From one of my readings for the course Roll Over Beethoven- The History of Rock:
"Art is art, and great rock & roll is great rock & roll no matter what kind of maniac is playing it"
I'm trying to take classes that fall outside my normal comfort zone, which gives me mixed feelings. The list so far:
- Rock & Roll (above): cool class. Makes me wish I could play the guitar.
- The Novel Now: English class for my minor. Just finished White Noise, which I didn't particularly like, but the rest of the readings look interesting - The Inheritance of Loss, Toni Morrison's A Mercy, Philip Roth...
In other words, contemporary fiction that I might read for myself anyways. This is good and bad. Good because the books will grasp my attention at once. Bad because I have to read them for a class. Much of the pleasure in pleasure reading for me comes from the very fact that I don't have to understand the deeper meaning behind every chapter if I don't want to. And, in particular, if I don't like the book, I can stop reading or just not pay attention. Not so here.
Plus class discussion in English courses has always been a problem for me.
- Business French: supposed to prepare me for the exam administered by the French Gov't that officially certifies you are at a certain competence level in terms of professional skills. So if I really want to live/work in Paris (yeah, I know... dream on, right), this is what I need.
So far, it's a lot of work that I'm not that motivated to do. I mean, I'm going to be working in NYC for the next 2-ish years, and I'll probably just forget all the stuff I learn anyways. So what's the point?
- Consumption and the Pursuit of Happiness: not only is the subject a bit different from the run-of-the-mill Econ, it's taught at Amherst. Very mixed feelings about this one.
I must admit, I decided to take this class to "pursue my happiness," in fact, because I have never taken a class at another 5 College school. So a part of me just wanted to do that -- it's my last chance, after all. I just hope there's no *attitude*/stigma against 5-college ppl. Just because it was my *dream school* when I was 17 doesn't mean it is now. But I wonder if any animosity exists - i.e. do people there look down on non-Amherst ppl because they feel we're slipping in since we weren't "good enough" to get into Amherst "the real way."
I think I'm the only non-Amherst student in the class. It's so weird taking the bus to and from; it makes me feel like I'm in high school again, sitting by the window by myself and daydreaming. It's kind of nice.
Plus the coed factor.
Though I feel like every time I tell somebody I'm taking a class at Amherst, the automatic/obligatory response is "oooh guys *wink wink*." It's funny... the first time, but after that it just gets annoying. I would take this class if it were offered at Smith, too. Rarely does an Econ class go beyond the typical models/assumptions mix elements of Psychology and Philosophy. And the professor is hilarious.
I won't deny that I often wonder what it would have been like had I gone to a coed school; this is my first coed class since high school (not counting Paris, where there were too many other cultural differences that came into play for me to even consider this). It's certainly quite different; like I said, it's definintely outside my comfort zone, but I think that's necessary. For life, I mean. To be able to adapt to different environments. And yes, it's nice to have guys in the class for once...
But I hate how everybody here (even some Amherst people probably) assumes that I'm in the class because I'm soooo guy deprived. I'd be a pretty pathetic human being indeed if I were to willingly give up my Wednesday and Friday afternoons just to see some guys. Um, if I wanted to do that, I'd just hit up frat row at UMass. Or, you know, go into town. Just because you don't walk out of the Smith bubble doesn't mean I can't.
This has turned into too long a rant for me to continue. But it was nice getting it all this annoyance out... not aimed at anyone in particular, of course. Who knows, maybe I'll end up not taking the course; we'll see after my talk with the Prof.
For me, this last semester is all aobut moving away from my typical experiences at Smith. It's a transitional period in my life, so my courseload should and will reflect that as well.
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