Every semester, on the first day, I ask the students to fill out a questionnaire to help me get to know what their concerns are before the course begins. I ask them about what sorts of things they enjoy reading and writing about, their past experiences in English classes, their strengths, what they want to work on, and that sort of thing. I am always fascinated to see the things they list — it’s worlds apart from the way I would have (and likely did) answer the same question as a freshman in my own World Literature class, oh so many long years ago.
Here’s what they enjoy reading, in their own words (and their own spelling, and their own punctuation, etc.):
- science-fiction/fantasy, historical fiction, war genre
- The Bible
- things by Christian authors such as Francine Rivers
- fiction novels
- topics that I have prior knowledge in
- any type of novels by African-American authors
- novels, especially suspence
- fiction mostly, lots of old stuff, like Treasure Island.
- technology magazines, such as Popular Mechanics
- TERROR, MYSTERIES, MURDERS
- books written about the past
- fantasy type readings
- the basic magazines (almost any)
- suspenseful topics
- Christian novels, fiction (Harry Potter), ‘action’ novels
- Religious Writing: Bible, Christian living books, Christian novels
- Health related articles, things about animals, sports articles
- Golf & outdoor magazines
- John Grisham
- murder-mysteries, bibliographies, and news articles
- novels about life
- Harry Potter and TWILIGHT!!!
- Bible, devotional books, personal finance
- self-help and inspirational books
- sci fiction and war
- Modern Fantasy/Epic Fantasy/Supernatural
- stories or tales that are of truth
- Books with action or comedy
- Inside stories about athletes
- Chick lit, Jane Austen, Books on Italy
- Survival, Outdoors
- Suspense,
The last entry there is brilliant, isn’t it? Do you think the writer meant to use that abandoned comma to create suspense in his reader? I’m sure of it.
For the record, here’s how I imagine the 18-year-old me would have answered that question: “The Lost Generation, The Beat Generation, E.E. Cummings, French Surrealists.” I am so out of touch.
Bibliographies! There’s at least one scholar in the bunch, then.
“- stories or tales that are of truth” Does this entry mean non-fiction? And I would be willing to bet the writer is not a native English speaker.
I hate to break it to Barbara (unless she was being sarcastic), but I’m sure that student meant “biography.” The fact that he/she can even spell “bibliography” honestly astonishes me, since most of my students gaze at me blankly when I say that word.
Also, bwahahahaha! I do this too in most classes, and I get almost identical responses, except every other one includes the school’s daily newspaper.
Hmmmm, 18-year-old me? Scary; here goes: Anne Rice, C.S. Lewis, Women’s poetry (I did not really even realize men were poets too until college), anything by the Brontes, books on non-western religion, cutting-edge comics,anything about celtic/pagan/wiccan religion and/or culture, non-fiction books about faeries (yes, for real) and, finally, fittingly, absolutely anything resembling Arthurian legend.
Yeah, scary.
Heh, yeah, I’m pretty sure they didn’t really mean “bibliographies,” although that would be hilariously awesome if they did!
And C., you were (and are) a big nerd! It’s OK, that’s what makes us cool.
One of my favorite of the above is: “Bible, devotional books, personal finance.” What a combination! Just thinking about it I am bored to tears. (Unlike the guy who wrote about terror and murder in all caps, thus giving me THE SHIVERS, as Owen Meany would say.)
i concur with clarabella, my fave reading through the list was the stories or tales that are of truth. it does have an ESL ring to it for sure, but also sounds like a line that should appear in achewood. the part of my brain that recalls stuff like what i read for pleasure has been ahem…obliterated by bad habits, repurposed for legally stuff, and eaten up by the bambino, but let’s see…
i also enjoyed anything by the brontes, salinger, maya angelou (& other strong back women writers, eg toni morrison), futuristic dystopias (1984, brave new world, stranger in a strange land, etc), and then my favorite book of all time, to kill a mockingbird (plus i suppose any other southern gothic type stuff? is that what you would call it genre wise?). mockingbord remains one of my favorite movies as well, starring a very young robert duvall as boo radley. there is an attorney here who reminds me of atticus finch and i always try to go watch him.
Surprisingly, the person who wrote about “stories of truth” IS actually a native English speaker, but normally speaks, um, a specific vernacular.
I do have an ESL student, but I didn’t include her stuff in this list, ’cause it felt unnecessarily mean to make fun of her. (She’s actually very adorable and seemingly nice/smart, plus I have felt the pain of trying to go to school in another language, so. See? I am nice sometimes!)
Oh, and futuristic dystopias! I was all over that stuff too!
I also have to tell you, and I hope this doesn’t sound awful, but Mockingbird is one of the most often ridiculed “favorite novel” choices in English departments. I am not one of the ones doing the mocking — I haven’t even read it since high school, so I haven’t formed a sophisticated opinion of it or anything — but other colleagues have no mercy when it comes to this book. (Why? Maybe I’ll read it again and see if I can figure it out.)
It might be cause I’m drunk, but it seems like every word in that is misspelled. If only Arlington were here to help us make sense of it all….
Also, my list:
“Sci-fi (but only the shit written by actual physicists), the crap we have to read in my Wo-men’s Studies class, Don Quixote (in the original–wtf is going on?). Gay stuff.”
i am completely weirded out by all the bibles and christian things. christian living books? what the hell are those? actually, no. i don’t want to know.
Oh, I know the bibliographies weren’t meant as such, I have students too. It’s sad sometimes.
I was once in a dusty old bookstore in downtown Saint Louis, piles of books on tables and the floor and the stairs to the second floor, where there was more dust and books. It was run by an old man with the help of what seemed to be a collection of his less able relatives. I asked one of them where the hardcover fiction was, and he asked “You mean stories and stuff?”
In his defense, I’m pretty sure he’d never been a college student.
Suomichris - I love the inclusion of your Wo-Men’s studies stuff and Gay stuff. The kids here just wouldn’t hear of it!
KWH - Oh, indeed. The heavy presence of Christian lit, etc. is frightening to me, too — especially because I only included a few mentions of it here, but in the pile of 120 surveys I looked over, it came up at least 20 times. Ack.
B - “Stories and stuff.” Awesome! A bookstore would be a great place for that person to be working!
Here’s how my 18 year-old self would have answered
Non-fiction, bibliographies, poetry (too many of each to mention in such a short space)
I also remember filling out a similar questionnaire in second year Uni in a history course, the questions included who is your favourite band, I answered with Zbiegniew Preisner, needless to say I am still friends with this lecturer to this day.