/lit/ - Literature

Bite the towel.

Get back to us when you've changed your idea of your future again.

A demonologist transcended Mongolian professor and Geist activist was teaching a class on Hegel, known necromancer.

"Before the class begins, you must get on your knees and worship the end of history and accept that Absolute Idealism is the most highly-evolved sophism to make us feel good about ourselves the continent had ever known, even greater than self-serving petit-bourgeois Protestant theology!"

At this moment an uncaring if he was brave because being judged by illusionary social standards was of no importance to him, egoist, unique girls' school teacher who had smoked more than 15,000 cigars in Hippel's wine bar and understood the spookiness of all ideology and fully supported whatever he felt like stood up and held up "Der Einzige und sein Eigentum"(The Ego and its Own).

"I wrote this, innit?"

The arrogant professor smirked quite synthetically and smugly replied "It's not yours at all, fucking egoist, it's the stern, reluctant, working of reason towards the full realization of itself in perfect freedom."

"Wrong. It's been a few years or something (time is nothing to me) since I, the Unique One, created it. If it was not mine, and idealism, as you say, is not a spoook... Then Ghost Busters wouldn't have had a happy ending."

The professor was visibly shake , and dropped his balls and copy of Plato's dialogues. He stormed out of the room crying those ironic thesis and antithesis tears, both coming together on his cheeks into synthesis. There is no doubt that at this point our professor, Hegel (who liked to teach about himself), wished he had pulled himself up by his bootstraps and become more than a spook ridden sad cunt interested in arbitrary justifications. He wished so much that he had some kind of Own to hold on to, and he had but just didn't realize it because he was an involuntary egoist.

The students applauded and all started milk shops that day and accepted their Self-Enjoyment as the end of philosophy. An eagle named 'Union of Egoists' flew into the room and perched atop the copy of "Stirner's Critics" and she's a beer on the hardcover. "Inch hav Mein Sach' auf Nichtd Gestell" was said several times, and Renzo Novatore himself showed up and demonstrated how hand grenades are nothing more than a means of killing police officers.

The professor had his tenure revoked and was fired the next day. He died of superstition and his "books" were disregarded for all eternity.

>>5310638
>I start college
debt
>as an English major
debt
>I plan on become a collegiate professor
debt
>of some area of literature
debt
>not sure just yet what are
debt
>Anyone have any stories/advice/comments/etc?
Yes, debt.

starting english major and already planning for his phd LOL

take it one step at a time. I'm assuming you have very little idea what english academia looks like

what school are you going to OP?

>>5310647
I'm definitely not claiming to be certain on this career path, but going with what I want to do now is really the best I can do. I'm going to Austin Peay State University in Tennessee

>>5310638
do you have essentially unlimited resources? if so, continue, if not STOP
STOP NOW
where are you going to go to college and how much are you paying for it?

>>5310653
I'm going for about $1,500 dollars a semester. Is the job outlook really that bad? I've seen many things online substantiating the field at least a bit, but everyone on the internet seems disagree haha.

>>5310647
Also, I thought I had a decent enough idea about the work. I am fairly well read, at least for my area (which perhaps doesn't say much), and I have spoken with people in the field and researched a bit online. I guess I don't know much about research and publishing and all that. I know it's vital, but I'm not knowledgeable on the details or processes.

>>5310682

So I've talked to a lot of English professors, all of whom have at least a master's degree, and the one thing they all agree upon unanimously is that going to grad school for English was the worst choice of their life so

>>5310682
What area are you well-read in? Are you not considering that area for what you want to teach eventually?

I know everyone else in the thread is saying no, but if you truly have an area you're dedicated to, it may work out for you.

I'd keep making those contacts in the field you mentioned. Attend related conferences, get in on a listserv, do everything to get yourself known. Volunteer service at start-up zines, academic and non, related to your area.

But like was already mentioned, you're just now starting, and it's possible you'll burn out before the next decade of dedicating your life to this is over. I'm in my sixth year of it right now, and the love is only growing, so I know I chose right. Just have back-up plans in place at all times.

>>5310665
well at least you're not american
that's a little better
which country then?

>>5310738
He is American, the post above says he's in Tennessee.

The myth that all American universities cost tens of thousands of dollars a semester is really just that: a myth.

>>5310712
Well that is a little troubling haha..did they say exactly why?

>>5310725
Sorry, I meant the area in which I live. I'm somewhat well read compared to most people here. Not bragging or anything, but most people here are either interested in agriculture, sports, etc.

>>5310751
Goddamnit. Don't know how I managed to spoiler all that.

>>5310638
>I plan on becoming a collegiate professor
You won't

>>5310767
Do you anticipate caprice or boredom?

>>5310751
I think you're going to find that assumption proven extremely incorrect as soon as you actually begin classes. I read upwards of 150 books and year and most of my peers still outpace me.

The amount you've read at your stage doesn't really matter though - you're not expected to develop a concentration for another three years.

I'm still curious about ideas you might have on what you want to specifically devote yourself to - I was looking through the faculty at your uni and it looks like there's a lot of character. Drama professor from Notre Dame with what looks like a monocle, black Irish lit professor named Reggie, requisite mannish "women's studies" professor. What kind of professor do you want to become?

>>5310767
Why say that? If he gets into a doctorate program, he'll at least be able to teach.

>>5310779
Wow. That really is impressive, and maybe a bit intimidating.
But like I said, I'm not really sure what I would want to concentrate on as a professor. I enjoy Victorian-era literature/poetry. But I also like Shakespeare and beatnik and I've thought about maybe comparative literature to round it out. I'm honestly very unsure.

>>5310817
I'm doing comparative literature - it's certainly not something to round out another discipline. You'll usually need reading knowledge of three foreign languages. I'm sure your uni requires one for your BA anyway. Have you thought which you'll be taking?

It looks like you'll have plenty of people there to mentor you. I saw a lot into British and Shakespeare. Make sure to actually talk to your profs often.

Anyway, my biggest suggestion would be to read a ton of secondary literature in addition to whatever you're studying in whichever classes. You have Nabokov in the OP - check out his Lectures on Literature if you haven't yet.

Here's a chart of Books About Books I made, if you're taking recs for anything.

>tfw simon leys died the same day as robin williams and no one wanted to talk about the former

>>5310817
english phd student here. i don't regret it, but only because i have no ambition to participate successfully in capitalism. don't get ahead of yourself. hopefully you'll get over the british colonial junk by your third year and do something political, otherwise you have little hope. your profs are old enough to live their lives reading that garbage, but that shit is outmoded now.

also, comp lit is seriously dying and don't count on getting a program unless you rock theory and/or are intent on learning 2+ languages very well. comp lit manages to thrive at the university of oregon where it started, still a small program though. everywhere else it's kinda on its last legs.

read a lot of theory and maybe you'll be marketable to google. and there's always community college.

>>5310848
I just meant it's maybe a more rounded out and eclectic course, so I wouldn't have to be so tethered. And Nabokov is probably my favorite writer atm, and I also love Roland Barthes, so I will almost definitely be checking out those two from the list, maybe more.

Oh yeah, and I am decent with French and Japanese, but they don't have Japanese here, or at least not as a concrete piece of curriculum, so I'll probably take French.

>English major

What a waste ...
Good luck.

>>5310853
What exactly do you mean by theory? Like writing theory?

>>5310778
Caprice you say?

>>5310863
It's certainly more eclectic, but as the poster after me said, the programs are sort of failing. Take a look at the course offerings for Ann Arbor and you might vomit a little:

>http://www.lsa.umich.edu/cg/cg_results.aspx?termArray=w_14_1970&cgtype=gr&show=20&department=COMPLIT&other_anyall=ALL

Now on the other hand, there's Bloomington, everything I love out of a semester's course offering for comp lit

>http://www.indiana.edu/~complit/graduate/courses.shtml

Arabian Nights? Proust, Musil and Kafka? Perfect.

I thought I saw Japanese on your uni's site, but it may be out of date. Those are my two mains too though, anon. They're a lovely pair.

>>5310871
this may be a problem though

Might want to quickly pick up and read Literary Theory: A Very Short Introduction before class starts

Another English PhD student here. My advice:

-Don't decide you're going to be a professor unless you have something more concrete to the type of work you'd like to do.

-Take up a second major. If anything, it could be a backup plan, for which your English studies will possibly help put your writing and reading abilities above your peers in that field.

But even if you do stick with the academia route, you don't want to be stuck with just the things you know from your literary studies. Around the Master's level, you get many people still just throwing some basic knowledge of some literary theory text, Freud, Foucault, etc onto a novel. You want to be able to bring intricate knowledge of something else into your studies.

-Don't expect to be making tons of money but don't bury yourself in debt. It's a path you can get a fairly comfortable living off of while doing. Pursue that and enjoy it.

>>5310871

You don't need to know theory your first year, especially coming in, but he means literary theory. Stuff like these:

books.wwnorton.com/books/detail-contents.aspx?ID=11544

OP here. You guys have been pretty helpful. I honestly have never heard of literary theory, so thanks haha. This isn't a conclusion to the thread, just wanted to say thanks.

Also,
>>5310879
I just downloaded a pdf and will commence reading tomorrow

>>5310898
Didn't do AP English in high school?

>>5310871
i don't mean just literary theory, but that'll seem the most relevant (and is the least imo). i just mean continental philosophy, 20th century thought, psychoanalysis, marxism, feminism, post-colonial, deconstruction etc that get thrown around all the time in academia and on /lit/. don't worry about it your first year, but aim to get some under your belt. people make shit up all the time and use theory to do it. it's good to spend more time on this than being "well-read."

someone can more easily explain the important stakes of a poem or novel to you (then you can go back and read it in a day or so), but it's not as good to take someone's word for it when they're talking about derrida or marx or whatever and your head is already spinning.

you'll have a class on it down the road.

In terms of the job market, do English departments care much about foreign language knowledge? Your primary area of study may be all English-language texts, but a lot of literary theory is not originally in English.

>>5310912
usually you have to make a gesture of knowing a second language. a superficial test for grad students or something. generally they do not care at all.

lots of depts are really backward in this way. "This is an English department and you will speak, read, and study in ENGLISH."

but if you're a badass you'll look at the original when discussing theory, especially for like Lacan's seminars that aren't translated yet.

>>5310904
My high school is very rural. Didn't offer it.

>>5310929
cont... which is to say, if you can do that, you'll be more marketable.

for jobs though, they wanna see that you can teach, and that you are part of the academic conversation in your field (1-2 real conferences a year, some good journal publications.)

>>5310910
More of what I read is stuff like Marx, Freud, Nietzche, et al. I also read a lot of religious texts and pieces analyzing religion, and other miscellaneous topics like astronomy. But I'm sure, like you said, I've got a long way to go.

>>5310929
>>5310936

So in publications, though, you're not necessarily expected to be able to read theory and such in the original?

>>5310943
no, if the journal is reputable and takes you then you're set.

>>5310638
here are my tips
1. buy a bottle of scotch
2. write
3. get published
4. paint, sculpt, cook, ect.
5. make friends with staff
6. try LSD at least once

>>5310949
another word on that.. think of it this way. most things you're writing on are already translated. everyone reads the translation, so it's better to cite what the readers are familiar with. unless you're discussing a mistranslation, you'll be citing the translation over the original anyway. most articles you read on english/theory will not do their own translations, so they won't expect you to either. if you've got the skills and it's somehow relevant though, then that's cool.

People will laugh at your major or make passive aggressive jokes. Laugh with them for the first year and a half or so.

Eventually it is not funny once you start getting a lot of work and people still believe your major is just about reading literature.

Take advantage of your college's resources. The library and gym most importantly.

Make friends with professors, but do not brown nose.

Partying is fun but overrated. Do not focus on social life entirely . Do you what you enjoy and everything will come together. Even a girlfriend.

Look for clubs you are interested in and join. Do not stay in your room all day.

>>5310640

>>5310641
>>5310646
>>5310647
Quality bantz

Major in a science, Op. Or math. Or, like me, Econ.

>>5310961
>6. try LSD at least once

that's not even joke advice OP

I really suggest you look into LSD and see if it sounds appealing to you

I did LSD after I finished my final exams but before I graduated, and it was probably equal to my university education in terms of life experience

honestly, LSD made me understand and appreciate so much more about the lit I've read and studied (like blake, ezra pound, kafka etc. etc.)

10/10 would recommend

also consider taking at least one creative writing class (but don't major in it!)

they're vastly different from your other english classes, and they're really fun--hopefully your workshop will have a small number of like-minded students

>>5310885
What do you focus on, if you don't mind my asking.

>>5311041
Lol, it's the post-LSD over enthusiastic rant

No one cares about your 'profound' mystical drug experiences. It's false and makes you look retarded. LSD makes you feel far more enlightened than you are

>>5311065
Somebody either hasn't tried it or else got bunk. Not that anon but certain "drugs", LSD included, have had and continue to have a profound impact on me and my understanding of the world and my place in it. Just because you haven't had the same experience doesn't make someone else's any less real you pretentious twat. Fuck off to your MADD meeting.

>>5311085
Should've said DARE meeting. Mixed up my absurd fascist programs there. Fucking long term sleep deprivation at the hands of chronic insomnia blows.

>>5311085
Lol rev it down turbo. You can justify it however you want. I have done plenty of psychedelics; I probably have a wider and deeper net of experience than you. I've just realized that the sensations of profundity are not real; they are a delusion that results from the drug.

If you come back years later, you will be embarrassed by the things you said about drugs. Yeah, we know, the thoughts are deep and it's a trip. Every retard and his mother has them on LSD.

>>5311052

British Romanticism. Why do you ask?

>>5311107
This right here

>>5311065

>>5311065


LSD is probably the safest and most accessible hallucinogenic

everyone I know has preferred LSD to shrooms

if you've never taken a hallucinogenic drug before, you're missing out on an integral part of life

taking lsd is like actually experiencing all the issues that ontology explores (being, reality, perception, knowledge)

do your research and lsd has the potential to be such an intellectually stimulating and refreshing (and spiritual) drug

>>5311120
I have taken LSD before and enjoyed it very much, and I agree that people should take it if they choose to. I'm just cynical of people who take it and then go around ranting to people about how it enlightened them and made them see God or whatever

>>5311041
>>5311065
>>5311085
>>5311091
>>5311107
>>5311115
>>5311120
>>5311125

Please redirect this drug debate to /b/ or something. You're derailing the thread.

>>5310779
By the time he finishes his Doctorate teaching/education will have changed so much. Online courses and shifts in the business model.

It's already changing.

Becoming a professor is a thing of the past. Almost every Company/Business is trying to reduce pensions/fulltime workers/etc to save money. So many Assistant/Asscioate Professors.

Go look at the sheer number of PhD students being churned out by top schools.

Then search the number of job postings.

Unless you're doing something in the cutting edge of technology(which isn't arts) you're fucked.

So many Community Colleges and lesser schools filled with PhD graduates from top schools.

Unless OP is well off financially he should stop now.

>>5311130
Yeah sorry OP I'll not reply to that topic any further

Just work hard, make friends and hope you're one of the chosen people. That's not an easy career choice

>>5310848
I'll start comparative literature in a few months,any suggestions or warnings ?

>>5310638
Friends on this track describe it as a nightmare even when it's a more forgiving field than English.

That said, go ahead and major in English, and go to grad school for it if you like. I'd much rather have another English major in the world to run into and talk to about my favorite books than another fucking Econ major doing consulting or engineer convincing himself that his Google algorithms are changing the world. Besides, English is what you love.

>>5311137
>implying we won't be approaching a new economic system overall in 12 years

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Pq-S557XQU

Robots won't be able to appreciate Blake for you.

>>5311141
Where are you attending?

I can't think of any especially, assuming you're already familiar with everything English from undergrad. Make sure to take the most fun sounding classes, make use of independent studies, start translation work early. Though your punctuation marks you as already speaking French fluently.

>>5311166
>posting that shitty video
>implying that isn't part of what I'm referring to with 'changed so much'

Yes.

OP won't be able to work as server or shitty retail job to support himself through the lengthy and expensive process.

>>5311221
Usually you work as an adjunct or research assistant throughout your graduate studies.

It's not big money, but with some minor grants it's livable.

>>5311167
>Though your punctuation
Tired Germans are horrible creatures
I've been accepted in Berlin,at what seems to best one of the best places to study comparative literature in Germany.
What kind of independent studies do you mean ?
>start translation work early
I grew up bilingual and learned a third language during the last 2-3 years,I should make use of it,aye.
Depending on how much my asking bothers you,could you give me some kind of overview ?
What kind of fun classes did you take,what is the usual type of work you got to do?I've been warned abot the insane ammount of reading you'll need to get done.

>>5311234
I'm in the USA, no clue how similar the programs are in Europe.

Over here we have a choice of doing several "independent studies" within a program - basically, with an advisor, you narrow down one particular point of interest you have, and produce something related to that by the end of the semester. Usually a paper, but I've been approved for translations too. I'm using mine to prepare for book publication.

I don't mind, but I'm just not sure how relevant it'll be to Berlin. Fun classes are just anything that looks extra interesting to you - I linked above the classes at Bloomington on things like the Arabian Nights. That's a "fun class" to me, because while it's outside my areas, it's still something I like. Just continue to reinforce your love of literature so you don't burn out.

Work is almost all seminars and term papers for me, likely because of the small enrollment. I don't get to do any fancy work like with manuscripts yet, but I do know the librarians personally for checking out 100+ books every semester. Really all I feel like I do is read a lot and take a lot of notes..

Reading is definitely insane, which is why I emphasize taking classes you're into. On average, I've been reading around twenty books per class, though not all of those were required.

>>5311221
>working as a server or in retail while pursuing your PhD

If you're not getting paid to study, you're already fucked. No reason to put in the years there. If people won't pay you a shitty grad student salary, they sure as hell won't pay you a full-time faculty wage. Meanwhile, real programs give their students a living wage in exchange for covering a class or two of freshmen.

>>5310638
Suicide

Holy shit, I'm shocked that this thread is still here. I guess I'm just used to /b/'s quick pruning. I've taken in everything said here, and it has shaken me a bit, honestly. Are there any fields around this same type of thing that would be more lucrative? I enjoy writing a lot, but I've heard journalism and creative writing are joke degrees as well.

>>5313720
Seriously, OP Don't take serious advice about your life and future career from anonymous strangers on a cartoon image board that is the notorious haunt of alienated manchildren and shut-ins. You don't need to decide on your career now. Enjoy the real world of university. It's much better than this place.

>>5313720
This is really the sort of thing you should talk to your advisor about. They'll know you better, and they'll know the school better.

Have you thought about editing?

>>5313767
Yeah I've been kind of taking it all with a grain of salt, but some seem to know what they're talking about. I'm definitely not gonna make up my mind before I explore and see what's out there at the uni.

>>5313855
Yeah, I'll definitely do that. And yeah, I've considered that. Is the outlook better? I know I could google, but I wanted to see if you had any more personal insight.

>>5313868
I'm doing editing, which is functioning now as my back-up in case I don't get a position after taking my degree. Or a crap one.

There are certainly more positions for it, as long as you're willing to be freelance. I don't yet foresee a future stage where content and line editing can be replaced entirely by computers - obviously people always use spell and grammar check. Here's information on pay rate and workload, to help you plan:

http://www.the-efa.org/res/rates.php

I would personally remain on the English degree path with a minor in Journalism, if you think this might be a good fit for you. Especially if you'd like to end up editing literature and not copy, which I assume you do.

>>5313896
Thanks! I'll certainly look into this.