Almost a year since my last update

I love being an English major. I have thus far taken the Victorians, The Romantics, Jane Austen and Edith Wharton, and now I'm onto the History of the English Language and Shakespeare. I have become a big fan of Jane Austen and am 95% sure that I will be studying her work in even further depth this summer at Oxford University in England. Studying English Lit in England, what could be better? I am turning into quite a lit geek and I love it. I have bought several classic lit novels that I still have yet to read but are at the top of my list: Waverly by Walter Scott (Scottish), Little Women by Lousia May Alcott (American), A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (English, and whom I already love) and some others I think, that I can't remember at the moment.

I've gotten better at writing papers and am happy to finally have gotten a steadier footing in studying literature. I think my creative writing is also improving, now that I feel free from the trappings of the 'literary' style. I think I've got some good stuff coming out. :) Also, am getting into the Beats at the moment; am kind of obsessed with the 60's counterculture at the moment. Am reading The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac and it's pretty much awesome so far. I will try and make a more detailed post about it, later. Right now, it's back to my Editing paper.

Life as an English Major. Phase the Second.

I got a 95 on my Literature midterm. And I have never even had Dr. Zehr before. I was the only one new to Dr. Zehr who got a high grade. She was all excited. She drew stars and hearts around my grade on my paper. So funny. I think she's really adorable. This is definately a light in the dark, things don't look as dim now. Now if I could just find a creative angle to write a short prose piece (not a poem. More like a short short story) on The Lady of Shalott...

...On another note, we're on Christina Rossetti. I love her. Her poetry is not undecipherable, like Liz Browning and sometimes Tennyson. I love the Goblin Market.

Also, I've read a paragraph or two of Tess and I noticed it is considerably shorter then either David Copperfield or Middlemarch, and I really think I can actually read this one this time. I'm actually excited. *prays it doesn't disappoint*

And in the Fall, I think I would like to take American Literature. We'll see.

Life as an English Major. Phase the First.

The Major in English requires more of it's students then a love of reading. I am quickly learning this. The English Major student will not always love - or even like - the literature they will be required to read. It's so much more then seeing themes and literary elements. And while the English Major understands going in that writing will of course be required, this particular English Major didn't expect said writing to be so hard. It also is no help that I started with English 346: Victorian Literature. I didn't take into consideration that the class is a 300 level class. I should have taken a lower level to start off with. I only knew that I wanted to take the class based on it's century.

And really it's not that bad. I'm just trying to get my footing. I never got less then an A on any of my papers at Forsyth Tech. Suddenly at Salem I'm not making the connections I apparently need to be making.

This semester so far I've read David Copperfield by Charles Dickens and completely loved it. I plan to read more Dickens in the future. Currently we are on Middlemarch by George Eliot. I couldn't finish it. I had to read the Sparknotes version. Either my concentration is shot for the semester or the book started getting boring or I felt too much under pressure to finish it, but for whichever reason, I couldn't finish it. I think Middlemarch is maybe anti-climatic after David Copperfield. I don't know. Maybe one day I will read Middlemarch all the way through, but for the sake of the semester, I think settling for Sparknotes will work fine. Next up is Tess of the D'ubervilles by Thomas Hardy. I only hope it will not disappoint. I am considering though to just skip the actual reading and do the Sparknotes for this too, and actually read it later. I do want to read it though. Also, all this school reading leaves no time for leisure reading. How I miss Rachel Cohn and Kim Harrison, and my Scottish romance novels. It only makes me look forward to the summer, as I am taking it off.

The writing. I've done one literature paper so far this semester and it was a disaster. Either I got lazy or I wasn't sure exactly what to write but it was a disaster. And my next paper is a research paper. Oh that's all fine and dandy, if I didn't have to write the paper on the literature. Which, yes, would defeat the purpose of the class. I was hoping to write about Victorian history - Magic Lantern Shows or the life of Queen Victoria. No. We had to think of a question we have about something we've read this semester and attempt to answer it. It sounds simple enough except I couldn't come up with a question until the last minute and I don't care enough about the question to want to write about it. The roles of women in Victorian poetry (well that part I love, but we had to be specific) particularly in Camelot. Yay. I'd rather find some theme in Dickens and write about that. Maybe I can find some other question to try and answer.

The semester is almost over and I am excited. Maybe in the fall I can take a lower level Lit class. Maybe I'll survive better.

The Phantom of the Opera

Review request for Miss Ash Nyght. :)

start date: 1/1/08
end date: 1/4/08

Well what can I say....? I liked it but there were some parts where it was very dry...I guess I was in it just for Erik, Christine and Raoul; after all, I am a fan of the musical/movie. I wanted some insight I think, into the characters, particularly Erik (The Phantom) He's just as tragic in the book as in Andrew Lloyd Webber's version. I definately recommend reading the book if you're a fan of the Phantom from the musical/movie/silent movie etc.

As for what is similar about the book to the musical....lots of things! The boat ride to Erik's lair, the Chandalier, even a romantic roof top scene with Christine and Raoul (think "All I Ask of You") the notes, the two annoying managers, Carlotta (and her "toad" voice), the masquerade and the Red Death! (Which is my favorite part in the musical), among other things.

So definately worth a read if you're already a Phantom fan, at least once. Even if you have to take your time with it.

January Reading List

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux -completed 1/4/08


A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
-completed 1/9/08


Rebel Angels by Libba Bray
-completed 1/13/08

The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray -completed 1/21/08

Victoria Victorious by Jean Plaidy

2008

Here's to actually using this thing in '08! lol. 

What I need to learn and remember is that I will never ever EVER be able to read every single book ever written. Not even if I quit school and did nothing but read all day every day for the rest of my life. It saddens me to realize this however, as much I love to read, that's not a life - spent with my nose in an book every second of every day (as tempting as that sounds) What I need to do is quit thinking about the books I want to read "one day" or in the future, and just read what I have in front of me, right now. Worry about those "one day" books when I come to them. Collecting books without reading them is a bad hobby that wastes time and money. All that time I've been buying books that I still haven't read, could have been spent on reading books I've bought and never read! And all that money could be spent on Starbucks or clothes or put away in the bank to be saved. I'm interested in too many subjects and there are too many books to chose from on said subjects. I'll never learn and know every single thing there is to know about every single thing in the universe!

A hard lesson to be sure!