End of Literatures of the World!
The past two quarter I've learned so much about intertextuality and book history. The most unexpected thing that came out of this course were all the cool opportunities to the library for an Archives and Special Collections visit. When I first started this course back in September, I thought that the class was mostly going to be centered around the assigned novels and in class discussions. While this was most certainly the case, there were also sporadic occasions when we got to add to our knowledge of book history through library trips. It was so cool to see the actual artifacts themselves and made it easier to understand the progression of book history. This course has been one of the few so far that has had interactive learning components, and the unexpected Archive and Special Collection visits were definitely crucial to this experience.
Something that surprised me with this course was my improvement with conducting research as well as annotating texts. At first, doing annotations seemed cumbersome to me, but I actually found it extremely helpful when contributing to class discussions. Annotations also made me track things in the novels that I might not have stopped to consider before. I also was surprised with my improved efficiency with research. This course helped familiarize me with library resources and I've noticed so much growth with how I look for my sources, especially in relation to the research excursions. I remember at the beginning of the year, the excursion projects used to stress me out because I didn't know how to start or where to go for my research. Since the start of this quarter, that has been no longer the case and I'm so surprised/shocked by this turn of events!
Hey Catalina! I completely agree with you! It has been new and enlightening whenever we went to Archives And Special Collections because I have never really looked into book history and printing history before. The closest thing that I have ever done along these lines before this class was looking at a specific books history throughout time, but more on it's content influence than the physical influence. Same! I have never really been a big annotator when reading, but this character has helped me find my own way to annotate as well as teach me how to pay attention to things I would never have thought otherwise.
ReplyDeleteHey Catalina! Book history was also one of the most coolest parts of this course for me, too! I think the idea of a text being a more fluid thing than a rigid set of words is interesting. To see how works like Antigone changed over time, and how the mediums in which they were recorded also evolved was enlightening. Archives and Special Collections was probably one of the coolest opportunities I have had on campus. The vault (and tiny books) were something I am grateful for.
ReplyDeleteHi Catalina, I also enjoyed the archives and special collection visits. It was interesting to see the history of printing and books. My biggest improvement was also researching. I did not really do much research projects in high school, so my research was pretty poor before this class, but now my research is getting much better after 7 research excursions and 2 final projects.
ReplyDeleteHi Catalina! I definitely relate to your point about improving in research. I'd say that is the most valuable skill that we picked up from this class. I also remember how difficult my first research excursion was, and how long it took me to find sources-- one of which wasn't even scholarly. Now, it's a lot easier to find what I need and I'm grateful for that.
ReplyDeleteHey Catalina! I totally agree with so much of what you've said here. I also saw a major improvement in my annotating habits. It was helpful to hear from Michelle and classmates about their annotating strategies over the course of this class. I feel like I learned from others and was able to figure out what worked for me!
ReplyDeleteHi Catalina! I totally agree in regards to the reseach excursions. Before this class, I had no idea where to start when having to do research. At first, it seemed super overwhelming and time consuming. However, I learned how to manage it and became much better as time went on. I think this skill will also definitely contribute to many of my other classes in the future and other projects in general.
ReplyDeleteHey Catalina, I totally agree that the research excursions were original very stressful but now I feel much more confident doing the research and synthesizing the ideas. I have to say annotations are still hard for me, but I have gotten good at recording quotes and page numbers with some notes on a google doc, and highlighting brief sections. The sticky notes still feel overcomplicated to me and I know I need to work on taking notes and recording ideas directly onto the pages of the book.
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