Semester Reflection

Looking back on the semester, I have learned a good bit about contemporary literature. I am not a big reader, and had saved the class until my final semester. In the end, I enjoyed it and I shouldn't have been worrying about taking it. I enjoyed reading The Watchmen, because it was something different and new. Graphic novels are an emerging form of literature, and the amount of information that is contained inside those issues is unbelievable. I think we really should have spent more time on the graphic novel, and even maybe read an additional one with a somewhat different approach. I also believe that A Streetcar Named Desire and Atonement were worth reading this semester.

I didn't really enjoy reading Sula or some of the short stories in the Anthology, and I wouldn't have minded if they were left out of the course. Now, I would say that I hate poems, so yes, I would probably say that I didn't enjoy them, but I think it is always important to read and discuss different types of literature that are hard for some students, like myself, to comprehend.

As for additions to the class, I think I would just recommend choosing a book that is on the current years best selling list. Not just any book, but by an author that has influenced many writers and may do the same for future writers. A book on the list that many have room for good class discussion. I do understand the importance of reading historic influential literature, but I also believe in reading literature that is written in the time of discussion.

Thanks for a good semester.

I Lost My Comic Book Virginity Too!

I think the author of the review described the moments leading up to reading the popular graphic novel perfectly. I too had never dabbled in the comic scene. I enjoyed the movies that were made after the comics had been published, but that was about it. The day I purchased the graphic novel, near the beginning of the semester, it definitely interested me. I turned through some pages seeing how the writing flowed and how the graphic depictions made reading more interesting. I couldn't wait for the graphic novel to become our class discussion topic.

As I begun reading, and we began discussing the graphic novel, it was very clear that this book had many deep meanings. I was almost overwhelmed. I wanted to read and survey each page a few times to help with these hidden meanings (only if I had the time). When I graduate in December, I think I will come back to The Watchmen and re-read the very interesting and insightful writing. We said it right in class...this book could take up a whole semester discussing.

The author of the review said, "More than I expected with this rite of passage, of losing my comic book virginity, I was taken to the warm buzz of a liminal zone, a place out of rung with normal routine where growth is allowed and upon returning from which, a person is never seen or sees the same way again." That sums it up perfectly.

I have already been recommended this graphic novel to friends, family, and my fellow workmates. I am excited, but nervous, about how The Watchmen will come out on film.