Spring 2013 News

May 4th, beginning at 9:00 pm through May 5th: Alpha Psi Omega’s Playfest

On behalf of Alpha Psi Omega, Theater Honor Society, to all Literature students are invited to participate in an event that this organization will be running relatively soon. We will be holding our second annual 24-hour Playfest which entails the creation of several one-act plays within the time limit of, obviously, 24 hours. The participants will be randomly placed in small groups and each person in that group will be assigned different tasks such actor(s), director, designer, and playwright. The event starts on May 4th at 9pm and will continue on to May 5th where the shows will be presented that evening at 8pm.
We held this event last semester and it was a great success! We’re hoping that this opportunity proves interesting for those who wish to pursue stage and/or screen writing or who wish to challenge themselves creatively to think on their feet in a time crunch! Please do spread the word!
If anyone is interested in participating, have them email our organization at:
Ramapoplayers@ramapo.edu
or President Valerie Rappa at: Vrappa@ramapo.edu
There’s also a sign-up sheet in the back hallway behind the Sharp Theater in the Berrie center.

Wednesday, May 1 from 3:00- 5:00 in Spiritual Center: Featuring Valerie Wilson Wesley

Valerie will speak about her experience in writing in various genres (fiction, mystery, literary fiction, paranormal romance, children’s books) and will read from her latest books, including the newly published WHEN THE NIGHT WHISPERS. The event will be held in the Salameno Spiritual Center and refreshments will be available.
Valerie Wilson Wesley, who also writes under the pseudonym Savanna Welles, is the author of the Tamara Hayle Mystery series and of three novels including Playing My Mother’s Blues, Always True to You in My Fashion and Ain’t Nobody’s Business If I Do, for which she received the 2000 award for excellence in adult fiction from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA). Her Tamara Hayle mysteries include When Death Comes Stealing, Devil’s Gonna Get Him, Where Evil Sleeps, No Hiding Place, Easier to Kill, The Devil Riding, Dying in the Dark, and Of Blood and Sorrow.
When Death Comes Stealing was nominated for a Shamus award. Her mysteries have been published in Great Britain, France, Germany and Poland and her novels in Germany.
For more information on Valerie, please visit her webpage: valeriewilsonwesley.com

Monday, May 6th 1:00- 2:30 and 5:30- 7:00: Join us for Creative Writing Capstone Presentations

The students of the Creative Writing Capstone will be presenting excerpts of their manuscripts. This year the readings have been divided into two sections on Monday, May 6th. Listed below are the students presenting at each reading.
For the 1-2:30 PM Reading in the York Room, the following students will present:

• Diana Attalla
• Katie Attinello
• Danielle Dill
• Laura Drozd
• Sarah Healy
• Amanda Legoskey
• Lindsay Lewandowski
• Amanda Rillo
• Stephen Sorace
• John Sysyn

For the 5:30-7 PM Reading in the Spiritual Center, the following students will present:

• Francesca Baratta
• Ruby Corman
• Jessica Donovan
• Roxanne Edwards
• Sarah Galo
• Julia Horniacek
• Monika Lasocha
• Sarah Sportelli
• Jacqueline Thomas
• Michael Walsh

Please join us.

Ramapo Students and Faculty Celebrate Shakespeare’s Birthday

The Salameno Center for British Studies held a celebration of William Shakespeare’s 449th birthday on April 23, 2013. The Center is led by a group of Ramapo College faculty whose area of scholarly interest and publication concerns some aspect of British culture. Student and faculty participated in a series of celebratory events, which started with a punch and cupcake feast. Literature Professors Todd Barnes Yvette Kisor were among the speakers at this “Talks and Toasting” event. Other activities included a swordplay demonstration, scenes from the plays, and the documentary “Shakespeare Behind Bars.”

Shakespeare at Ramapo: April 23, 2013

In honor of the Bard’s 449th Birthday, the Salameno Center for British Studies, and Co-sponsors, SCA, HGS and SSHS present Shakespeare at Ramapo. Mark your calendars for the day’s events!

Talks & Toasting, York Room, 1 p.m. Performing Shakespeare, BC-216, 2:30 p.m. Swashbuckling Swordplay, The Grove, 6 p.m. Madrigals and Music, Berrie Center Grove, 6:30 p.m. Scenes, Sonnets and Soliloquies, Adler Theater, 7 p.m. Shakespeare Behind Bars, Laurel Hall Screening Room, 9 p.m.

Student Voices: Sarah Galo

Check out senior LITR student Sarah Galo’s latest blog post. The post is entitled “Enough is Enough: Ending Negative Uses of Social Media.” While it’s a reaction to the tragic death of Rehtaeh Parsons, the general advice about social media is applicable to even today and yesterday the spread of hate and insensitivity via social media about Boston. Click below to read more!
http://whereisyourline.org/2013/04/enough-is-enough-ending-negative-uses-of-social-media/

Attention: Changes to the English & Literary Studies Major A Note from Dr. Shannon:

Hello English & Literary Studies Majors & Minors, and Creative Writing students—
Looking at the catalog during registration, you may notice two changes to courses in the English & Literary Studies Major. Let me walk you through some of what we’ve been up to, and let you know where we are going
First of all, let me assure you, these changes will affect you “silently.” That is, if you have already taken the two courses we’ve revised—don’t worry! You’re fine! You’ve already fulfilled the requirements! You won’t need to take additional courses!If you have not taken the two courses we’ve revised—don’t worry! You’re fine! You’ll fulfill the requirements just as easily as you would have before the changes!
Over the past year or two, the Literature faculty have been looking at the curriculum, our course offerings, and data we’ve collected from various sources. Putting all of this together, we’ve been moving toward some changes in the major. Most of these changes boil down to one or two factors: incorporating more literary theory into some of our courses and moving the major toward a more global, world literature focus.Right now there are only two apparent changes, both beginning in Fall 2013:

1. LITR 319 Major Authors has been renamed “Author Studies” and its description has changed slightly.
2. Starting in Fall 2013, incoming students will be taking LITR 203 – Methods Of Literary Study, instead of LITR 101 Introduction to Literature.

A short description of the substance and rationale of the changes follows:vLITR 203 – METHODS OF LITERARY STUDY—over the past few semesters, the faculty teaching Introduction to Literature have been working with the rest of the faculty to make LITR 101 more challenging and a more appropriate introduction to the major. Now, revised as METHODS OF LITERARY STUDY, the course will feature a bit more literary theory and feature more global literature. (PLEASE NOTE—if you have not yet take LITR 101, you can still fulfill this requirement by taking the course this summer online with Dr. Barnes! [toddbarnes@ramapo.edu])vLITR 319 – AUTHOR STUDIES will not change substantially from its previous incarnation. From now on though, LITR 319 will address objectives such as the following:

• global issues regarding the genre(s) which the author in question explored
• global influences on the works and author in question
• the author’s influence on other writers around the world
• adaptations of the author’s work into other media
• other global concerns.

In these two changes, and in other changes we may make in the future, the Literature faculty are interested in presenting a curriculum that more thoroughly embraces the whole world’s literature and the gamut of global literary traditions. As ever, we want you to know what we are doing and we always want to know if you have ideas, questions, or suggestions for more change. Drop me or your other LITR profs an email if you have questions or other input.
Dr. S. (eshannon@ramapo.edu)

Annual Literature Luncheon! Wednesday, April 24, 2013, 11:30-1:00. SC138!

Sigma Tau Delta, the Literary Honor Society, and The Literature Faculty invite all English & Literary Studies Majors and minors and Creative Writing Minors to the annual
Literature Luncheon. Parents are invited as well. Have lunch with faculty, family, and fellow Literature students in a relaxed setting. Any questions, contact Professor Patricia Ard, pard@ramapo.edu

April 17, 12:30-1:30 in SC 138: 2013 Literature Symposium

Looking Beyond the Academy: Issues Facing Faculty and Students
List of Presenters and Topics:
Lauren Heatwole: “The Horrors of Inequality in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein” : My paper will show the influence of feminist philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft on her daughter, Mary Shelley through the contrast of the rational, revolutionary creature and his submissive female victims; it will parallel Kierkegaard’s views on despair to the lack of patriarchal support towards educating females.
Leandra Tejedor “How Gender, Race, and Social Class are Related to Family Structure in Brazil” : The gender and class landscape of Brazilian society has changed dramatically, and seems as though it will keep changing. Women of all races and classes are finding that they have more options, and are not as dependent on male figures as they once were.
Caitlin Vogel “Bears, Serpents, Wolves, Cacti, “Shadow Beasts” of the Feminine Landscape” : In Louise Erdrich’s Tracks and Gloria Anzaldua’s Borderlands/La Frontera, this essay explores how Ojibwe and Chicana authors figure women as close to the environment, feminizing the natural landscape.
Taryn Tabano
Jennifer Taryla
Jessica Costa

March 25, 1:00-2:00 in C 209: How International Experience Enhances Your Marketability

Join us on March 25 for this one hour program which features two global business co-educators and employers. They will be speaking on the importance of global experience and knowledge of languages and cultures in our increasingly interdependent workplace.

March 5, 1:00-3:00 in Friend’s Hall: Non-Profit and Human Services Career Fair

On March 5 from 1-3, join us in Friend’s Hall for potential employment and internship opportunities at the Non-Profit and Human Services Career Fair! For more information, see flyer below. Featured employers include the following:

Employers

• Allegro School
• Allies, Inc.
• American Cancer Society
• Asperger’s Related Services Department, West Bergen Mental Health
• Camp Vacamas
• Division of Children and Families
• Community Hope, Inc.
• County of Bergen
• DaVita Fair Lawn Dialysis
• Girl Scouts of Northern NJ
• Groupo ajola
• Jersey Cares
• Macculloch Hall Historical Museum
• Mahwah Environmental Volunteer Organization (MEVO)
• Mahwah Museum Society
• Morristown National Historical Park
• National Institute for People with Disabilities of NJ
• New Jersey Environmental Federation
• New York-New Jersey Trail Conference
• Oasis, A Haven for Women and Children
• Office of Congressman Scott Garrett
• Pascack Valley Meals on Wheels
• Passaic County Historical Society
• Patterson Charter School for Science and Technology
• Pony Power Therapies, Inc.
• Project Self Sufficiency
• Springpoint Senior Living
• St. Clare’s Behavioral Health Services
• The Family Resource Network
• The National Foundation for Animal Rescue
• The New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability
• West Bergen Mental Healthcare

Mark your calendars for this March 12th event!

Fall 2012 Literature News

Ramapo students take part in Jane Austen discussion at Morristown museum.

On Nov. 18, 2012 English & Literary Studies Majors Steven Reiss and Sarah Traley, students in “Major Authors: Jane Austen,” joined Professor Patricia Ard at the Macculloch Hall Historical Museum in Morristown, New Jersey for a talk on “Dressing in the Age of Austen.”

Tig Notaro! Comedy! Tragedy! Death! CEC! Life! Wed. 11/28 6.30 Room: ASB522

Please attend an unusual, funny, sad, wonderful event. We are hosting a “listening party” where we all listen to stand up comedian Tig Notaro’s recent comedy set, called “Live” (as in “rhymes with ‘give’”).
Tig Notaro is a young, amazing stand-up comic. Her recent performance, covered extensively in the press (see below), is so gripping because she performed a stand-up set about learning she had terminal breast cancer—just days after learning her diagnosis—and this after many other tragedies. She is now on the mend, but her comedy is harrowing, funny, shocking, sad… and dramatic, and…literary!
Come join us—laugh, cry, chat, think—and (of course) bank some CEC hours! If you plan to attend, let Prof. Shannon (eshannon@ramapo.edu) know so he can get enough pizza—
More about Tig:
She was a guest on NPR’s Fresh Air listen online: http://www.npr.org/2012/10/13/162728147/fresh-air-weekend-tig-notaro-louis-c-k-nate-silver)
Louis CK is advertising her work: (https://buy.louisck.net/)
Tig’s site: Tig Notaro (http://tignation.com/)

Great Literature Event! CEC! Knowledge! Austen! FUN!

The newly forming British Studies Center of Ramapo College is sponsoring a talk on Monday, November 19th, 1-2 in SC 137 by Jane Austen scholar Juliette Wells.
Juliette Wells is the author of the 2012 book Everybody’s Jane: Jane Austen in the Popular Imagination. This book, which will be the subject of her talk, explores the fan culture that has sprung up worldwide and in countless mediums, centered upon the British novelist, Jane Austen. Professor Wells will explore why Austen has such a varied “fan” base, of people of all ages and nationalities, including academics and non-academics. This resurgence of Austen “fandom” has sparked an industry of film adaptations, material objects related to Austen, as well as “mashups” or popular rewritings, of her six famous novels. These fan fictions include continuations of her novels, dating guides, mystery novels based on her books, and countless other “quirky cultural creativity.”
For more information, contact Dr. Ard (pard@ramapo.edu)

Consider attending theater productions on campus. Good for CEC, good for the soul…. just good!
Check out this video by lit majors, Jonathan Henry and Dana Lobenberg: a Chaucer rap
when Prof. Barnes dared his students to turn Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales into a rap

Spring 2012 Literature News

Literature Luncheon/Sigma Tau Delta Induction Ceremony Wednesday April 11th at 11:30 to 1 PM in The Pavilion

Enjoy a Relaxed (Free) Lunch With Fellow Majors and Faculty at the Annual Literature Luncheon! When: Wednesday, April 11. 11:30-1:00 Where: The Pavilion Who: ALL English & Literary Studies Majors and Minors are invited to this lunch. Feel free to bring a parent! At the luncheon there will be an informal talk and networking event with two Ramapo Literature graduates working in the field of publishing. Come Join Us!

Upcoming Events!

• Tuesday, March 13 the “Night of Irish Poets”
• Thursday March 29 the “Feminist Coffeehouse”

Both will be held at 9:30pm in the first floor Laurel Hall Lounge.

Stefanie Mauro’s “Displaced” (written in Prof. Samaras’ fiction writing workshop class) was published in the 2012 edition of the Sigma Tau Delta Rectangle. She presented the piece at the convention in New Orleans in March 2012’s Sigma Tau Delta conference, at theRectangle reading .
According to the Rectangle‘s website, “The best writing is chosen for publication from around 1,000 submissions. Not only do these publications go to over 10,000 members worldwide, of an over 17,000 active member organization, but they also honor the best piece of writing in each category with five scholarships totaling more than $1,000. There is also an annual reading at the annual International Convention by any of the published writers who can attend.”

In March, 2012 Ramapo’s Sigma Tau Delta Chapter sent some members to the Annual STD conference in New Orleans. Some students presented creative and scholarly work:

• Brendan Flanagan: academic paper “Decapitation in Medieval Literature”
• Sarah Galo: original poetry “I Married My Rapist”
• Francesca Baratta: academic paper “Female Sexuality and Insanity: Atwood’s Alias Grace”
• Lauren Santaniello: original prose “The Final Account of Anna Benson
• Kimberly Eskin: academic paper “The Senselessness of Life in Genet’s The Balcony”
• Robert Texel, Kathryn Attinello, Danielle Reed, Ashley Rockhill, and Lauren Heatwole also attended.

In Spring, 2012, we were visited by Poet Terrance Hayes, Winner of the National Book Award

On February 14th, please join the Readings at Ramapo Visiting Writers Series for a remarkable visit of the National Book Award winning poet Terrance Hayes.
He will be answering questions from 4-5 pm in the Trustees’ Pavillion.
He will be performing his poems from 7-8 pm (also in the Trustees’ Pavillion).
Sample poems and links to his biography are below…

• Terrance Hayes on Youtube
  
• Terrance Hayes on Poets.Org
• Terrance Hayes on Fishouse.Org

Lighthead’s Guide to the Galaxy by Terrance Hayes

Ladies and gentlemen, ghosts and children of the state,
I am here because I could never get the hang of Time.
This hour, for example, would be like all the others
were it not for the rain falling through the roof.
I’d better not be too explicit. My night is careless
with itself, troublesome as a woman wearing no bra
in winter. I believe everything is a metaphor for sex.
Lovemaking mimics the act of departure, moonlight
drips from the leaves. You can spend your whole life
doing no more than preparing for life and thinking.
“Is this all there is?” Thus, I am here where poets come
to drink a dark strong poison with tiny shards of ice,
something to loosen my primate tongue and its syllables
of debris. I know all words come from preexisting words
and divide until our pronouncements develop selves.
The small dog barking at the darkness has something to say
about the way we live. I’d rather have what my daddy calls
“skrimp.” He says “discrete” and means the street
just out of sight. Not what you see, but what you perceive:
that’s poetry. Not the noise, but its rhythm; an arrangement
of derangements; I’ll eat you to live: that’s poetry.
I wish I glowed like a brown-skinned pregnant woman.
I wish I could weep the way my teacher did as he read us
Molly Bloom’s soliloquy of yes. When I kiss my wife,
sometimes I taste her caution. But let’s not talk about that.
Maybe Art’s only purpose is to preserve the Self.
Sometimes I play a game in which my primitive craft fires
upon an alien ship whose intention is the destruction
of the earth. Other times I fall in love with a word
like somberness. Or moonlight juicing naked branches.
All species have a notion of emptiness, and yet
the flowers don’t quit opening. I am carrying the whimper
you can hear when the mouth is collapsed, the wisdom
of monkeys. Ask a glass of water why it pities
the rain. Ask the lunatic yard dog why it tolerates the leash.
Brothers and sisters, when you spend your nights
out on a limb, there’s a chance you’ll fall in your sleep.

From The Brother Sonnets

Read some wonderful poems by Prof. Hoch here in the Chronicle of Higher Education. You won’t be disappointed.

Mysterious Poetry Vandals Strike!

On Tuesday April 10, a handful of poems appeared, like a vision, scrawled on the walls of our campus! This is just one example of this eruption of spontaneous chalk graffiti! If you spot more, send pictures to Prof. Shannon (eshannon@ramapo.edu). Photo by Ashley Intveld.

An email from an alum:

2011 Literature Alum John Fraze (currently workiing at PCG Digital Marketing in Eatontown), sends us these pictures of lines by our own Prof. Hoch, snapped on the subway. It seems John, like many Ramapo alums, spots little bits of Ramapo in the strangest places, (Click on the pictures to read the poem):

 

Literature Luncheon/Sigma Tau Delta Induction Ceremony Wednesday April 11th at 11:30 to 1 PM in The Pavilion

Enjoy a Relaxed (Free) Lunch With Fellow Majors and Faculty at the Annual Literature Luncheon! When: Wednesday, April 11. 11:30-1:00 Where: The Pavilion Who: ALL English & Literary Studies Majors and Minors are invited to this lunch. Feel free to bring a parent! At the luncheon there will be an informal talk and networking event with two Ramapo Literature graduates working in the field of publishing. Come Join Us!

Literature Faculty/Student Forum Wednesday April 18th at 11:30 to 2 PM in SC 138

Literature students & Literature faculty will discuss their current writing projects — we hope to have some great discussion and some sandwiches, drinks and coffee. Come and see what Literature students & faculty have been up to! If you are interested in sharing your work, contact Prof. Peter Scheckner pscheckn@ramapo.edu. Our first Faculty/Student Forum on March 28 was a real success–come join us for another afternoon of great writing and interesting discussion!

Internships and Co-Ops!

Here’s a great (potential) CEC event & a slice of career advice. Consider attending this event & talk to a LITR prof about doing an internship (or Co-Op) before you graduate. It’s a good way to get a leg up on the job market & to enhance your education:
On TUESDAY MARCH 13 at 1 p.m. in the ALUMNI LOUNGES,
Dr. Clifford Peterson is moderating a student/employer panel on Co-ops/internships and the importance of student experience and engagement.

Literature Mini-Conference in March!

The AIS English & Literary Studies Major is organizing its first mini-conference of students and faculty to present papers, projects, new ideas, and to discuss questions about what we are writing. Our objective is to share in a non-lecture manner, what literature students and faculty are doing or would like to do.
Students and faculty: please join us and submit your proposals. Send your proposals and name to Peter Scheckner, pscheckn@ramapo.edu, or call, 201 684 7566
WEDNESDAY MARCH 28TH from 3 to 4:30 in the YORK ROOM
(Light refreshments will be served) Flyer (PDF)