Drop my literature class? I hate it so much

[silkwolf]

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I am currently a freshman, one of my courses is American Fantasy (with a new prof) , a class I signed up to fulfill a literature credit. There were only a few literature classes to choose from, and of those I wanted to take, they were already full, thus I signed up for the class with great reluctance. I think I did pretty badly on the first midterm which we had to write an essay in 20-25 minutes on an original analysis of two texts we read. Coming up with original analysis is already difficult for me; for some people, they just think of original ideas fairly easily, but for me, it takes a while to come up with it. I can write essays in other classes just fine (scientific, historic, social sciences etc), but coming up with originally literary analysis on the spot just seems so esoteric to me. I just feel there's no way to "study" for it and you just have to come up with original literary ideas.

I have solid As in my other concurrent classes (including Orgo), and I am seriously consider dropping this class. I feel like if I got a low grade on any other test in any other class, I would be able to study more material to do better next time, but for this, I am just at a loss at how to even do better.

 

[ruedjgtc]

You'll have to weigh your options, for example if you'll receive a W, I personally think that's better than getting a C in a class you probably didn't need. A W isn't a key of death, just don't make it a habit. And make sure to address why you dropped the course on your application, chalk it up as a mistake and show how you learned from it. Try to make this your only W on your transcript. Of course the downside is you're using your W when you might of wanted to save it for something else later (a hard science class you're sure to fail perhaps). On the other hand, I'm not really hearing cogent reasons why you should drop it other than its hard, and as a GPA protection measure. I suppose the latter reason would be reason alone for some.

With that being said, later you might want to work on your literature work, because reading obscure articles/question stems are what VR is all about on the MCAT. If you can afford to eat the W than I would. But, if you can't get a W, then you better start sewing leather to your suede jacket now, and get cracking on analysis.

I vote take the W, if you can get it since you're young. Others might rightfully disagree.

 

[Lucca]

Generally in literature classes you should have ideas well before the midterm about what it is you are going to write. I know it might seem like "there is no way to study" for something like this, but there is. Are you making notes in your texts? Are you drawing analogies to bigger ideas? Do you understand why the author made this or that choice, the overall meaning of the work, etc? It doesn't have to be too difficult, the entire process of "studying" is really just asking yourself a ton of questions about the text until you can talk about each individual piece of it with authority.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~esrabkin/thesis5ways.htm

^ That's a link to a condensed version of a very helpful document called "Five ways of looking at a thesis" by Erik Simpson. I couldn't find the full text, sorry.

I've taken about 3 upper-division English courses (A's in all of them; One of my majors is Philosophy) and I've written everything from timed writings (Which I agree are absolutely useless ways of testing someone's ability to comprehend a text because the time constraint is so arbitrary) to regular bi-weekly short essays and long-term papers. I'd be happy to help if you have more questions.

I would save the drop for something tougher and not a requirement that you just have to finish in order to fulfill a transcript requirement. I doubt anyone would care very much if you had a B in a non-science course.

 

[Zelda840]

I'm sure lots of people will tell you to buck up and make it work, but I would drop it. There's just no reason to spend so much time and money on something you hate that isn't required. Do you have to take a literature class? Can't you just take English Comp?

 

[knv2u]

I'm sure lots of people will tell you to buck up and make it work, but I would drop it. There's just no reason to spend so much time and money on something you hate that isn't required. Do you have to take a literature class? Can't you just take English Comp?

I agree. You also don't want to spend so much time on it that your other grades suffer.

 

[silkwolf]

You'll have to weigh your options, for example if you'll receive a W, I personally think that's better than getting a C in a class you probably didn't need. A W isn't a key of death, just don't make it a habit. And make sure to address why you dropped the course on your application, chalk it up as a mistake and show how you learned from it. Try to make this your only W on your transcript. Of course the downside is you're using your W when you might of wanted to save it for something else later (a hard science class you're sure to fail perhaps). On the other hand, I'm not really hearing cogent reasons why you should drop it other than its hard, and as a GPA protection measure. I suppose the latter reason would be reason alone for some.

With that being said, later you might want to work on your literature work, because reading obscure articles/question stems are what VR is all about on the MCAT. If you can afford to eat the W than I would. But, if you can't get a W, then you better start sewing leather to your suede jacket now, and get cracking on analysis.

I vote take the W, if you can get it since you're young. Others might rightfully disagree.

I thought it is better to use the W for a non-science non-required class because it matters less, than to use it on a hard science class. Also, I feel like analyzing literature isn't necessary at all for critical reading skills. I suck at literary analysis, but I am pretty good at understanding reading, and scored the maximum score on SAT critical reading (not trying to gloat, just supporting my point)

 

[silkwolf]

Generally in literature classes you should have ideas well before the midterm about what it is you are going to write. I know it might seem like "there is no way to study" for something like this, but there is. Are you making notes in your texts? Are you drawing analogies to bigger ideas? Do you understand why the author made this or that choice, the overall meaning of the work, etc? It doesn't have to be too difficult, the entire process of "studying" is really just asking yourself a ton of questions about the text until you can talk about each individual piece of it with authority.

http://www-personal.umich.edu/~esrabkin/thesis5ways.htm

^ That's a link to a condensed version of a very helpful document called "Five ways of looking at a thesis" by Erik Simpson. I couldn't find the full text, sorry.

I've taken about 3 upper-division English courses (A's in all of them; One of my majors is Philosophy) and I've written everything from timed writings (Which I agree are absolutely useless ways of testing someone's ability to comprehend a text because the time constraint is so arbitrary) to regular bi-weekly short essays and long-term papers. I'd be happy to help if you have more questions.

I would save the drop for something tougher and not a requirement that you just have to finish in order to fulfill a transcript requirement. I doubt anyone would care very much if you had a B in a non-science course.[/q
Thank you for advice on approaching the tests. I just feel like this stuff doesn't come naturally to me, and I always take a really long time to complete literary analysis essays partly because one part of me thinks its basically the act of constructing elaborate BS.

Thanks for the advice on approaching these tests. I just feel like this stuff doesn't come naturally to me and I always take a really long time to write take home essays. Part of me also feels like literary analysis is basically elaborate BS.

 

[Entadus]

Can you switch it to Pass/Fail grading? P =/= W and P >or= C 🙂

 

[Mr Roboto]

Take the W, then take an easier lit course.

I hated my lit course and ended up with a C for similar reasons. Literary analysis is a load of horse ****. Don't be me 😀

 

[487806]

I am currently a freshman, one of my courses is American Fantasy (with a new prof) , a class I signed up to fulfill a literature credit. There were only a few literature classes to choose from, and of those I wanted to take, they were already full, thus I signed up for the class with great reluctance. I think I did pretty badly on the first midterm which we had to write an essay in 20-25 minutes on an original analysis of two texts we read. Coming up with original analysis is already difficult for me; for some people, they just think of original ideas fairly easily, but for me, it takes a while to come up with it. I can write essays in other classes just fine (scientific, historic, social sciences etc), but coming up with originally literary analysis on the spot just seems so esoteric to me. I just feel there's no way to "study" for it and you just have to come up with original literary ideas.

I have solid As in my other concurrent classes (including Orgo), and I am seriously consider dropping this class. I feel like if I got a low grade on any other test in any other class, I would be able to study more material to do better next time, but for this, I am just at a loss at how to even do better.

From my faintest memory, I think an original analysis refers to obtaining the common theme and analyze it in respect to both works (assuming they're related in some way). I think @Lucca is pretty much spot on, but because it is actually difficult and you hated it, I'd recommend you to drop and avoid potentially hurting yourself.

 

[moop]

A W is next to harmless. A B is not.

An ability to write effectively and construct arguments clearly from different sources is paramount to any career, even medicine (especially if you're looking to publish research). I'd advise you to drop it now, sure, but somewhere along the line you should still take a class and do it seriously to learn those writing and argumentative skills.

 

[amazing tekkers]

You should have taken pass/fail. Is this still an option?

 

[amazing tekkers]

Take the W, then take an easier lit course.

I hated my lit course and ended up with a C for similar reasons. Literary analysis is a load of horse ****. Don't be me 😀

Im currently taking a lit course as well, it's not that bad, just a lot of reading and writing--as long as you can bs and support that bs with evidence, then you should be good.

 

[Lucca]

Thanks for the advice on approaching these tests. I just feel like this stuff doesn't come naturally to me and I always take a really long time to write take home essays. Part of me also feels like literary analysis is basically elaborate BS.

It understand it can sometimes feel that way but that's just because you don't have enough experience doing it. If you would like your writing to feel less BS and more concrete, increase the specificity of your argument.

Ideally, a paper should work for only one work. The whole universalist, general meaning of life solipsism crap that we wrote in high school definitely doesn't count. All they are really asking you to do is take some words you read, condense the info, ask some questions about it that the text raises, and then synthesize it into a paper. Take it step by step, like a calculus problem.

Really, writing is a very useful skill.

Of course, dropping the class or not is totally up to you. I, personally, would not drop unless its a C+ or below because I consider a B in a non science course acceptable.

 

[deleted407021]

A W is next to harmless. A B is not.

An ability to write effectively and construct arguments clearly from different sources is paramount to any career, even medicine (especially if you're looking to publish research). I'd advise you to drop it now, sure, but somewhere along the line you should still take a class and do it seriously to learn those writing and argumentative skills.

I agree. A poor grade in such a class would be an indication that you have underdeveloped writing and analytical skills. Take the W now, and work on these skills later when you have a course load that will give you time to take a similar literature class.

Writing is very important, and you need to be able to do it well, regardless of subject.

 

[silkwolf]

I agree. A poor grade in such a class would be an indication that you have underdeveloped writing and analytical skills. Take the W now, and work on these skills later when you have a course load that will give you time to take a similar literature class.

Writing is very important, and you need to be able to do it well, regardless of subject.

I agree that writing is very important, and I feel confident with my skills in writing (to reiterate) scientific papers, history papers, sociology papers, etc, I just can't seem to write literary analysis papers for some reason. In my mind, I just believe that if I can write in other subjects very well, I am satisfied. I don't think I will need to do any literary analysis in my future career.

 

[Mr Roboto]

I'm an excellent writer and a lover of books. Learning how to understand what the author is expressing, and how to formulate and express your own opinions, are wonderful skills to have. It's why I did well on VR and on every paper I wrote in college outside of a lit class.

What is useless, however, is learning to put themes and opinions in a work that weren't originally there. That's the horse ****. Specifically, I remember a very straightforward love poem. Nice piece. Then the professor proceeded to talk about how she thinks it's really written about necrophilia. There was nothing about necrophilia in the poem. But it sure made for an "interesting" viewpoint, so whoever came up with it probably wrote an A+ paper.

 

[deleted407021]

I agree that writing is very important, and I feel confident with my skills in writing (to reiterate) scientific papers, history papers, sociology papers, etc, I just can't seem to write literary analysis papers for some reason. In my mind, I just believe that if I can write in other subjects very well, I am satisfied. I don't think I will need to do any literary analysis in my future career.

Literary analysis is just a topic specific application of an important skill. Being able to read between the lines, determine what the author meant and what their writing means to you as well as it's implications on thought are all important parts of problem solving and communication. The ability to generate original thinking within the basis of a piece of literary work involves creativity and an understanding of phrase meaning and interaction. Sure, it's annoying when your teacher seems to haul something out of his or her arse when interpreting a work, but that is what they got out of it, not you. For many things but not all, an interpretation is up to the individual. Whether you think so of not, a strong foundation in these skills is important to any educated individual and must be learned and then cultivated.

 

[hmockingbird]

I agree with Lucca that I would only drop if you're going to get a C or lower... I don't think a B would hurt you at all. Also agree with the advice to plan out your essays for these types of tests before you get the test, presuming it's not on a new piece that you're just seeing when you start the test. Bring your book in with quotes/passages marked.

Some advice? Go back to the 5-paragraph essay you learned in middle school. Thesis, three supporting arguments with 2-3 good quotes or scenes/incidents per example, conclusion. Done.

I had a really good freshman English prof who taught me how to break down arguments so this might help you. I was an English major but very systematic about writing analysis papers because of her, and it made it a LOT easier for me, and a lot less abstract/random.
1. Come up with thesis. The Simpson article is good. For classes where we had to do timed essays they usually had a theme having to do with the class like "How does book X relate to Aime Cesaire's theory that colonization oppresses the colonizer just as much as the colonized?" so I'm going to start from there using 12 Years a Slave (b/c I just saw it, don't mean to be political or anything). Thesis might be like "In 12 Years a Slave, the institution of slavery oppresses the colonized and the colonizers, through the necessary precepts of violence and economic profits." Sorry if that's really crap, just pulling an example off the top of my head.
2. Come up with 3 basic arguments to support this. I see two obvious ones. How does slavery (its violence+economics) oppress the colonized (slaves) in the movie? How does slavery oppress the colonizers (slave-owners) in the movie? Boom, two paragraphs done. Now you have to think a little more, but for me, I'd try to combine the two, and maybe argue that even when we do see the slave owners' humanity in acting towards the slaves (eg Benedict Cumberbatch's character) it's limited by the precepts of slavery (violence+economics). We're arguing that I'd save that for the third argument because it would be the most complex. I like compare/contrast arguments like this for timed tests because you have two arguments already set up, the two examples, and then your last argument would be combining the two.
3. Gather quotes or scenes for each one, the more specific the better. Your first argument, slavery oppresses slaves, should be the easiest. I don't remember specific quotes from the movie but I think someone told Samuel that he wasn't worth anything but money anymore after he was captured? That would be a good one, and then pick one or two more. You wouldn't have to use them all on the test, but have them marked in your book. For the last argument, you could have that scene where Benedict Cumberbatch's character decides to sell Samuel because he can't afford to keep him and have him rebel OR set him free, even though he likes Samuel.
4. For each quote, you need to explain, precisely, WHY it supports your point. Ex: the Benedict Cumberbatch scene. Have the quote or a brief synopsis of what happened (quotes are usually better). Then say like, "We can see BC's humanity in that he gives Samuel a safe place to stay, acknowledging his right to bodily integrity. His expression is one of pain, showing he emphasizes with Samuel's suffering. However, his humanity is limited in that he cannot afford to free Samuel - he freely states that he needs the money from selling Samuel." blah blah You really have to get into detail about WHY each quote supports your argument. Just pretend your reader is really stupid and doesn't get that calling someone the N* word is racist, or whatever. Explain WHY it is racist in a few sentences before you move on to the next quote. This is where I got really tripped up when I first started taking English classes and where I think a lot of other people do too.

So eventually for me it became really systematic and formulaic, and that allowed me to move through arguments faster, along with a little advanced planning (finding good quotes and thinking about potential arguments in advance). My essays ended up looking something like this:
Intro - Intro sentence. Point one. Point two. Point three. Thesis.
Point one - Main point. Quote one. 2-4 sentences why it supports my point. Repeat for other quotes. Transition sentence to next paragraph.
Point two and three - same as point one
Conclusion - Few sentences summarizing your main points. Conclusion sentence.
(for longer papers I basically followed the same structure but a lot more detailed)

Hopefully that helps, if not feel free to ignore! Also I totally acknowledge literary analysis can be total BS... that's part of why I love it lol. You can just do whatever you want with it as long as you can argue your point, which is fun! However, I think it did make me a better writer in general, in that I became a lot more cognizant of being specific about what I'm saying and explaining things. And, it definitely helps when you need to write any type of argument, even if it's not a literary analysis argument. If you follow the same type of structure (main point, supporting arguments, evidence, explanation of evidence) for any argument, you can be really persuasive.

Edit: I was thinking about a single essay in a 50-minute class. For 20-25 min I'd condense it a bit, less quotes/examples or maybe only 2 supporting points vs. three.

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

On another note......how are you a Freshman and taking OChem?

 

[moop]

On another note......how are you a Freshman and taking OChem?

I did the same. Many of my friends did, too. I know Yale even has a class specifically for freshmen called "Freshman Organic Chemistry," enrollment limited. Orgo freshman honestly year isn't that bad. Best premed decision I've made so far to get it over and done with 👍

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

Well, I'm going to be taking it over the Summer.......so that should be fun! hah