PROFESSOR (Australian Female): Hello. Can I help you?
STUDENT (American Male): Hi. I’m an undergraduate student here and I was thinking about taking your Great Author class next term.
PROFESSOR: Wonderful.
STUDENT: Well, I was wondering what the focus of the class will be, and, uh, what will be required of us. This will be my first literature class as a university student.
PROFESSOR: I see. Well, next term we’ll be focusing on the American author William Faulkner. He wrote about the American South at the turn of the 20th century. He was a fascinating man. He began as a poet and eventually wrote screenplays for Hollywood, but we’ll be focusing on his prose. The plan is to read all of his novels over the term, but also read two biographies about Faulkner himself so that we can get an idea of what he was like as a person.
STUDENT: Did you say we’ll be reading all of his novels?
PROFESSOR: Indeed, we’ll read all of them. Well, we’ll read all of his major novels. Thirteen in total. It’s a lot of reading, but well worth it in my opinion.
STUDENT: How will the class be structured?
PROFESSOR: You mean from day-to-day? Mostly presentations and class discussions. The class will be divided up into groups of three students. For each novel we read, a different group will present a general introduction about the novel to the class. Following the presentation, we’ll have a class discussion.
STUDENT: Will we be graded on the presentations or will there be tests or quizzes?
PROFESSOR: No, none of that. It’ll be painfully obvious if a group isn’t prepared, so I just leave it up to the students to put in the amount of work that is required. It’s never been a problem in the past.
STUDENT: Do you normally have literature majors or graduate students enrolled in your classes? I’m afraid I’ll get in over my head.
PROFESSOR: No, you’ll be fine. It is a rigorous course, but it’s not restricted to literature majors or graduate students. The class is for any undergraduate student. I do, however, normally have a few literature majors in the Great Author classes that I teach.
STUDENT: What other authors have you taught in the past?
PROFESSOR: I don’t always focus on American novelists. So, I’ve taught some famous authors from Europe as well as South America. I like to teach Tolstoy sometimes as well, who was Russian. It changes each year.
STUDENT: OK. Well, I’m really excited. It sounds like a lot of work, but I still want to take the course.
PROFESSOR: Great. I require one major research paper at the end of the term.
STUDENT: What does that entail?
PROFESSOR: It needs to be 20 – 35 pages. You’ll have to include an annotated bibliography. I normally meet with students outside of class to discuss their topics and help guide them in the right direction, so don’t worry, you won’t be all on your own.
STUDENT: What are some topics that students have used in the past?
PROFESSOR: The usual stuff. Some students have taken a biographical approach and interpreted an author’s work through the lens of personal details about that writer. Like Hemingway’s short, direct writing style and his experience as a journalist. Others have looked at reoccurring themes and motifs in novels written throughout a writer’s career. The options are wide open.
STUDENT: Do you limit the number of students that can take the course?
PROFESSOR: Yes, I limit the class to 12 students.
STUDENT: Wow, that’s sort of small.
PROFESSOR: Yes, it is. I think smaller classes improve the discussions.
STUDENT: Do I need special permission to enroll?
PROFESSOR: Nope, there are no prerequisites. You can just enroll online, and as long as there are spots available, you’ll get in.
STUDENT: If, by chance, the class is already full, can I be put on a waiting list?
PROFESSOR: Sure, but you’ll only be let in if a spot opens up. I’m sure there are still spots available, but I haven’t checked recently.
STUDENT: Is it possible to check right now?
PROFESSOR: You’d have to look online or call the registration office.
STUDENT: OK. Thanks for all of the information.