English 244: the Art of the Essay
Spring 2023
➢ Preface
➢ Class readings in Spring 2023
➢ Hateful Things
➢ Delightful Things
➢ Featured Authors
➢ Commonplace book reflections on essays
➢ Recommended Readings
➢ From faculty,coaches, other mentors
➢ From other students
➢ List of contributors
English 244 is a course designed to be experiential as students encounter and grapple with the essay as a literary form worthy of academic attention. The title of the course is "The Art of the Essay," with the rather grand subtitle of "Writing that has changed minds and changed the world."
The course took us into the library for labs in which we examined old commonplace books, marveled at early magazine formats, and encountered famous essayists in their original contexts. Students' favorite library lab involved Sarah Almond's tour of the Bortz library rare books vault.
Throughout the semester, as we ranged in our readings from Seneca to visiting author Ross Gay, we kept our own commonplace books. We all had different approaches to writing in this physical space: alongside favorite quotations from assigned readings, some used it for analytical musings, some added lines from song and film, some tracked their job search or their workout schedule. And more than one of us found room for "shower thoughts"--perhaps a new genre in itself that could feed the modern essay.
Collected here is a partial record of our engagement with the essay form. The class chose from among many ideas for content, reluctantly leaving aside other possible sections for the sake of time. To paraphrase Montaigne, we are ourselves the matter of this book. We hope you enjoy it, but "you would be unreasonable to spend your leisure on so frivolous and vain a subject."
Early Practitioners
• Seneca:“On Noise,” “Asthma,” “Scipio’s Villa,” “Slaves”
• SeiShonagon: “HatefulThings”
• Kenko: “Essays in idleness”
• Ou-YangHsiu: “Pleasure BoatStudio”
• Montaigne
• “to the Reader”
• “Of Idleness”
• “Of Smells”
• “Of Friendship”
• “Of a Monstrous Child”
• “Of Cannibals”
• One man's profit is anotherman's harm"
• "Let business wait until tomorrow"
• "Not to counterfeitbeing sick"
• "Of thumbs"
The Rise of the English Essay
• Jonathan Swift, "A ModestProposal"
• Richard Steele, "An Hour or Two SacredtoSorrow"
• Steele, "Twenty-four Hours in London"
• Steele, "Love-Letters"
• Addison, "Trial of the Petticoat"
• Steele, "Dueling"
• Charles Lamb
"New Year's Eve"
"A Chapteron Ears"
"DreamChildren: A Reverie"
• William Hazlitt
• "The Fight"
The Rise of the American Essay
• Thoreau, “Walking”
• Twain, “Fennimore Cooper’s Literary Offenses”
• Some essays about embodiment
• Lu Hsun, "This Too is Life"
• Borges, "Blindness"
• Soyinka, "Whydo I Fast?"
• Benjamin, "Hashishin Marseilles"
• Modernist essays
• Benchley, "MyFace"
• Thurber, "TheSecret Life of James Thurber"
• Woolf: “Street Haunting,” “The Death of the Moth”
• F. Scott Fitzgerald, "The Crack Up"
Ross Gay essays
The Book of Delights, selectedreadings
Inciting Joy, “The First Incitement”
Call to Action essays
W.E.B DuBois, “Robert E. Lee”
Caroline Randall Williams, “You want a confederate monument? My bodyis a confederate monument.”
Rachel Carson, “A Fable for Tomorrow”
JudyBrady, “I want a wife”
Peter Singer, “The Singer Solution to World Poverty”
Students’ choice and Seminar Discussion
Ferdinand Pessoareadings
Wendell Berry,“Think Little”
Ruskin Bond, "Things I love most"
Red Smith, “Jim andhis Baubles”
JennyMedeiros, “Lional Messi’s Life Story”
Jon Krakauer, “Death andAnger on Everest”
Michael Lewis, “Faking it”
Ed Ayers, “Our silent civil war debateover statues didn’tcome out of thin air”
David Sedaris, “Letting Go,” “Jesus Shaves”
Telling myself that I'm going to wake up early in the morning, setting an alarm to make sure I do, then ignoring it and falling back asleep for two more hours because I'm lazy is hateful.
Going into the Moans for a bowl of pasta and seeing that some of the noodles aren't completely cooked is hateful.
Being absolutely swamped in work for multiple days straight and being unable to take time for exercise or relaxation is hateful.
I hate when my cat misses her jump up onto my bed while I sleep, extending her sharp claws and latching onto anything she can get a hold of. Given the single-sized nature of the mattress,this "anything is usually me", waking me up to the pain of her claws scratching my skin and the sound of her struggling to recover as she falls off the bed, usually knocking over my bedside cup of water.
Waking up super excited for breakfast just to get to Moans and have my morning ruined. Now that I think about it, my week was ruined.
Teachers all assigning papers the same week right before finals
I hate the moans because I always leave hungrier than when I came.
I hate homework because it takes time away from time I could be playing cornhole.
People who are always complaining oh so hateful.
Laziness and the lack of motivation is so hateful.
Injuries of the body or mind are so hateful.
Unexpected lost is something that is truly most hateful.
Temptations are a hateful evil.
People taking my clothes outside the laundry machine to put theirs in
Not seeing my dog for months on end
The lack of parking spots at Hampden Sydney
How my phone is designed to be addictive
Babies crying on a plane
cold/rainy weather
Romantic Comedies
Harry Potter
Smart Car
Some things that completely annoy me have to do with people who breath through their mouth. I remember when I was a child, and I was too lazy to go blow my nose. It would send my mom through the roof and now I understand why. It's completely ridiculous that you won't go blow your nose! I thought that was going to be the only thing to ruin my morning but no.The cafeteria, Moans, ran out of food at 9:20. It's supposed to stop serving at 9:45. How ridiculous is that as a college.No wonder our food gets voted the worst in America every year. Morning is ruined.
I hate when people chew with their mouth open.This is single handedly one of the most disgusting things a person can do
I hate when people leave the extra time on the microwave,it's not that hard to press one more button.
I hate being uncompetitive.You can only control what you can control so no matter what, compete.
When you get out of the shower and realize you forgot to bring your towel.
Getting woken up by a pet, only for it to run away when you try to pet it.
Having two weeks to complete an assignment, but still doing it at the last minute.
I hate windy days
I hate when people cannot admit when they're wrong
I hate being told how to/to do something that I am already in the process of doing.
When I am eating either breakfast, lunch or dinner, I like to eat in peace, one thing that destroys that peace is when people do not chew with their mouth closed, all I am able to hear is the smacking of their food in their mouth.
Absolutely despise the SEC/ unclear market they “regulate”… they don’t do anything but harm investors while claiming they are providing clarity regarding crypto assets.
Communicating with the DMV
Swim shirts=no go Traffic speeding
filling up my gas tank
...the never ending checklist that seems to shrink and grow with time as if an inch worm moving across the days.
AFTER TRACKING OUR HATEFUL THINGS WE DECIDED WE NEEDED TO KEEP T RACK OF HAPPIER THOUGHTS. ROSS GAY'S ESSAYS FROM THE BOOK OF DELIGHTS REINFORCED OUR DECISION.
The sound of a record that plays through to the end without skipping delights me.
Granny B's greeting when she walked in
Movies delight me because they make me laugh and think.
Cookout milkshakes
Football
Smell of fresh cut grass
The warm weather rolling in with music playing out loud.
Music that sounds good outdoors foreign cars
my mom's cooking
listening to music in the car
Baseball is very delightful for me because I can escape all stress and focus on something I love doing Hunting is delightful to me because of the beautiful landscapes you see and the early morning sunrises.There's nothing like the adrenaline rush it brings.
Dogs are one of the most delightful things on Earth.They are always there for you, love you unconditionally, and are always by your side.They portrait all of the personality qualities we would look for in a friend.
The sound of a record that plays through to the end without skipping delights me.
When I wake up in the morning and can breathe through both of my nostrils.
A sunny day where everyone is outside, enjoying the sunlight and hanging out.
A rainy day where everyone retreats to their room, enjoying the sound of the rain hitting the ground.
A good whiskey sour.
when a deposit clears it is always a good feeling
Helping others accomplish a goal/realization
Giving advice/motivating others
making personal realizations
Waking up expecting to be late for class only to remember it's the weekend.
Finally meeting up with friends/loved ones after months apart.
Finding a new show/movie series to watch.
When someone makes an unlikely prediction and it immediately comes true.
My favorite thing is to make long birdie putts
.Being ahead of things like work
Getting good grades
Getting expensive clothes or items for sale
Food from panda
Getting an extension on a difficult paper
Seeing my dog after being away for a while
Drives through the woods with no other cars around
Dollar beers at TI delight me
The Grateful Dead delights me
Being outside with my friends delights me
The sound and look of moving water (beach, creek, river) delights me
My close friends and family, these are things that delight me.
The opportunities I have been given and the place I am blessed to be are delightful.
The chances I get to play the incredible sport of lacrosse are delightful indeed.
The people who believe in my potential delight me.
Chosen and taught to the class by members of the class
One of the most significant Portuguese poets, writers, and philosophers. Fernando Pessoa played a huge role in the Modernist movement and used a narrative style of writing that looked at the thoughts and emotions of several heteronyms he wrote about. Pessoa used irony and contradiction to look at themes of self-identity.
1905-1982
Red Smith's essays were educational and thought provoking because they emphasized the importance of sports.Along with that, his writing helped convince people that sports commentary was a valuable art form. His essays tended to be educational in the sense that they revealed tragedies or issues in the sports world to the public.
Wendell Berry is a famous American author, farmer, and environmental activist who emphasized the importance of living locally, building stronger communities, and conserving natural recourses. He argues local communities and businesses are a cornerstone in society and we must prioritize protecting nature. His uses metaphors and similes to express his idea, which allows readers to connect with him on a personal level. Berrys had his first work published in 1960 and is still releasing boos as of 2022
Ruskin Bond was born in Kasauli, a northern Indian city. He was born May 19 in 1934. As a child he moved a lot.This was because of his father's service in the Royal Airforce. He writes many children's books and is a well renowned author. I found his nature writing to be quite moving and truly incredible.
Michael Lewis (1960-Present) is an American author of essays, novels, and articles. He writes about a wide variety of topics, such as sports, entertainment, or finance. His works are concerned with personal stories that reflect on bigger moments in modern American history. He is most known for his novels, such as Moneyball, theBigShort, and TheBlindside, but has written interesting essays such as "Faking It".
David Sedaris (1956-today) is an American writer who primarily uses humor and satire in his essays. Most of the time, he uses this as a vehicle to discuss heavier topics, such as politics or issues like addiction suffered by himself or his family. He also grounds most of his writing in anecdotes from his personal life experiences.
Edward Ayers is a historical writer that focuses on the American Civil War. He is a former president of University of Richmond and is still a professor there today. He won a medal from President Obama for his work.Ayers has published over eight books. His essays range from one paragraph to thousands of words.
Jenny used to be a writer for goalcast.com. She enjoyed writing inspirational stories regarding highly successful people. Some of her stories include the famous Lionel Messi and "The Rock". She has since moved on to writing about technology and advancements in that world.
Jon Krakauer's essays were all based on personal experience and the feeling of what he has come across, along with symbolism and idealism.He allows the reader to feel what he is feeling and relate to what he has written. Jon Krakauer's essays were all captivating in a sense as if you felt like you were there. He is very descriptive throughout each essay and he also does a good job of creating the narrative.
Ross Gay is the author of four books of poetry:Against Which;BringingtheShovelDown; BeHolding , winner of the PEN American Literary Jean Stein Award;and CatalogofUnabashed Gratitude, winner of the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award and the 2016 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. His first collection of essays,TheBookofDelights, was released in 2019 and was a New YorkTimesbestseller.His new collection of essays, IncitingJoy, was released by Algonquin in October of 2022. (from https://www.rossgay.net/about)
Our campus hosted this contemporary essayist during the semester, and we were able to generate discussion questions along with the students in Dr. Malyszek's Creative Nonfiction class. Most delightful!
(FAVORITES FROM ASSIGNED READINGS)
Class commonplace book responses and reflections
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
(from our larger community)
EssayTitle Essay Author Recommended by
"A Modest Proposal" Jonathan Swift Professor Hight
"Shooting an Elephant" George Orwell Professor Carson
"Goodbye to All That" Joan Didion Professor Stephan
"Reflections on Exile" Edward Said Professor Stephan
"The Large Catechism" Martin Luther Professor Worley
"On Pandering" Claire Vaye Watkins Ms. Almond
"Living 24/7" Jurgen Klinsmann Coach DiNuzzo
"Once More to the Lake" E.B. White Professor Davis
"Borges and I" Jorge Luis Borges Professor Davis
“A Tale of One Ship with Two Names" Sarah WatkinsKenney Professor Greenspan
Essay recommendations from students we know
Essay Title Essay Author Recommended by
"Shooting an Elephant" George Orwell Jelan Powell
"A History of Violence" Stephen Pinker Brendan Wallace
"Why go out" Sheila Heti
"Of Smells" Michel de Montaigne HankVan Nesss
"The Man in the Arena" Theodore Roosevelt Cole Pollard
"How to Tame a Wild Tongue"
"The History of Hockey and the NHL"
"Letter From Birmingham Jail"
"Musk BBC interview: Twitter boss on layoffs, misinformation and sleeping in the office."
Gloria Anzaldua
Nate Jones
NHL.com Declan Shaw
Martin Luther King, Jr. Matt Johnson
Elon Musk
NickThompson
Buri, AttilaC
Coleman, JonathanIgnatius
Dischino, AnthonyJohn
Fallen, MylesCarroll
Gregory, Andrew Gavin
Hall, JohnWesleyIV
Head,JoshuaMicheal Jr.
English 244: TheArt of the Essay
Spring 2023
Dr. Sarah Hardy,editor/professor
With special thanks to Sarah Almond and MikeTimma
Jones,TuckerCampbell
Kageleiry, Charles Martin
LaBrie, SchaeferWiley
Lambert, Pierce McKinley
Pickren, ZaneCole
Purdie, David BoyceJr.
Tierney, JohnMaher
VanNess,JamesHenry VI
Walker, Charles Isaiah
Wipperfurth, LoganAllen
Young, Cameron Jackson
