awake Music: Atmopshere - Joy Division Reading: The Bloody Chamber, Epic of Gilgamesh, The Handmaid's Tale, World War ZFirst day of spring term!
Excited for it. I’m glad that for 2 of my classes, I have the same teacher. Lots of reading but that’s to be expected when you’re an English major, you’re finished with the credits for your minor, and you’re taking literature courses, lol.
I’m a little worried how I’m gonna cram studying in between my job. I’m already a bit of a bonehead when it comes to studying. I love my major, otherwise I wouldn’t be pursuing it. But applying myself is quite another thing. I hate deadlines. I hate being forced to do something because it’s due on this day at this time. This is why I’m a world class procrastinator. Also why I’m not in journalism.
I mean, I can make my deadlines, whether academically based or not. I turn my homework in on time… when I feel like it, lol. I’m sure I probably would’ve gotten better grades throughout my undergraduate academic career if I felt like the world would end with bad grades. But I’ve never had to hustle to get good grades, because I knew I could always take the class again and have the retaken class replace the grade I got when or if I got a shit grade. Love that loophole.
Now I’m determined to give 150% when it comes to studying. Then again, I always say that. EVERY semester…. and then I lose my shit. lol. I need motivation! Well, if grad school isn’t enough to get my lazy ass moving, then we’ve got problems.
Just from this first day, the only problem I foresee with one of the classes is Women & Lit. There is this one older lady that was sitting behind me and my friend M (there was a friendly face in class, yay!). She questioned EVERYTHING Joanna went over in the syllabus. It’s right there in black and white. Are you for serious with all these questions? Then again I’ve taken her before so I know what to expect. Her classes are all structured the same; just different topics.
And the thing with Joanna is that she has no compunction about cursing, or using dirty words in class. I love her for that. Some teachers are so formal. She’s a breath of fresh air. I know what to expect with her during class: loads of laughs and an interesting approach to learning. When she was explaining that when Chaucer was referring to “bacon” in “The Wife of Bath” she wasn’t talking about the food; she was talking about fucking. Random aside: That’s probably where we get the euphemism for “porking” maybe?
And the lady went, “Why couldn’t you just say intercourse?”
Because this is a university level school, and we’re all adults? lmfao.
I hope to GOD she drops before we meet next week. I don’t think I could stand an entire semester of her annoying asides. I know I shouldn’t be a snob about the levels of education in class. We have a limited amount of teachers and classes, so people take what the school dishes out. But I earned my place in a 400 level course. I’m a senior goddamnit.
English literature is not sanitized, no matter how much we might think. All the good stuff that is lost on normal people is in puns and overtures when you think about it. Any writer worth their salt will be subversive and put stuff like that in their work. If you have a faint heart and are shocked by another adult using curses words, you’ve got issues. I shouldn’t have to listen to someone be offended because someone else said “fuck” when it’s clearly in the book. Maybe it’s not written out, but it’s implied and therefore we should embrace it. Am I right? Or am I right?
?: “Would you be offended by a college professor using curse words in an academic environment?“
The less that can be said about me, the better.
To be honest, swearing in a professional environment, isn’t on for me. But if someone were to do so, I wouldn’t think any less of them or question them for it.
I think I misrepresented my professor. She doesn’t do it casually. She doesn’t throw profanity in conversations around like I do, lolz. In fact, when she does say it, she sorta whispers it, like she’s afraid we’re gonna get offended.
I’m with Humaira. I do quite a fair share of cursing so it’s not like I’m a prude to it. Hearing someone else curse isn’t a shock to me so I have no issues with that. However, if the cursing from a professor is just a bit too excessive, it’s a turn off to me. I like it when professors are cool, loose, and approachable, but my professors that were like that didn’t really feel the need to curse. If the curse word is somewhat related to something they’re trying to explain, then I can understand. But cursing used as a way to connect with the students, I dunno. I’d laugh the first few times, but on a daily basis, not for me.
Like I just replied to Humaira, I misrepresented my teacher. I was just peeved at the old lady and it definitely came out in this entry. My prof is nothing if not professional. Her cursing is few and far between. Since we’re all used to professors being so respectful, when she uses a curse word to explain what the author is *really* saying, it makes that much funnier. And the way she explains it is hilarious, esp. when she says the word. The whole class will be rolling. I wish I could tape one of her lectures so you could see. She’s that awesome, I wanna share her teaching style, lol.
Coming from a design industry, to cuss in the office is normal, because there are so many volatile tempers in one space. But even outside of that example, I get your drift. Sometimes, the right choice of word when conveying a message is that colourful four or five letter one. This is not to say that people should go ahead and fire expletives at will in any type of social situation, but rather to know the difference between putting too much meaning into a curse word (by focusing too much on the “sin” of it, so to speak) and see the word for the context that it’s being played in.
I had an professor ages ago that explained the morality of “fuck buddies”. She said, “They’re buddies who fuck without any type of proper commitment.” Get this: it was a Theology class, and understandably a few people (especially the more conservative ones) were a bit taken aback. However, I felt it was in context, because she defined the term using the provided words. Besides, how tacky is the censored “porking buddies”? It sounds like a barbecue gathering. =P
Thank you for your insight.
If there were any other way to describe something – especially literature – she’d choose it. I believe in my initial indignation that I misrepresented her. If anything, I love her teaching method, as unconventional as it is. The lectures are lively, and people participate. Most of the students at my school don’t participate, me being one of them, lol. Unless I have something to say!
But some days, you have to lean on profanity to explain yourself, whether we are talking anger, or something sexual. How many euphemisms does the English language have for the act of sex anyways? A ton.
lol, that must’ve been an interesting conversation!