Isabelarch Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 Hi! Starting my MA in English and Comparative Literature in the Fall, and wanted some suggestions for summer reading. I haven't been in school for a few years and I feel really unprepared. I'd like to read some books on literary theory, as well as some fiction. What do you think is really essential reading for the current literature graduate student? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
echo449 Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 I mean, this depends. What're you interested in? What is your field? What concerns do you want to engage in your coursework? An obvious answer is to tell you to go read The Norton Anthology of Literary Criticism, if you really don't know where to start with anything, but idk how useful that would be to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie Roh Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 I would just focus on the classics, especially those in the time period that interests you the most. Before I started my program I tried to read books that somehow I was never assigned as an undergrad (admittedly, a theatre undergrad) -- The Grapes of Wrath; McTeague; some Dickens, Austen, etc. As far as criticism goes, I would hold off if I were you. It's hard to jump in without someone giving you the basics and you shouldn't feel behind if you wait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProfLorax Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 And I will give you the opposite advice and say this: you will be reading for work for the next two years. Why not read for fun this summer? jhefflol, knp, unræd and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhefflol Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 And I will give you the opposite advice and say this: you will be reading for work for the next two years. Why not read for fun this summer? I agree! Just relax. Everything that you need to read during your MA program will take care of itself in course assignments. Maybe just re-familiarize yourself with the latest version of MLA? And no offense to the person who suggested it, but I personally would not like to "pleasure read" the Norton Anthology of Criticism. Just looking at that devilish white book makes me want to vomit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Q84 Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 (edited) I'll step onto the side of the "academic" readers. Before I started my MA, I read a couple beginner's guides to lit theory and I felt like the very broad summaries helped me to grasp the details when we later discussed them in class. It really helped to have the background when it came to class discussions, not only because I wasn't busy engaging with the ideas for the first time but I was able to help lead the conversation to a greater degree. (Of course, as you'll find, these generalized summaries tend to drain extremely complex fields and theories of any subtlety and the contradictions and raging debates therein, but those you can find out by engaging with your colleagues in class discussions.) This is the one my program used and I found it rather accessible: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008N7Q2SQ/ref=rdr_kindle_ext_tmb One thing that I wished I did was read a couple of the most recent articles in my field of interest. I was very interested in queer theory but started from ground zero instead of knowing what were the most up-to-date and relevant discussions. All that being said, I've elected to do way more pleasure reading this summer--about 2 contemporary novels to 1 theory work. It's been rejuvenating! Edited July 3, 2015 by 1Q84 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unræd Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 I'm torn; I can see the merits of both sets of advice. (Meaning that I had planned to read two articles and work on my languages yesterday, and streamed an entire season of Downton Abbey instead.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
echo449 Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 I've been reading Stephenson's Seveneves, but I was roped in to applying for a sci-fi conference with a good friend so knowing the genre as a whole is good, right? OP, pleasure reading right now is a good idea. If you are going to work-read, maybe only work-read books that you are reasonably sure that you'll enjoy? Dr. Old Bill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Old Bill Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 I've been reading Stephenson's Seveneves Hey! Me too! It's taking me longer than I'd planned (I started it a week after it was released), but I'm now about 200 pages from the end. echo449 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iExcelAtMicrosoftPuns Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 (edited) I vote the both option. Read the academic stuff but toss in short things. I recommend: A.M. Homes "Things You Should Know". https://msgallin9300.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/things-you-should-know1.pdf Edited July 3, 2015 by BowTiesAreCool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isabelarch Posted July 3, 2015 Author Share Posted July 3, 2015 Thanks everyone! I guess I'll be doing a little bit of both! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattie Roh Posted July 3, 2015 Share Posted July 3, 2015 (edited) And I will give you the opposite advice and say this: you will be reading for work for the next two years. Why not read for fun this summer? hahaha! Agreed. I really enjoyed reading 19th classics before starting my program so it was pleasure reading for me. But now that I've been doing heavy reading over the fall/winter it is nice to just pick up a beach read instead. Edited July 3, 2015 by Mattie Roh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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