Being an Argo is amazing. From the proximaty to the beach to the small class sizes, being a UWF student is great. But English majors at UWF have even more reasons to love the Argo life. Check them out below.
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1. Poetry Writing is Back!
If you’re anything like me, then you’ve been impatiently waiting for Poetry Writing to be available again. Fortunately, Professor Jonathan Fink has returned to UWF and is once again teaching his renowned poetry class! If you have a passion for iambic pentameter, metaphors and alliteration, then this is the class for you. Here, you will learn to write sonnets and villanelles while exploring the depths of humanity and of yourself. You will sit among Shakespeare, Dickinson, and Yeats – along with your fellow Argonauts – and “call for pen and ink to write your mind,” as dear old Will says.
2. Fancy Yourself a Playwright?
Me too! And as much as I longed for poetry to return, I admit, I longed that much more for playwriting. Well, my fellow writers, I am pleased to announce that no more waiting is necessary. Professor Fink has returned to not only presume his role as a teacher of poetry, but also to act as a director in our playwriting endeavors. As a current participant in this particular class of his, I can inform you that it is a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening one. He only takes fifteen students, so be on the lookout for it this spring – maybe even this summer! By the end of the semester, you will have written two short plays – one of which you may have the opportunity to see acted out by your classmates!
3. Spraec thu Ænglisc?
That, ladies, is Old English for “Do you speak Old English?” Or at least I think it is. If you want to be certain, you can ask Dr. Yeager. He, like Professor Fink, has returned to us this year, and he is currently teaching a course on Medieval literature. More importantly, he says he’ll likely be offering his infamous Old English course this coming fall! I, for one, will definitely be partaking in that class. Beowulf in the original language is a little too much to pass up for us die hard English nerds. But I’m mostly going for the abundance of kennings. If you don’t already know, a kenning is a tool that was frequently used in Old English poetry. Basically, kennings are metaphorical compound words or phrases, such as ring-giver for king and bone-house for the body, and they are so much fun! Great for parties.
4. Victorians and Feminists and Sea Monsters! Oh my!
We have a brand new addition to our English Department this year – Dr. Kelly Bushnell! She’s a brilliant woman who has studied and taught in London universities, and now she’s dedicating her time and energy into us. She specializes in Victorian literature – I’m taking her Victorian Literature class and can definitely root for it. She’s a boss. Her Victorian Lit course focuses a lot on feminism and sea monsters – two of her great passions – and if you thought it couldn’t get more exciting than that, it can. At the end of a semester in this class, you get to participate in a symposium instead of your average agonizing final exam or essay. Did I mention that you can make a Victorian meal, write a short story or create a musical companion piece to Jane Eyre, or even make a Twitter drama for this symposium? Where has Dr. Bushnell been for our entire English Major careers?