in the course. The work load is not bad at all--two tests, a group presentation, a psychobiography, and in class activities, such as coloring and meditation. Now that's my kind of class :)
Self and Identity (PHL 335): S&I is a philosophy class, and is my second to last general ed class. Philosophy is not my choice of subject to study, but as a student in the College of Arts and Sciences at UP, I am required to take an upper division philosophy class to graduate. The title sounded interesting, and I am happy to say that I have not been bored to tears yet. My professor is great because she is really enthusiastic about the subject and knows how to make the material accessible to non-philosophy majors who are taking the class simply to graduate. She told us on the first day that she designs this class assuming no philosophy majors are in it, which I like because I hate when professors who teach core classes expect students to know (and care) about the material as much as they do. I have already turned in two reflection papers (graded "satisfactory" or "unsatisfactory") and have an essay exam on Descartes on Thursday.
Jazz Dance (DNC 214): Fun. Easy A. Enough said :)
Tomorrow is my 21st birthday, which deserves its own entry. More soon, and thanks for reading!
