The teachers inducted us into the arcane world of English literature in unique ways. The teachers also had a unique way of reeling in the motley crew of seemingly recalcitrant high school graduates disguised as freshmen. Needless to say, it worked. To be honest I had no great expectations of literature altering my life in any significant way. I knew I liked the written word, but I hadn’t experienced its’ full impact until I was taught how to navigate my way to the right ones. That’s where the English Department came in. To teach me, through an understanding of rhyme scheme, that there was a science behind creating and understanding prose. An understanding I try and utilise in my professional life till day. I was also taught that the right text needed the right tools, like literary theory, for dissection etc. To quote Anias Nin, “we write so we can taste life twice”. And as a corollary, I’d say we read so we can lead many lives.
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