English Department Film Trip: October 3!

Join professor Megan Quigley, Tuesday Oct. 3 at 7:00 pm, at our local independent theater, BMFI, for an advanced screening of “Cat Person,” an adaptation of the ’story that broke the internet’ when it was first published in The New Yorker in 2017.

The story is linked here. The wild follow up (read the story first) is linked here: Cat Person & Me.

Shoot Professor Quigley (megan.quigley@villanova.edu) an email if you plan to join—or just show up! Tickets are $11.00. Buy tickets here: https://brynmawrfilm.org/event/advance-screening-cat-person/

Not the Cruelest Month

This weekend, professors Kamran Javadizadeh and Megan Quigley put their poetry skills to work at the T. S. Eliot conference in Cambridge, MA. They co-taught a seminar on "T. S. Eliot and Close Reading” to a group of professors and graduate students at the Houghton Library at Harvard University on Friday. Megan later delivered a lecture, “Perfectly good, normal and right: Eliot, Attraction, and Intimacy,” in Emerson Hall, the same philosophy building where T. S. Eliot took his philosophy courses at Harvard a century ago. What is “close reading”?  Take a class with Megan or Kamran or listen to Kamran’s podcast (linked here Apple & Spotify) to find out!

Celebrating 75 Years of the English Major

 Check out this article from The Villanovan, written by the one and only Caitlyn Foley, on celebrating 75 years of the English major at Villanova.

This Week in the English Department

 

Reading Sci-Fi with AI

On Friday Sept. 15th, Dr. Megan Quigley presented a paper in Switzerland (really on zoom!) on reading Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun with ChatGPT and the Logic and Modern Literature Conference at the University of Lausanne.

She thanks Erica Hayes, in Falvey Library’s Digital Scholarship Lab, and Jamie Wojtal, her RA, for assistance with AI side of the project.

What do you think ChatGPT wrote when prompted to answer if the border between human and artificial intelligence was vague? And what does that mean for humanity’s “evolution” with AI?

Professor Kamran Javadizadeh in The New Yorker

 Professor Kamran Javadizadeh reviews Ben Lerner's The Lights in The New Yorker. Check out his essay here.

Fall 2023 BIPOC Creative Writing Hangouts

BIPOC creative writing hangouts with Professors Adrienne Perry, Tsering Wangmo Dhompa, Yumi Lee and Kimberly Takahata begin next week, at 6pm on Tuesday, September 19th. This is the fourth year! The hangouts are open to staff, faculty, students, and alumni who self-identify as folks of color. They take place in person, with pizza! No creative writing experience is necessary. 

Favorite Summer Books!

The start of the semester doesn't have to mean the end of reading for pleasure. Members of the advisory council share their favorite book from the summer to help you build your to-be-read list.

Kaitlin Gibson recommends Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus: "a great piece of feminist fiction that was lighthearted but grounded in the reality of the female experience. Greta Gerwig’s Barbie would approve!"

Hannah de Melo's favorite summer book was The Color Purple by Alice Walker.

Jo Mastrodomenico's favorite summer book was The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.

Gabe Jimenez enjoyed reading The Bomber Mafia by Malcom Gladwell and Everything Beautiful Began After by Simon Van Booy

Sonia Singh recommends  Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood because it's a great balance between a classic Hallmark romcom and true feminism in both the protagonist and her love interest.

Mickey Wilcox enjoyed Edith Hamilton's Mythology. It provided a great catalog of Greek and Roman myths. In many cases, the author pulled from different sources for each myth, which made each account thorough while maintaining an entertaining narrative. A wonderful read for those just getting into myth, or for the already well-versed.

Bianca Brucker's favorite summer book is The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand. It is the perfect beach read. The book is full of entertaining gossip and is definitely a page-turner. All of the characters are very distinct and amusing and the setting is a luxurious hotel on the beautiful Massachusetts Island, Nantucket. After finishing this book, she definitely wanted to plan her own trip to Nantucket.

Ella O'Shea says Family of Liars by E. Lockhart was really good. One of her favorite books from when she was younger was We Were Liars, so when she heard there was a prequel, she bought it right away. 

Camille Ferace enjoyed Mercy Street by Jennifer Haigh, which she read at the end of last semester and cannot stop talking about!

MT Barry says that her favorite summer book was The Fault in our Stars by John Green. She had been wanting to read it for a few years, and after she finally got her hands on a copy this summer, it did not disappoint! The creativity, complexity and prose expressed throughout was definitely eye-opening and consistently wowed me. She recommends it to anyone looking for an introspective, humorous at times, and witty read!

Emily Hanlon's favorite summer read was Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez. 

Katie Lewis's favorite summer read was The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

Professor Adrienne Perry at Emily Dickinson's house

Professor Adrienne Perry recently visited Emily Dickinson's house. She shares some photos from the visit below. In her words: "What was most inspiring and exciting to me about this visit was to see how her family home has changed over time, as it's been decorated with period furnishings, including wallpaper created from scraps found in the home. I am always struck by the size and simplicity of her writing desk, to think that she wrote some 1,800 poems in this place, and to hear the docents speak about the world around her. There was also a fascinating display about her editorial and drafting process, and a first edition of her poems, which featured the images of ghost pipe flowers. Talk of ghost pipe and the images of them, alongside Emily, sort of followed me around all weekend."

A portrait of Emily Dickinson and her siblings from the drawing room

Emily Dickinson's bedroom/ writing desk

Emily Dickinson's bedroom

Professor Adrienne Perry in front of Emily Dickinson's house

Meet the Advisory Council!

Villanova's English department cares about community--whether that means discussions about literature in class, chatting about moldy mattresses and other horrors during All About the Bagels, or conversations about internships, careers, and upcoming classes at the pre-registration reception. Serving many important roles-- peer mentors, representatives of the English department, social media influencers, consultants, members of the English department's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee, journalists, swag designers--students on the Advisory Council do important work shaping our community. Look for them in classes and at English department events and don't be afraid to ask them about the major or share your ideas for Villanova English with them.

Rachel Rhee

Hi everyone! My name is Rachel Rhee and I am so excited to serve on the English Department's Student Advisory Council this year. I am a senior English and Communication double major in the Honors Program with Communication Specializations in Performance Studies and Media Production. On campus, you can find me planning events as the Director of Programming for Villanova's Student Government Association, discussing curriculum as a student representative on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and watching sunsets by the church. Last year, I also had the opportunity to attend a creative writing conference at Queen’s University in Belfast, N. Ireland and it was one of my favorite experiences within the English department! After graduation, I plan to pursue my Master’s degree in Education so I can share my passion for reading, writing, and performing with others as a teacher in the elementary school setting! 

Katie Lewis

I am a sophomore English and Communication major with a concentration in Writing and Rhetoric. Since last year, I’ve been writing for The Villanovan sports and news sections. I’m also a member of the Honors Program, Faith and Learning Scholars Program, and the club tennis team. My current career goals are related to writing, journalism, and media.

Emily Hanlon

I am a junior English major and Irish Studies minor. One fun fact about me is that I am a transfer student! I transferred to Villanova in fall 2022 and was also a Transfer Counselor for the wonderful orientation program this past August. I am also involved in both literary magazines on campus and work in the chemistry department office. Two of my goals this year are to write more poetry and to read more nonfiction outside of class! I would also love to study abroad or travel to Ireland at some point during my time at Villanova. In terms of my plans after graduation, I am interested in law, publishing, and marketing. 

Maria Therese Barry

Hi! My name is Maria Therese Barry, and I am a Sophomore English major with minors in Spanish and Psychology. Here on campus, I am a member of the Copy Desk staff on The Villanovan, as well as the Education and Advocacy committee of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week and the Ellipsis literary magazine. I love writing, reading (especially science fiction and creative fiction/nonfiction), and helping others achieve their creative goals, so I hope to attend graduate school and pursue a career in Editing and Publishing after graduating. I am so excited to be a part of the advisory council this year! 

Camille Ferace

My name is Camille Ferace. I am a junior English and Communications double major. I plan on attending law school following graduation and had the amazing opportunity to intern at my local District Attorney’s office this past summer. Throughout this internship, I was able to sit in on numerous trials and hearings, read different cases, and gain exposure to the field and study of law. On campus, I am involved with many organizations including being on the volunteers committee for Special Olympics and Vice President of Operation Smile! I am very excited to be a part of the Student Advisory Council and cannot wait to be a contributing voice for the English department, which is such a great group of individuals!

Ella O'Shea

I am a sophomore English major also planning to major in Communication with a minor in Creative Writing. I have interests in film and screenwriting so my focus in Communications will be in film production! I’m also involved with the Day of Service planning committee as well as the Villanova Business of Fashion Society.  

Kylie Horan

I am a Senior English and Italian major with minors in Creative Writing and Gender and Women's Studies. My areas of literary interest are Modernism and Early Modern drama, and I have been fortunate enough to bring several Shakespearean plays to life onstage as an actor and director with Villanova Student Theatre. I work as a writing tutor and the Assistant to the Director at the VU Writing Center, as well as hold TA positions for both English and Italian courses. During my time at Villanova, I have had many wonderful opportunities to explore my passions for art, culture, and education. I received the Patriarch Family Scholarship to study Italian literature, history, and language in Siena, Italy during the Summer of 2023 and plan to continue traveling and studying abroad after graduation as I (hopefully!) progress in my path towards becoming an academic. 

Kaitlin Gibson

I am a Sophomore double major in English and Irish Studies. I hope to break into higher education, pursuing English and my love of literature well past my time at Villanova. With my English major, I have enjoyed sampling bits of humanity from around the world, learning more about the human conditions and the complexities of our life through the art of others. I especially love reading novels that focus on themes of coming of age and coming into self, especially those that reflect on the unique female experience of growing up. I am involved in a few things on campus, including the Villanova Pastoral Musicians, Chi Omega Sorority, Irish Cultural Society, Peer Ministry, and Faith and Learning Scholars. I look forward to another great – and fun! – year with the English department, which is full of wonderful human beings who have always been exceedingly kind and supportive of me and my aspirations. I also look forward to another year of Bagel Tuesdays – the best day of the week!

Hannah de Melo

Hello! I’m Hannah de Melo, a senior English and GWS (Gender and Women’s Studies) double major with a minor in Peace and Justice. I grew up in Rhode Island before attending Villanova in 2020. Currently, I live off-campus in Newtown Square with my roommate and cat. I am the Leader of Development for Villanova’s The Space, a club designed to create opportunities for valuable conversations surrounding reproductive issues. I am also a member of several other clubs that focus on social justice and the betterment of our campus and world. I hope to eventually combine my passion for social reform with my love for reading and writing, which the Villanova English Department has encouraged and cultivated for several years already through classes, events, and more.

Jo Mastrodomenico

My name is Jo Mastrodomenico and I'm a senior this year! I'm an English major with minors in Italian and History. During my time at Villanova, I have completed several legal internships, including one for credit in the English major. After graduation, I hope to attend law school.

Gabe Jimenez

Hi everyone! My name is Gabe Jimenez, I’m from New York City, and I’m a junior here at Villanova majoring in English with minors in Economics and Creative Writing. My combination of English and Economics as main points of study here at Villanova have provided me a very unique experience in that I am able to really focus on the writing aspects that go into researching and understanding fluctuations in micro and macroeconomic environments. This has led me to pursue law school after I graduate where I hope to work in contributing to write and revise newer versions of the Bankruptcy Code. I just recently completed an internship at Reorg Research as a legal analyst intern where I reported on numerous ongoing legal matters in the bankruptcy world. I thoroughly enjoy reading and writing fiction, however I have shifted recently to writing a non-fiction story about the life of my great-grandmother and her journey to emigrate from Puerto Rico to the US post World War II. Here at Villanova, I am involved with ALPFA, the History Society, the Pre-Law Society, the Matthew J. Ryan Center, and Villanova’s newest non-secretive fraternity Delta Upsilon. The English major as a whole has provided me with so many amazing opportunities, my favorite being the "Writing Through Conflict" class with Alan Drew where we were able to travel to Belfast during fall break last year and met with several authors and poets that provided my classmates and I with so many amazing tips and insights into their writing and how we can apply their skills and lessons learned to our own writing.

Sonia Singh

My name is Sonia Singh, and I'm a junior English major and an aspiring lawyer. I am the Co-Director of Outreach and Administration of ELLIPSIS, which is one of the literary magazines on campus! I am also an RA in Delurey hall and super excited to live on campus this year because as a transfer student, I lived off-campus last year! I am a huge Agatha Christie, romance, and fantasy fan! (So, if you like any of those things or are interested in the literary magazine, please don't hesitate to get in touch!) 

Mickey Wilcox

I'm a junior English major, Classical Studies major, and Creative Writing minor. I enjoy reading epic poetry, such as Beowulf and Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. One day, I wish to dive into Vyasa's Mahabharata and The Epic of Gilgamesh. Along with the Advisory Council, I am also a member of Villanova Student Musical Theatre. I studied abroad in Greece over the summer with the Communications program, studying ancient myths, democracy, and rhetoric. 

Bianca Brucker

Hi! My name is Bianca Brucker and I am a Sophomore English Major with minors in Peace and Justice and Gender and Women Studies from Bel Air, Maryland. On campus I am involved in a sorority, Villanova's Sophomore Service Learning Community, Villanova Student Theatre, Villanova's Mock Trial Team, and Villanova's Pre-Law Society. My favorite English course taken at Villanova so far is a course titled, "Motherhood and Reproductive Fictions" with Dr. Lutes. My favorite literary genres are Fantasy, Historical Fiction, and Thriller novels. I hope to pursue a career in writing and editing and/or Public Relations after graduation!