I wrote, with a little help from Shakespeare & Melville, about the sunken treasure that’s at the bottom of all of our literary excursions in Shakespeare’s Ocean —
They wink up at us from the depths, skulls with be-gemmed eye-sockets, wedges of gold, encrusted anchors, heaps of pearl. Fish-gnawed men and what’s become of a thousand fearful wracks. Treasures of the slimy bottom. Captives of the envious flood. What we’re looking for.
I’ve been thinking about those slimy treasures while reading my students’ essays this week.
The hardest thing about literary & literary-critical writing in any form — and I’m pleased to see a very wide formal range in these papers, from pedagogical plans to theatrical outlines, intertextual readings, and archival historicism — is trying to make sure you get down to some real and meaningful bottom, even while knowing you’re not likely to reach firm ground. Often in reading these papers, which are of course just early drafts or hints of what’s to come, I wanted you to dive deeper, to press harder, & to make a lunge at the analytical or pedagogical or creative pay-off that seemed just out of reach. There’s a certain recklessness and risk in literary writing — there’s no real way to be sure of what Shakespeare meant, at this historical remove, just as there’s no real way to be “sure” of any literary text. I’d like to see more risk-taking, and more self-aware speculation about risks & rewards, in the final versions of these papers.
I’m looking for papers & projects that get us a little bit closer to that ungraspable bottom & its glittering treasures. But I should remember, as I also wrote
It’s to the bottom of Shakespeare’s ocean that this book takes you, except for one thing: we never get to the bottom.
This short paper, for me, definitely felt like stepping off the edge of the pier and hoping for the best. Was I going to sink, was I going to bob around for awhile, would I swim? No way to know except to just jump in. It seems like a fitting metaphor.
This was the hardest part — the very beginning of writing. I didn’t know where to start so I just picked something and started writing. It was all over the place, but I think the more I write the better I will be able to handle my thoughts and organize them for this project.
Also, (not related to this post) I would love to make the forum tomorrow but I don’t think I’ll be able to make the trip. Please let us know when you publish as I’d love to read the rest of your article on *Macbeth* — that’s a play that is constantly under my skin.
I think I know exactly what you, Dr. Mentz and Tara, are talking about. It seems like these short papers for most of us were a chance to formulate our goals and define the tasks, which I believe is extremely important for a successful final project or essay.
Just to riff off of what Tara said, I definitely felt like I was in unchartered territory when I wrote the paper. But I have to admit that I was so concerned with it “sounding right” that I probably took less risks than I could have. I’m actually encouraged now that I read this post about taking chances. I of course don’t want to talk out of my nether regions, but I think I taking more of a risk will help what I am trying to say come through with the passion I feel.
Yes, Danielle! I’ve only heard you read a small bit of your paper, and I think already the passion you feel for this project is coming through. Maybe because I also get to hear you speak about it? For whatever it’s worth, I definitely agree that you should not try to stifle the passion you feel in favor of “sounding right.” I cannot wait to hear more on your topic.
I think another issue, for me at least, is feeling strong enough about what I am saying and my credentials, to sound authoritative enough to take such risks. I constantly feel like everyone knows more than I do, and perhaps this is the first risk I should take; go out on a limb and make a real statement.
@john: You put your finger on the basic dilemma of being a graduate student, during which time you always feel as if you don’t (yet) know quite enough to say what you think needs to be said. There’s no simple way out of this dilemma, except to work at it from both ends: research more, and write more at the same time. It also helps to be aware about what’s happening, and why it makes your project difficult.