There? Their? Or They’re? Telebears XIV–English

Posted by: Avinash on Thursday, April 26th, 2007

English must be fun. Go to lecture, listen to absorbing thoughts about the most amazing texts ever written, write essays about those texts, and then have the professor/GSI knock you down because your interpretation doesn’t coincide with theirs. Must always be fun being an English major.

Here’s what the students say about their fickle profs. (Note: English reviews are long. So Telebears scheduling will take Friday off and return Monday.)

(Have any memories about professors in this department for a class or in general? Leave them in the comments.)

English 45A, Literature in English
Steven Justice, MW 10-11, 277 Cory

“I really didn’t think that I was going to be mesmerized by Medieval literature, but after taking this class, I found the subject absolutely intriguing!…His enthusiastic level is sky high, esp. according to him, because of his caffeine necessity…Like watching Conan O Brien teach medieval lit….It doesn’t hurt that he looks like the guy from law and order….yum!”

James Turner, MW 12-1, 3 LeConte

“There is no doubt that Professor Turner is a brilliant scholar. However, his lectures can be unclear and he tends to be very harsh on students…All bad reviewers are on crack…To begin, this professor reminds me of the Sheriff of Nottingham in Costner’s Robin Hood…The man should never be allowed to stand in front of a group of students.”

English 45B, Literature in English
Richard Hutson, MW 1-2 141 McCone

“I really want to like him, but I feel like I’m not learning. His lectures actually seem to have structure and he seems confident in delivering them, yet if you pay really careful attention you will realize that he never actually teaches anything!…I go to lecture to see his beautiful suits, rather than for his lectures.”

Steven Goldsmith, MW 2-3 277 Cory

“His examples and lectures are so clear and brilliant, you can’t help but be smarter at the end of them…always had unique insight even on books that seemed dull at first glance. excited about the material. everyone loved him…you can’t help but to watch him walking back and forth, up and down the stairs, rubbing his hands and so forth…. HOTT!”

English 45C, Literature in English (again?)
Eric Falci, MW 11-12, 2 LeConte

“Very interesting and very enthusiastic about what he teaches. i enjoyed reading almost all of the texts. the paper topics were pretty broad and give you a lot of space to write about what you’re most interested in. he is very friendly/approachable & takes what his students say into consideration when lecturing.”

Lyn Hejinian, MW 3-4, 3 LeConte
The Grand Piano,
“BEWARE: If you’re looking for a professor who tears apart texts in lecture, do not take this course…She has led an interesting life. The fact that she has a whole section of her works in the Norton is just icing on the cake…she investigates her themes with real focus and is the first to downplay her own importance in the canon.”

English 117A, Shakespeare
David Landreth, TuTh 1230-2, 390 Hearst Mining

“He makes Shakespeare accessible and exciting through his interpretations and occasional acting. I love it when he seamlessly tosses in pop culture references and jokes…Enthusiastic professor with cheezy jokes. Somewhat dry commentary…Watch in awe as he quotes the Bard and Morrissey in the same lecture.”

English 117S, Shakespeare
Alan Nelson, TuTh 930-11, 159 Mulford

“He has a good sense of humor for an old guy and is very explanatory but gets ticked off at people’s idiosyncracies…very interesting and extremely approachable and friendly to his students…his lectures were insulting in that he merely summarized the texts we were reading and never offered any in-depth analysis.”

English 118, Milton
Kevis Goodman, MW 3-4, 150 Kroeber

“Can’t say I love the class, however. Readings were pretty heavy after the midterm, and I didn’t like that the class was both big and sectionless…i loved milton, and was afraid until I took her class! she amazed me with her wit, and great knowledge…Lectures are excellent, and her enthusiasm for the material is nothing short of inspirational…earns every bit of her Distinguished Teaching Award.”

English 125E, The Contemporary Novel
John Bishop, TuTh 2-330, 106 Stanley

“Bishop has a bit of public speaking anxiety, but he manages to keep the class interested and entertained… He makes jokes out of the blue that, if you are spacing out, will snap you back into focus. Also, the novels he chose to teach were so strange that I wanted to go to class to see what he had to say about them…Intelligible, rambling lecture style. Little workload/reading. Very approachable.”

English 130D, American Literature: 1900-1945
Katherine Snyder, MWF 12-1, 4 LeConte

“Lectures are unstructured, unclear, and disconnected, and she always runs over the alloted time…lectures are uninspired, and she often comes off as a caricature of a profesor you’d see in a movie…Helpful? In a theoretical sense…little unorganized about her lectures but if you go to her office hours, she will clarify and she will make time to see you.”