I wanted to thank you guys again for your contributions to the Lolita discussion over the weekend — it’s nice to hear all your thoughts and to have some confirmation of the fact that I am not, in fact, crazy. I should also tell you that the first day of discussion went very well. This may be attributable to the fact that on the first day of a new book, half of the class time is taken up by my initial lecture, leaving only an hour for discussion, so things go by awfully fast and there is less time for whine, whine, whining. I also think my lecture made it completely clear that I love my Nabokov, which might have made them think twice about saying anything too obnoxious. They seemed fairly engaged; they talked; they debated; miraculously, they all seemed to have read the assigned portion. I’m sure it didn’t hurt that I was over-prepared (anxiety will do that to me) or that the kid who last week, in anticipation of the book, moaned aggrievedly and at length about his eleven-year-old sister and how woe is him! he did not like to think about his eleven-year-old sister while reading this book and gnash! she is his sister and wail! she is eleven. I hope it will all go so well tomorrow. In anticipation, I will be spending the night (Valentine’s Night!) reading again about H.H. and his torturous, painful love for Lolita, Lo! Lee! Ta! Reader, I ask you, imagine.
8 Responses to “(classroom, discussion)”
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Yes, I find it really does make a great deal of diiference if you have an obvious interest in the text you’re teaching. I’m currently teaching “Henry V” to two classes that were (understandably) suspicious of Shakespeare, but as Shakey is very much my thing, a lot of my work is done through transmitting my own enthusiasm for it.
You do an hour’s lecture before any discussion? That could never happen here!
Glad you got through it. If they don’t LOVE Lolita by the end of the quarter, flunk them. Each and every one!!!!!
Did you see Nabokov had a kind of starring role on LOST this time around?
I spent Valentines with six red-heads! Six friendly bottles of Flanders red ale to be exact.
Best. Date. Ever.
So - the Whippersnappers - they’re interested? See, all that anxiety for nothing.
I ate soap with lunch today and thought of you. Soap eating does not help a ragingly bitchy mood, fyi.
KotH — Weeellll, it wasn’t exactly an hour’s lecture; actually I gave them a “reading quiz” first. Heh. Heh. Heh.
O — Oooh, goody! I haven’t had time to wtch the episode yet, but due to the magic of science, I will probably get to it later today.
J — Sounds like a good time. The whippersnappers were less ideal today, I confess, but we can’t always have a perfect class. We’ll see.
L –Oh, man, glad you thought of me at the apex of your bad mood! I think before you keave that job, you should soapify all your boss’s coffee mugs in revenge.
“Less than ideal”, huh? Do you have a Whippersnapper Enthusiasm Index? You should make one then you could be all:
“Come on Whippersnappers, I’m not sensing your enthusiasm today - the Enthusiasm Index is too low - and we all know what happens when there is no enthusiasm from the Whippersnapper Assembly - POP QUIZ AND/OR MAJOR PAPER ASSIGNMENT!”
Anyways, the Redheads called me back for a second date so I gotta run…
Vague, just so you know, I am doing my part to spread your chowderhead-inspired neologism. And I am glad that the first day of discussion went well.
If worse comes to worse you could strap them down and make them listen to “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” for a couple of hours, that’d break them.