One of my favorite readings of the term, Eliza Haywood's Fantomina. We had three presentations, and the essays the students presented did give us a good context for discussion; however, one student used a non-scholarly source, and I'm pretty sure another didn't actually read Haywood (at least, he didn't have the copy with him...)! I'm …
Composition 2: After the Break
Returning the exams is one of the first things I want to do, and I say "first" because I'd like to use them as a starting point for a discussion of choosing sources and ideas that make logical sense for your overall topic; many essays seemed to draw from the background information without much regard …
Theater Outing, Lope de Vega
I've secured the tickets for Wednesday, February 11, when we'll be seeing the 7:30 performance of Dog in the Manger, at the Shakespeare Theatre in DC. The Shakespeare Theatre has two venues--we'll be in the Lansburgh theater. Since I'm canceling class in order to go as a group to see the play, I think we …
World Literature, Castiglione
Last week in EN203, we discussed Baldesar Castiglione's Book of the Courtier, thinking especially about the deliberate cultivation of public identity as a Renaissance trait. Students seemed a bit less enthused about this text, and they have been getting more difficult in the past weeks. Discussion has been going well, and while it's rare that …
Two Comp Classes
My comp students have been a little lackluster in discussion this past week, despite having seen the magnificent Chaplin's Gold Rush (1925). Last Monday, we went over Project 2, which is a film analysis essay; in discussion, I sought to tie a few prefatory clips from the film to our background reading in order to …
Petrarch’s Sonnets
Today in 203 we'll get to go over Petrarch's sonnets, which I'm really excited about. We'll consider how to "get into" them--most importantly, by identifying 1.) key images or motifs visible in the text, 2.) how the historical context can focus our attention, and 3.) how to paraphrase dense language and convoluted syntax. This last …
The Cultural Context of the Renaissance
Today in 203, I'm planning a competitive quiz game of sorts based on the introductory readings in the Norton anthology--I've never done this before, but I've been trying to break out of my lecture mode. So, we'll see what happens! I'd like to divide the class into two (or three) groups, which can gain points …
First day of a new term
Tomorrow is the first day of a new term, and I'm equal parts excited and nervous, as usual. I'm teaching three classes at Marymount University, including Composition II, Early Modern World Literature, and Theater History. I'm trying something new with my composition course this term; instead of just working from a rather arbitrary topic of …
Tonya Howe 