This Is Why I Ask My Students to Blog

In my Literary Criticism class, next week we’ll be looking at The Yellow Wallpaper — most of us probably for the umpteenth time.  Here’s a comment that just appeared on the course website, that reminds me why I spend six hours straight re-configuring a server from scratch because it got infected with a virus 12 hours before the first meeting of the class.

Hey there!

I am an NYC actress (and a former English Literature major) currently in production on a one-woman show (yes, ANOTHER one) of this phenomenal story.
I was doing some research and just this afternoon spent some very enjoyable time reading the blog entries from your students in 2007.

I have been in love with this story since I first laid eyes on it in HS American Literature course, and then a few years later in undergrad. From the time I read it, I thought it was written just like a monologue, and dreamed of doing it someday.

I will say that actually memorizing and “living” the words as I speak them has opened up all sorts of insights for me that I never had upon reading/rereading/deconstructing/etc. for many, many years!
That said, I still discovered new things to think about from your students, and am very much looking forward to peeking in on their discoveries (if that is allowed).

Thanks so much,

Annalisa

Yup. That’s the kind of thing that makes the pain worthwhile.