Tutorials

So because school work takes up so much of my time, I figured I would take a short break from telling you about Scotland and give you an idea of where a good deal of my time goes. My major tutorial meets once a week (Thursdays) for an hour (8 total meetings); my minor tutorial meets once every other week (usually a Monday) for an hour (4 total meetings). My major tutorial is Feminist Lit and my minor is Oscar Wilde. Both are very fascinating and more complex than I imagined. My tutors are very insightful if not a little excentric. :) 

Here is a snippet of my syllabus from my major tutorial (I didn't include the whole suggested reading list because it would make this post entirely too long). Basically, you read each week and write a paper that you will present and discuss in your next tutorial. (Right now I am in week 3).

Also, if you are interested in seeing what event are going on at the Oxford Union you can go to:

http://www.oxford-union.org/ 

And if you click on "term card" (top, center) then you get a list of events. We're planning on going to many of the debates, some speakers, and probably some stuff like the pancake party. :) 

General Outline of Course:

“I have the feelings of a woman but I have only the language of men.” (Far From the Madding Crowd) A study of women through the ages to show how they were trapped by the patriarchy and how they struggled to express themselves. The course will balance “accepted” great works against the less familiar.

Week One:

Virginia Woolf: A Room of One’s Own, 

Virginia Woolf: Three Guineas, 

Virginia Woolf: Orlando

Quentin Bell: Virginia Woolf

James King: Virginia Woolf

Does Virginia Woolf’s position as feminist icon reflect the complexity of her views?

Week Two:

Virginia Woolf: Mrs Dalloway

                             To The Lighthouse

(Reading as above)

How does Virginia Woolf rewrite the novel to reflect the movement of a woman’s mind?

Week Three:

Fanny Burney: Evelina

Evelina was an enormously popular novel. Why is its modern readership so tiny?

Week Four:

Jane Austen:    Emma

How deeply does Jane Austen examine the causes of Emma’s dissatisfaction? Are we satisfied that they are resolved by the conclusion of the novel?

Week Five:

Elizabeth Barrett Browning: Aurora Leigh

Are we convinced of the correctness of Aurora’s choices? Are we supposed to be?

Week Six:

Rewriting Jane Eyre

Charlotte Bronte: Jane Eyre

Jean Rhys: Wide Sargasso Sea

Why is it so important to reclaim Jane Eyre for the woman’s movement?

Week Seven:

Angela Carter:            The Magic Toyshop, Nights at the Circus

Does Carter’s style of writing suggest there is another world available for women if they are brave enough to access it?

Week Eight:

Clare Morrall:  Astonishing Splashes of Colour

How does the writer manipulate our opinion of the central character?