Comments | shamela: You Have Much to Learn, Young One

shamela

You Have Much to Learn, Young One

Jan 09, 2009 10:34

So, I'm teaching Literary and Critical Theory, as I always do in the winter, and yesterday was finishing up my patented Galloping Tour of the History of Criticism from Aristotle to the Late 19th Century (have I mentioned how much I hate the quarter system lately?) and got into the part of my spiel about the dangers of being slavishly adherent to ( Read more... )

life in shamelaland, stupid student tricks

Comments 7

(The comment has been removed)

shamela January 9 2009, 21:53:28 UTC

Darlin', it just happened to come up. LOL Although I admit the Stephen King reference was my own...

roxana January 9 2009, 20:01:19 UTC

I only wish I could have been there to see it.

:-)

anonymous January 9 2009, 20:24:50 UTC

Wow. I don't even know why this guy opened his mouth. Painful awkward silence.

-nothing
http://nothingisnow.blogspot.com/

imahobbit2 January 9 2009, 21:31:28 UTC

awesomeness :)

shamela January 9 2009, 21:52:51 UTC

Well, you know, bless his heart and all. They're undergrads, and it's only week #1....

cainteoir January 10 2009, 16:59:11 UTC

Nicely done -- but did you also point out how you might also use other theoretical approaches to the same text? Granted, the Hobbit could have all sort of theories applied, from Queer to Marxist and postcolonial. So true, his choice of example was not the best. But this does raise a question -- is there a text where a branch of theory just would not apply?

Am wracking my brain to think of a text that could not be theoried by one particular branch -- considering that the absence of a theoretical dynamic is often grounds on which people argue theory.

shamela January 11 2009, 00:41:01 UTC

Yes, multiple approaches + same text is in the intro lecture of the day before. :-)

Hmmmm...that's a brilliant puzzle, and I am going to wander off and ponder it, now.