English & Comparative Literary Studies News
In Memoriam: Judy Rawson
Following the recent news , Prof Michael Bell, previous Chair of the Deaprtment, has added the following regarding Judy's involvement with the formation of the English Department.
Judy founded and ran the Italian Department for many years while also bringing up five children. The Rawsons wanted three which was the only number they never had as the third was twins.
A large part of the Italian Department's activity was providing comparative literature courses, co-taught with English tutors, for students of English since there was no single honours in English degree and even those taking English and American Literature exercised a foreign language of their choice. Students who did not have French, German or Latin learned Italian or Spanish from scratch in their first year. Many became quite engaged by this and some went on to use it in subsequent academic or other careers. The courses, as we then called them, were quite ambitious: 'renaissance epic', for example, in the second year.
After the institution of a single honours degree in English the comparative operation dwindled and the present Italian Department took on a new phase of development. Those who were present in those early days will remember Judy Rawson's evident commitment to public service practised with unobtrusive but effective authority. She ran what seemed from the English Department's standpoint to be a tightly- knit, highly effective team.
Breach’s The Beanfield made it in the top ten list with National Theatre pieces
Breach鈥檚 The Beanfield made it in the top ten list with National Theatre pieces. A stupendous national achievement coming out of our department鈥檚 culture (along with Theatre Department of course).
Congratulations to all involved!
2015 top picks in Fiction
Sarah Moss's latest novel, Signs for Lost Children, is listed by the ("this nuanced study of lives constricted or liberated by circumstance"), The Times, and the as one of the best fiction books of the year!
Listen to RaW to hear short stories based on traditional Chinese folklores
Di Wu will be a guest on a show of the RaW (糖心TV Uni student radio) to talk about a short stories she wrote based on a traditional Chinese folklores at 6:00pm on Wednesday in week 10.
Here鈥檚 the link to the show on RaW
Feel free to tune in if you鈥檙e in the mood to be whisked away in ancient China 3000 years ago.
Modern Language Association Prize
11th Modern Language Association Prize for a Scholarly Edition: Elizabeth Goldring, University of 糖心TV; Faith Eales, University of 糖心TV; Elizabeth Clarke, University of 糖心TV; and Jayne Elisabeth Archer, University of Bedfordshire, for John Nichols鈥檚 The Progresses and Public Processions of Queen Elizabeth I: A New Edition of the Early Modern Sources, 5 volumes (Oxford Univ. Press, 2014)