Hi to everyone in RMST 202!!
My name is Maia Dueck (she/her). I’m currently in 2nd year general arts, with interests in creative writing, english, and history. My hope is to be an author (specifically for the YA genre) and to be involved with script writing/film production. I am always down to talk about books or the latest book-to-screen adaptations, and I love getting to know new people!
To be entirely honest, I had no clue what to expect about this class before I watched the lectures and attended the first class, but I am super excited to be delving into these topics and to be learning alongside all of you! My expectations of this course are to challenge my own thinking, read some books and perspectives I wouldn’t otherwise be exposed to, and to expand how I view literature and its place in history. I expect myself to complete my contract, to engage with the topics at hand, and to be present in the classroom. I hope for and expect the classroom to be a safe place to explore thinking and discuss themes with classmates.
As for the lecture and conversations video, I enjoyed the definition of literature as something that forces us to pay attention to the way languages operates. Books and stories contain so many themes underneath the surface that can be further explored and dissected, and using the words “pay attention” encapsulates what I want to be doing in this course and when I read: to catch the nuances of writing and the message that the author is trying to convey and to draw something out of the text. While I do agree that sometimes “a cigar is just a cigar,” as we talked about in class, I also like to hear and think about what other people think about texts or if they found any symbolism that I missed, and to think about the landscape or culture that shaped the authors who wrote them. It was helpful to write down my own perceptions of where the Romance World is before the answer was given – I definitely would’ve guessed Italy, Rome, Europe, and Latin America, but it’s interesting that these languages are “mutants” of one root language, not tied to any one territory. I hadn’t thought before about where these languages came from, nor how closely related some of them are. Thinking about these languages as a family helps put into perspective how tied together they are, and also how those ties overlap. Bringing in the added layers of politics or languages being powerful or power influencing the growth and expansion of new languages helped name some of the forces at play in how languages shift or change over time and throughout history.
That’s all for now!
Peace,
Maia
Hey Maia! I also love talking about book-to-screen adaptations. It seems to be a topic that often involves a lot of debate and controversy. I think it’s so cool how you want to be involved in film production and screenwriting because it’s generally a very interesting field that not very many people talk about. I am actually taking a scriptwriting course right now and even though we have just started, it seems to be super cool and interesting! I also hope to see the classroom as a safe space to discuss ideas and opinions and look forward to hearing everyone’s. I really like the way you described how you approach text, I think it’s very thoughtful and enlightening to really help understand the context of literature.
Maia, you seem super cool.
Scriptwriting has always interested me–although I am much more suited to write essays. I also want to be an author, and I think this class will greatly explore literature in ways that we may have never read before. You have such a unique and captivating way of writing– I enjoy your use of metaphors in “mutants”. I echo everything you say about stories–they exist for us to make meaning and to quell our fears and worries. You even highlighted a more linguistic side of languages which is very impressive for an introductory post. I think this course will truly help one broaden their literature on a global scale, especially in the realm of the non-western world.
Keep up the great work!
Gabby
Welcome to the course, Maia! I hope we can help you with your goals of challenging you own thinking, and expanding how you view literature!
Hi Maia!
I think its really cool that you want to be a YA author! I too had no idea what to expect from this class but am looking forward to reading new books and perspectives!