Monday Missive

Monday Missive - August 22, 2016

August 22, 2016 by Mark West

Singin’ in the Rain — This past Saturday I went to the screening of Singin’ in the Rain at the main branch of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. Our own part-time faculty member Sam Shapiro showed this classic musical as part of the library’s film series titled “Hollywood Shoots Itself: Movies about Movies.” For more information about this film series, please click on this link: https://www.cmlibrary.org/blog/hollywood-shoots-itself-film-series.

I knew I would see Sam there, but I was pleasantly surprised to see Aaron Toscano and Alison Walsh in the audience, too. After watching the film, I talked for a little while to Sam, Aaron and Alison, and then we all went our separate ways. For a second I thought I saw the three of them dancing down Tryon Street with Alison in the middle and Sam and Aaron on either side, but it was probably just my imagination.

Released in 1952, Singin’ in the Rain is not just a famous musical; it is also a film about the history of the American film industry during the transition between the silent film era and the advent of films with sound. The film is set in the late 1920s, just after the release of The Jazz Singer, which made history as the first “talking picture.” In Singin’ in the Rain, a movie production company must respond to this change or risk being marginalized. The production company, called Monumental Pictures, ends up embracing this change. The company releases a film that takes full advantage of sound, and in the process it sets into motion the rise of movie musicals.

As I drove home humming the title song from the film, I started thinking about connections between the film and our English Department. Like the production company represented in the film, our English Department is facing broader changes that have the potential of marginalizing the department. With the growing emphasis on STEM disciplines and programs that take an applied approach to education, many English Departments are currently experiencing sharp declines in their majors and course enrollments, but not our department. In recent years, our English Department has embraced change through our innovative concentrations, our collaborations with colleagues from the STEM disciplines, and our leadership in the emerging area of digital humanities. Unlike the many English Departments that seem disheartened as they are deluged with bad news, our English Department has a much more optimistic outlook. It is as if we are singin’ in the rain.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Antwan Alexander, one of our recent graduates, was recently honored as one of the “30 Under 30” by Charlotte’s Black Chamber of Commerce, an honor that recognizes Charlotte’s brightest young black entrepreneurs and business professionals 30 years and under.

Sarah Minslow recently published an article in the Journal of Popular Culture Studies titled “Treat Your Chicken-eating Children ‘Right’: The Conservative Political and Evangelical Values Reinforced in Chick-fil-A’s Classic Stories and Essential Values Series.”

Malin Pereira gave a paper at the conference for MESEA (The Society for Multi-Ethnic Studies: Europe and the Americas) in Warsaw, Poland, titled “Becoming a Minority Cosmopolitan: Reading Natasha Trethewey’s Mixed Race Identity from Beyond Katrina to Thrall.” On the way there, she gave a talk on Wanda Coleman’s “Retro Rogue Anthology” at the University of Wuppertal in Germany.

Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here is a list of upcoming meetings and events that will take place this week:

-CLAS All Faculty Mtg & Breakfast Friday, August 26 8:30-10:00am
Fretwell 100

-English Department Mtg Friday, August 26 11-12:15pm
Fretwell 290B (English Department Seminar Room)

Quirky Quiz Question — The film Singin’ in the Rain stars Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor as the two leading male actors. Who is the leading female star in the film?

Last week’s answer: the principal violinist

Like an academic departments, orchestras have their own hierarchies. In a traditional orchestra, who is second in command behind the conductor?

Monday Missive - August 15, 2016

August 15, 2016 by Mark West

Tuning Up the Orchestra — In the days of my youth, I played the bassoon in a community orchestra. One of my pleasant memories from this experience was the ritual involved in tuning up the orchestra before a performance. I remember the musicians assembling on the stage. I remember the initial sounds of a few instruments going through scales. And then more and more instruments would add to the growing cacophony of sounds. And then the oboe player would play an A, and all of the musicians would tune their instruments to the oboe. And then they would put down their instruments, the conductor would appear, and the performance would begin.

I flashed back on this memory today while sitting in my office listening to the sounds wafting through the department. Like the musicians assembling on the stage, the faculty members are assembling in the lobby and chatting in the mail room. The photocopy machine is making its rhythmic sounds as faculty members keep it busy running off course syllabi. Students keep ringing the bell at the front desk, asking for help finding offices. I regularly hear Sarah Minslow’s cheery voice as she greets students and brings them to her office for last-minute advising appointments. These are the sounds I associate with the beginning of the semester, and they remind me of the sounds that the members of an orchestra make as they prepare for their next performance. Our next performance starts in a week, and I am confident that by then we will all be tuned up and ready to go.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Eric Linne, a graduate of our M.A. program, recently learned that his new novella titled MillVille will be released in serial form online in the Charlotte Agenda. Beginning this Tuesday, they will be publishing two chapters a week for five weeks.

Sarah Minslow presented two papers at international conferences this summer. In June she presented a paper titled “They All Fall Down: Representations of Child Soldiers in Literature and Film” at a conference on Children’s Lives in Historical Contexts, which took place at Kings College London. In July she presented a paper titled “Representing War and Genocide in Children’s Literature at the Children and War, which took place at the University of Salzburg.

Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here is an important date to keep in mind:

Here is a list of upcoming meetings and events that will take place this month:

–University Convocation Thursday, August 18

8:30am coffee, 9:30-11 Convocation McKnight Hall

–Day of Convocation Monday, August 22

11:00-5:00pm (faculty arrive at 10:15) Halton Arena

–Classes Begin Monday, August 22 (at 5:00pm)

–CLAS All Faculty Mtg & Breakfast Friday, August 26

8:30-10:00am Fretwell 100

–English Department Mtg Friday, August 26

11-12:15pm Fretwell 290B (English Department Seminar Room)

Quirky Quiz Question — Like an academic departments, orchestras have their own hierarchies. In a traditional orchestra, who is second in command behind the conductor?

Last week’s answer: Chris Bongartz

Manu Vida is a graduate student of a former faculty member from our English Department who now teaches at the University of Cologne. Does anybody know the name of this former member of our English Department?

Monday Missive - August 9, 2016 (a day late)

August 09, 2016 by Mark West

Going Global — I just returned from Great Britain where I presented a paper at the Oxford Education Research Symposium. This symposium drew scholars from around the globe. Among the many countries represented at the symposium were Australia, Brazil, Iran, Italy, Kenya, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. During the symposium, everyone talked about education within a global context. We talked about how technology is used in schools from many different parts of the world. We talked about bilingual education and how other language issues impact schools in countries where more than one language is commonly spoken. We talked about how global cultural conflicts affect education. We talked about how global economic and political developments often lead to changing attitudes toward children and child rearing. I came away from this symposium with a heightened awareness of how educational systems and approaches are affected by global trends and movements.

My experience at Oxford University got me thinking about our English Department’s global connections. Of course, many of our faculty members participate in international conferences. Just this summer Balaka Basu, Pilar Blitvich, Boyd Davis, Janaka Lewis, Malin Pereira, and Alan Rauch have all presented papers at conferences held outside of the United States. However, our global connections also extend into the classroom. I could mention many cases of our faculty members’ involvement in international teaching, but I will limit myself to two notable and very recent examples. For the second half of the summer, Becky Roeder has been teaching college English to Chinese students in Shanghai, China. Also during the second half of the summer, Manuela (Manu) Vida from the University of Cologne in Germany has been teaching a section of ENGL 3132 (Introduction to Contemporary American English) here at UNC Charlotte. I think it is a sign of the global nature of linguistics that Manu, who is a linguist from Germany, can come to the United States and teach our students about American English. As these two examples illustrate, the teaching in our English Department is already going global.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Dina Schiff Massachi, a recent graduate of our M.A. program in English, recently published a chapter titled “Suffragist Matilda Gage’s Influence on Oz” in a book titled Poor Richard’s Ozmanac.

Anita Moss published an article titled “Completing the Circle: Storytelling and Community in Michael Dorris’s Sees Behind Trees in the spring/summer 2016 issue of RISE: A Children’s Literacy Journal.

Quirky Quiz Question — Manu Vida is a graduate student of a former faculty member from our English Department who now teaches at the University of Cologne. Does anybody know the name of this former member of our English Department?

Last week’s answer: The Phantom Tollbooth

Norton Juster spent most of his career working as an architect, but he also enjoyed writing for children. In addition to writing The Hello, Goodbye Window,he wrote one of the most famous American fantasy novels intended for children. This novel came out in 1961. Does anybody know the title of this classic novel?

Monday Missive - August 1, 2016

August 03, 2016 by Mark West

Coming and Going — Every summer I teach a graduate seminar called Children’s Literature Award Winners in which I cover the most recent winners of some of the big awards in the field of children’s literature. Because I teach this course, I am familiar with most of the picture books that have won the Caldecott Medal. In 2006 the book that won this award was The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster and illustrated by Chris Raschka. In this book, a young girl thinks of the kitchen window in her grandparents’ house as a special gateway. When she visits her grandparents, she first sees them through this window. When she returns to her home, her grandparents wave goodbye to her through this same window. I sometimes think that the door to my office is a bit like the kitchen window in this picture book. Some people come through the door to say hello, and some come to say goodbye.

This week it is time to say “Hello” to Sarah Minslow and “Goodbye” to Sonya Brockman. On August 1, Sarah officially becomes the English Department’s first full-time, professional advisor. Sarah has already served as a part-time advisor in the English Department, so she is well prepared to assume her new responsibilities. I am so pleased that Sarah will be joining our English Department as full-time employee, and I know that our students will be in good hands when they are advised by Sarah. At the same time that Sarah is arriving, Sonya Brockman is preparing to leave. Sonya accepted a full-time teaching position starting this fall in the English Department at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado. Sonya has been teaching for us as an adjunct faculty member since 2012. However, her connections to our department go back even further. She received her M.A. degree from our department in 2005. I thank Sonya for her many contributions to our department, and I wish her all the best has she starts her new position in my home state of Colorado.

Quirky Quiz Question — Norton Juster spent most of his career working as an architect, but he also enjoyed writing for children. In addition to writing The Hello, Goodbye Window, he wrote one of the most famous American fantasy novels intended for children. This novel came out in 1961. Does anybody know the title of this classic novel?

Last week’s answer: Somerville College

The novelist Dorothy L. Sayers is one of the first women to earn a degree from Oxford University. In her novel Gaudy Night, Sayers calls the Oxford college that she attended Shrewsbury College, but this is a fictional name. Does anybody know the real name of the college within Oxford University that Sayers attended?

Monday Missive - July 25, 2016

July 25, 2016 by Mark West

Oxford Connections — I received an invitation to speak next week at Oxford University. I will be delivering a paper titled “The Concept of Infant Depravity and Its Role in the Birth of Didactic Children’s Literature in Puritan America.” This talk will be my first academic presentation at Oxford University, although I have been there twice before. I even wrote about Lewis Carroll’s connections to Oxford University in my book A Children’s Literature Tour of Great Britain.

In preparing for this presentation, I started thinking about the English Department’s connections to Oxford University. Many of our faculty members, both past and present, have Oxford connections, but in three cases these connections are especially significant. When UNC Charlotte became a university in 1965, one of the founding members of the English Department was Roy Clifton Moose. Roy received a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Renaissance Literature from Oxford University. For many years, Roy taught courses on Shakespeare in the English Department. Dennis Kay, the first Robinson Distinguished Chair in Shakespeare, was also connected to Oxford University. He taught at Oxford for many years before he joined our English Department in 1995. Among our current faculty members, Maya Socolovsky has the most significant Oxford connections. She received both her M.Phil. and her D.Phil. in English from Oxford University. As these examples demonstrate, our English Department, although an ocean away from Oxford, has longstanding ties to Oxford University.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Balaka Basu recently presented a paper titled “‘Before I’ll not be wanting visitors for a while’: The Social Consequences of Pregnancy in the works of L.M. Montgomery” in a plenary session at the L.M. Montgomery Institute’s 12th Biennial Conference, “L.M. Montgomery and Gender,” at the University of Prince Edward Island.

Kirk Melnikoff has agreed to edit The Tragical Reign of Selimus for Queen’s Men Editions. His scholarly edition will be published in 2018 or 2019.

Alan Rauch recently presented a paper titled “The Intentions of the Image: Illustrations, Transtextuality, and Ideology in Nineteenth-Century Texts for Children” at the annual meeting of the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing. The meeting took place in Paris.

Quirky Quiz Question — The novelist Dorothy L. Sayers is one of the first women to earn a degree from Oxford University. In her novel Gaudy Night, Sayers calls the Oxford college that she attended Shrewsbury College, but this is a fictional name. Does anybody know the real name of the college within Oxford University that Sayers attended?

Last week’s answer: Cambridge

Sir Isaac Newton was not an early member of the English Department, but he was a professor. Does anybody know the name of the university where Newton taught mathematics?

Monday Missive - July 18, 2016

July 18, 2016 by Mark West

Standing on Shoulders — In 1676 Sir Isaac Newton wrote, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Since then the phrase “standing on the shoulders of giants” has taken on a life of its own. It is now used to acknowledge and appreciate the work of of those who came before us. I often think of this phrase when I reflect on my role in the history of our English Department. When I arrived at UNC Charlotte in August 1984, many of the department’s early faculty members were still teaching. I feel fortunate that I got to know most of the faculty members who built the English Department from its beginnings in the mid-1960s through the pivotal years of the 1970s and early ’80s. I truly believe that the current strengths of the English Department can be traced back to the hard work and visionary thinking of the people who came before us.

For the aforementioned reasons, I am very pleased to announce that Alan Rauch has completely updated the “Emeritus Faculty” section of our department website. He has located photographs of nearly all of these faculty members. I urge everyone to take a look at this section of our website, and I thank Alan for taking the time to locate and post photographs of these former faculty members. Here is the link: http://english.uncc.edu/people/emeritus-faculty

Quirky Quiz Question — Sir Isaac Newton was not an early member of the English Department, but he was a professor. Does anybody know the name of the university where Newton taught mathematics?

Last week’s answer: Dream a Little Dream of Me

The title of Bryn Chancellor’s debut novel is Sycamore. This title reminds me of the following line from a song recorded by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong: “Birds singing in a sycamore tree.” Does anybody know the name of this classic song?

Monday Missive - July 11, 2016

July 11, 2016 by Mark West

Creative Writers Make Waves — Our creative writing faculty members have been making waves this summer. Here are some of the most recent developments that have come to my attention. Bryn Chancellor’s debut novel, Sycamore, has been officially accepted by Harper Books (HarperCollins) and is scheduled to be published in May 2017. Chris Davis has recently had a string of poems accepted for publication by some of the leading creative writing journals, including Bennington Review, Cimmaron Review, Hawaii Review, Bloom, and New Madrid Review. Andrew Hartley’s new YA novel, Steeplejack, has just been published by Tor Teen. Paula Matinac has just had her story titled “Eds and Meds” accepted for publication in Main Street Rag. I congratulate all of these fine writers on their latest successes.

Sam Shapiro’s Film Fame — Sam Shapiro regularly teaches film studies courses in the English Department as a part-time faculty member, but his full-time job is with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Public Library, where he runs the library’s film programming. This summer Sam has organized a film series titled “Hollywood Shoots Itself: Eleven Movies about Movies.” Here is a link with more information about this film series: https://www.cmlibrary.org/blog/hollywood-shoots-itself-film-series.

Sam’s film series often get great publicity, but his latest film series is getting such positive press coverage that even Sam has been pleasantly surprised. In the past week, Creative Loafing ran a cover story about the film series: http://clclt.com/charlotte/hollywood-turns-the-camera-on-itself-in-new-film-series/Content?oid=3759731 Lawrence Toppman from The Charlotte Observer also ran a very positive article about Sam and his latest film series: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/entertainment/ent-columns-blogs/lawrence-toppman/article85844997.html

As the aforementioned articles make clear, Sam is a major player in Charlotte’s film scene, and we are fortunate that he shares his expertise with our students.

Quirky Quiz Question — The title of Bryn Chancellor’s debut novel is Sycamore. This title reminds me of the following line from a song recorded by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong: “Birds singing in a sycamore tree.” Does anybody know the name of this classic song?

Last week’s answer: Westminster Abbey

In coming up with today’s Quirky Quiz Question, I tried to think of a connection between Lewis Carroll and Boyd Davis. Here’s what came to mind: In addition to teaching linguistics courses, Boyd Davis has also taught courses on Geoffrey Chaucer. Both Chaucer and Lewis Carroll are memorialized in a place called Poets’ Corner. In what building is Poets’ Corner located?

Monday Missive - July 4, 2016

July 05, 2016 by Mark West

The Value of Sharing Stories — On the afternoon of July 4, 1862, Lewis Carroll took Alice Liddell and her two sisters on a three-mile boating trip along the Thames River. During the course of this excursion, Carroll told the girls a story that he initially called “Alice’s Adventures Underground.” The origins of Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, can be traced back to the afternoon when Carroll shared his topsy-turvy story with the Liddell girls. As this historical tidbit demonstrates, the process of sharing stories can lead to the creation of great works of literature.

However, the wonders associated with the sharing of stories transcend the world of literature. For example, our colleague Boyd Davis is doing pioneering work on the importance of sharing stories when caring for people with dementia. She has helped develop a smartphone app called Story-Call that facilitates storytelling within the context of dementia care-giving. In a recently published co-authored article on a pilot-study involving Story-Call, she discusses the value of “storytelling as a way to promote more healthful and resilient living.” Here is a link to the article: http://ojni.org/issues/?p=3095

At first glance, it might seem a bit odd to pair up the origin story behind Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland with Boyd’s Story-Call smartphone app, but both of these examples underscore the value of sharing stories. Although the members of our English Department come from very diverse backgrounds in terms of our areas of expertise, we work well together in part because we all recognize and celebrate the power of storytelling.

Celebrating the Successes of Our Former Graduate Students — This past week, I took pride and pleasure in the successes of three of our former graduate students.

Bobbie Cavnar was a featured guest this past week on Charlotte Talks. Bobbie received his M.A in English from our department several years ago, and he recently was named North Carolina Teacher of the Year. Here is the link: http://wfae.org/post/nc-teacher-year-profound-gentlemen

Dina Schiff Massachi, a recent graduate of our M.A in English (with a concentration in children’s literature) just published an article titled “Why the Wizard of Oz Still Resonates with Americans” in The Charlotte Viewpoint. Here is the link: http://www.charlotteviewpoint.org/article/3615/Wizard-of-Oz-American-Psyche

Cindy Urbanski, a graduate of our Curriculum and Instruction Ph.D. Program, just published a book titled Untangling Urban Middle School Reform. Here is the link: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=cm#search/cindy.urbanski%40gmail.com/1559dac1a2bd0f2c?compose=155b76b1f620bf17&projector=1

Quirky Quiz Question — In coming up with today’s Quirky Quiz Question, I tried to think of a connection between Lewis Carroll and Boyd Davis. Here’s what came to mind: In addition to teaching linguistics courses, Boyd Davis has also taught courses on Geoffrey Chaucer. Both Chaucer and Lewis Carroll are memorialized in a place called Poets’ Corner. In what building is Poets’ Corner located?

Last week’s answer: Baton Rouge

In addition to figuring prominently in this Monday Missive, the word baton can be found in other places, including the map of Louisiana. What is the place name in Louisiana that includes the word baton?

Monday Missive - June 27, 2016

June 28, 2016 by Mark West

Passing the Baton — In a relay race, one runner passes a baton to another runner, transforming an individual sport into something of a team sport. Nowadays, the term “passing the baton” also means the transference of responsibility from one person to another, but I think that we should ponder for a moment the racing origins of this phrase. By handing off the baton from one runner to another, the runners are able to go faster collectively than each runner would go if that runner were running the entire course alone. At the moment that a runner hands off the baton, the new runner is fresh and ready to add to the record already established by the previous runner.

This process will come into play at the end of this week when three of the English Department’s best runners will pass their batons to new runners. Kirk Melnikoff, the Undergraduate Coordinator and and Associate Chair, will pass his baton to Jen Munroe, who will take over Kirk’s administrative responsibilities. Pilar Blitvich, the English Department’s Director of Graduate Studies, will hand off her baton to Lara Vetter. Aaron Toscano, the Director of Advising, will pass off his baton to Sarah Minslow, the English Department’s new full-time advisor. Actually, Tiffany Morin will run a lap with the advising baton until the first of August when she will pass it to Sarah, who is eager to get in the race.

My appreciation and admiration go to Kirk, Pilar, and Aaron for setting such an impressive pace and for devoting so much energy to the running of the English Department. My thanks also go to Jen, Lara, and Sarah, who are about to grasp their batons take off running. They will bring new energy and ideas to their positions. It’s clear to me the English Department is very much a department on the move. You will have to look elsewhere if you are looking for the summer doldrums.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Pilar Blitvich delivered a paper at a conference in London on Language and Conflict: Politics of Language and Identity across Context. The conference was organized by SOAS, University of London and was sponsored by the Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict.

Boyd Davis edited a special issue of the Journal of Language Aggression and Conflict on Dementia-compromised language and aggression. Boyd contributed an Introduction and a co-authored article titled “The Silent Violence of Marginalization and Teasing in Dementia Care Residences.”

Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here is an important date to keep in mind:

July 5 — The second summer session begins on Tuesday, July 5.

Quirky Quiz Question — In addition to figuring prominently in this Monday Missive, the word baton can be found in other places, including the map of Louisiana. What is the place name in Louisiana that includes the word baton?

Last week’s answer: The Lost Boy

The title of Paula Eckard’s Thomas Wolfe and Lost Children in Southern Literature alludes to the title of a novella by Wolfe. Does anybody know the title of this novella?

Monday Missive - June 20, 2016

June 20, 2016 by Mark West

Raining Books — Like a weather forecaster, I try to predict the future. In recent weeks, I have found out about some promising developments related to future publication of books by members of the English Department. Paula Eckard’s Thomas Wolfe and Lost Children in Southern Literature will soon be published by the University of Tennessee Press. Aaron Gwyn has co-edited a collection of short stories by veterans, and Pegasus Books plans to publish the collection in the near future. Janaka Lewis recently learned that her monograph titled Civil Discourse: Black Women’s Narratives of Freedom and Nation has been accepted for publication by McFarland Press. Jen Munroe’s 2011 co-edited collection titled Ecofeminist Approaches to Early Modernity is coming out in a new paperback edition. Lara Vetter’s edition of H.D.’s By Avon River, which came out in hardcover 2014 with the University Press of Florida, will be released in paperback this fall. My forecast for the English Department is that it will soon be raining books, and this is good news.

Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here is an important date to keep in mind:

July 5 — The second summer session begins on Tuesday, July 5.

Quirky Quiz Question — The title of Paula Eckard’s Thomas Wolfe and Lost Children in Southern Literature alludes to the title of a novella by Wolfe. Does anybody know the title of this novella?
Last week’s answer: To Market, To Market
The line “home again, home again, jiggety-jig” comes from a nursery rhyme. Does anybody know the title of this nursery rhyme?

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Monday Missive

Monday Missive - August 22, 2016

Monday Missive - August 15, 2016

Monday Missive - August 9, 2016 (a day late)

Monday Missive - August 1, 2016

Monday Missive - July 25, 2016

Monday Missive - July 18, 2016

Monday Missive - July 11, 2016

Monday Missive - July 4, 2016

Monday Missive - June 27, 2016

Monday Missive - June 20, 2016