UPDATE: Wednesday’s readings

OK…turns out this is more complicated than it needs to be.  So, here’s  the deal for Wednesday:
Read ANY three (3) articles from the book, Transforming English Studies. On Wednesday evening, we will proceed through the book chapter by chapter.  If the article you chose is in that chapter, will help lead discussion.
That’s probably the easiest [...]

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Readings for Wednesday, 11/18–UPDATE 11/15 11am

NOTE: I will post updates to this post as people decide which parts they would like to represent.  Also, given that we have such a quick turn-a-round, your presentations do not need to be super formal.  I will post general guidelines later tonight or tomorrow.
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I’m sorry that it’s taken me this long to post this [...]

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upcoming conference in alaska…any adventurous types?

Janice Chernekoff…rrrrr…I mean DR. Chernekoff …sent this my way today.  Might be of interest to some of you.  Below is the email from a conference organizer.  Follow the link for a PDF of the Conference CFP:
________________________________________
From: Joseph Christian Kurber [asjck38@uaa.alaska.edu]
Sent: Friday, November 06, 2009 6:50 PM
To: pacrim2010@gmail.com
Subject: 2010 Pacific Rim Conference Call for Papers
Dear University [...]

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and now some reading for your break

OK.  I know that our little investigation into English Studies this semster has been quite a ride.  Pulling the curtain back on the field has been frustrating, enlightening, disconcerting, invigorating, disheartening, overwhelming, empowering, and a whole slew of additional “ing” words that you can feel free to add youself.
So, as a way to end the [...]

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CFP: Conference Proposal

Hey all.  I hope you had a great Thanksgiving break and are ready for the final stretch.  Last week, coming up! I wanted to post the brief guidelines for the conference proposal that we discussed in class for your reference.
First, remember that conference proposals are not summaries of your work or work that you plan [...]

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Consumerist Catch-22

In Yancey’s article, she quotes Sheldon Jackson’s 1892 explanation of Alaskan education:

It was to instruct a people, the greatest portion of whom are uncivilized, who need to be taught sanitary regulations, the laws of health, improvement of dwellings, better methods of house-keeping, cooking and dressing, more remunerative forms of labor, honesty, chastity, the sacredness of [...]

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What Is Love?

I was a bit less impressed by Kirklighter’s article than my one classmate who already posted on Freire.  My first reaction is one of mild displeasure that a term as important as “liberatory dialogue” isn’t overtly defined.  I can read between the lines and develop my own working definition of the practice, but with something [...]

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Making the abstract concrete

I have to admit that for me Berlin’s book was at times a struggle to read.  He seemed rather boring and occasionally difficult to grasp- perhaps because I am not that interested in rhetoric which he mainly discusses as being central to English studies.  However, I did find the second half of the book somewhat more [...]

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When CFPs enter the 21st Century

Here is a video call for papers for the Watson Conference in Louisville in a couple of weeks.  If you really hate new media, you can check out the text CFP here.

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You want the truth?

While I truly enjoy Schole’s style of writing and ways of presenting the subject matter much better than Graff’s, I have to admit I was a little confused by his notions of “truth” in English studies. I felt that he spent so much time discussing the importance of truth in English studies that he never [...]

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Humanism and Literature

When I was reading the introduction to Graff’s Professing Literature: An Institutional History, I found myself repeatedly seeking the connection between humanism and literature. I thought that it was that I perhaps didn’t fully understand what humanism was, so I decided to find a good definition for it. Using to Merriam-Webster, I found two interesting [...]

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Questions, questions…

This is probably going to sound like complete mush but it’s late and I realize I’m close to missing my blogging deadline.  I’ve really enjoyed Graff’s detailed history of the evolution (and conflicts) of English throughout the years.  I must agree though, that I also feel that I have more questions now than ever.
I am [...]

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Daunted by English Studies

I have to admit, upon reading McComiskey’s introduction last week, followed with the three articles by Barton, Lauer, and Haake, I was more than a little daunted at the prospect of responding to these incredible thoughts in a blog.  For me, the questions and concepts that were raised by these four authors were new and challenging.  From [...]

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Blog warm-up

It was nice meeting everyone tonight~ and don’t worry all you new bloggers–it’s not bad at all once you get the hang of it!
I never realized that the specialization of english could be such a problem. All the conflict between the disciplines over the decades really suprised me. I guess I never thought of it [...]

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welcome to our english studies blog!

Allow me to be the first to welcome you to ENG 502 Introduction to English Studies: Traditions, Boundaries, Change.  As you know, this course is one of the two required courses for all new English MA students at Kutztown and is open to other MA students who began under the previous version of our MA [...]

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