The YAWP: Villanova's Graduate English Program Blog

If you are in the process of drafting your Thesis or Field Exam proposal, of if you are just interested in the process, here are a few exemplary Thesis and Field Exam proposals for you to review: Thesis Proposal model 1 Thesis Proposal model  2 Field Exam Paper model Field Exam Proposal model 2 Field Exam Proposal model 3

The Graduate English Department is hosting a Thesis and Field Examination Workshop on Tuesday, November 29th at 7:30 in SAC 300.  Lots of information about the thesis and field examination process will be provided, followed by a question and answer session. Pizza and drinks will be served. Please RSVP to Dr. Hicks by Wednesday, November 23rd at 5:00 p.m.

This Friday afternoon, November 11th , at 4:00 in Vasey Theater , well-known Irish poet Eamon Grennan is staging a dramatic recital by two actors of a verse play he has written called “Hunger.” The play has had great reception where it has played, and it runs less than an hour. Please consider kicking off your weekend with this major cultural event!

The 2012 Villanova Literary Festival lineup has been finalized, and we are in for a great round of readings this spring. All of the readings will be at 7:00 p.m. in the Connelly Center. February 2: Poet C.D. Wright Her poetry includes One with Others (volume; 2011 Lenore Marshall Prize); Rising, Falling, Hovering (volume; Griffin Poetry Prize); One Big Self: Prisoners of Louisiana (volume; 2003); and Deepstep Come Shining (book-length; 1998). Her honors include fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Guggenheim Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, and the Bunting Institute. February 21: Poet and Tomás Rivera Endowed Chair Juan Felipe Herrera The son of migrant farm workers, he attended UCLA, Stanford, and the University of Iowa. His work includes Half of the World in Light (2008 National Book Critics Circle Award in Poetry; 2009 PEN/Beyond Margins Award) and 187 Reasons Mexicanos Can’t Cross the Border (2008 PEN West award). Among his honors are two National End...

Africana Studies is sponsoring a lecture by Dr. Tess Onwueme, University of Wisconsin Professor of Global Letters. As the seventh annual Senghor-Damas-Cesaire lecture in Africana Studies, she will be presenting "Erupting Silences: Dr. Tess Onwueme Speaks/Performs the Soul of Africana" on November 14 at 4:00 pm at the Connelly Cinema . Click here to view the event postcard The event is co-sponsored by the Cultural Studies Program and the Institute for Global Interdisciplinary Studies.

Mark your calendars for the annual Graduate English Program Forum on applying for the Ph.D. On Tuesday, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. in SAC 300 , our two newest faculty members, Dr. Joe Drury, who received his Ph.D. at Penn, and Dr. Kamran Javadizadeh, who received his Ph.D. at Yale, will talk about the decision to pursue a Ph.D. and the nuts and bolts of applying. One of our recent graduates of the M.A. program, Don James McLaughlin, who is now pursuing his Ph.D. at Penn, will also talk about life in a Ph.D. program. Please email Dr. Hicks to R.S.V.P. by Friday, November 4th at 5:00 pm.

The New York Times recently published an article entitled "I was an Under-Age Smiotician" by Steven Johnson.  Co-creator of Findings.com and author, most recently, of  Where Good Ideas Come From  and the editor of  The Innovator’s Cookbook , Johnson ruminates on the lasting effects of his semiotics major from Brown. Click here to read the article!

Check out UPenn English Department's CFP page, where you can find daily updates about calls for conference papers and journal submissions. Everyone is welcome to subscribe to the site, so  Click here  to browse the recent posts for upcoming conferences and journal issues. 

Deena ElGenaidi was busy this spring with three different conference presentations. On April 9, 2011 at University of Delaware's Geis Student Research on Women Conference, she presented her paper "Cruel Femininity: The Androgyny and Performative Femininity of Shakespeare's Queen Margaret." The following weekend, on April 16, 2011, she presented at University of Rhode Island's [Pre]Occupations Conference. Her paper was entitled "Flying to Freedom: Stephen Dedalus's Nietzschian Journey." Finally, on May 28, 2011 at Northwestern University's Queertopia Conference, she presented the paper "Escape through the Exotic: Dorian's Struggle with Homosexuality in Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray."

Irish Studies has lined up a semester full of great lectures, readings, theatrical performances, and film screenings. On October 17 , Patrick Mason, one of Ireland's leading theatre directors, will give the inaugural lecture for the Villanova-Abbey Theatre Exchange . His lecture, focusing on the new Irish Theatre, will be held at Dougherty West Lounge at 7:00 pm and will be followed by a reception.  Click here to view the event poster! On November 1, Booker Nominated Novelist Patrick McGuinness will host a reading at 5:30 pm in the Falvey Library Lounge. Click here to view the Irish Studies fall 2011 event calendar Check back for future events, or visit the  Irish Studies website  for more information.