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Post by Dodger Thirteen on Jun 1, 2011 1:52:59 GMT -5
I've been seeing people writing in places that they're a "bad English major" because of such-and-such an action. Well, I'll tell ya what: you're not a bad English major, you're just different. And I value that, but this isn't about that. Instead, this is a place for you to admit your "flaws" as an English major, whether it be you haven't read a certain "classic" or you have no idea how to use a semicolon or what a tilde is. Post it here.
As for me, I'm a bad English major because...
...I have never read The Catcher in the Rye.
...I never read The Great Gatsby prior to this summer. I'm headed into my fifth year as an English major.
...I still have no idea how to use a semicolon. I just throw it in and hope no one calls me out on it.
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Post by cyanea on Jun 1, 2011 2:01:38 GMT -5
All three of the above (except I still haven't read Gatsby), and
- I hate Frankenstein. Hate. Haaaate.
- 99% of the books I read (except school ones) aren't "literature". Star Wars, Star Trek, Warhammer 40k, etc. I see no problem with this.
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sophi
Armadillo Pup
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Post by sophi on Jun 1, 2011 2:13:29 GMT -5
I made it through MULTIPLE classes without reading a single book that was assigned. I'm REALLY good at bullshitting, what can I say?
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callmeishmael
Young Armadillo
Believe it or not, I use this username on other forums as well.
Posts: 66
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Post by callmeishmael on Jun 1, 2011 2:39:45 GMT -5
-I don't read much anymore  I used to read ALL the time. Now I'm always wasting away my days being unproductive -I didn't read a single assigned work this semester (To be fair I had read most of them already) -I don't like Milton, don't care about Chaucer -I hate hate hate hate hate hate essays. Even if they're something I'm interested in, it just makes me more prolific in between procrastinations, but I still hate writing them. |
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Post by brosephargh on Jun 1, 2011 4:35:13 GMT -5
I don't do my homework.
Simple as that. I don't do the reading, I sometimes do questions, but I really just...hate homework so I don't do it. and still pass with good grades.
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Post by Olive on Jun 1, 2011 6:12:03 GMT -5
I still haven't read The Great Gatsby?
And I had never checked out a book from our school library/spent any time in its stacks until halfway through this (my fourth) semester, even though I go behind the circulation desk every day to clock in for work.
What did I check out? An annotated copy of Alice in Wonderland. I'm a fan of getting academic article previews online, bullshitting evidence from what I assume is in the paper after reading the preview, and still citing it like it's an in-print source.
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Post by cyanea on Jun 1, 2011 8:19:58 GMT -5
I did that once. I later got a compliment from the professor that I did a good job "understanding a difficult article".
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Post by Olive on Jun 1, 2011 8:35:08 GMT -5
I did that once. I later got a compliment from the professor that I did a good job "understanding a difficult article". Haha, fantastic. Yeah, every semester there's at least one research paper with a minimum number of academic sources, and a certain percentage have to be print (I had one prof let me use a whole two online sources!). I've also discovered that wikipedia + google books = instant print citation. And I've never, ever been marked down because of anything related to my "research." |
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Post by onlyaworkingtitle on Jun 1, 2011 10:15:03 GMT -5
I made it through MULTIPLE classes without reading a single book that was assigned. I'm REALLY good at bullshitting, what can I say? I still haven't read The Great Gatsby? And I had never checked out a book from our school library/spent any time in its stacks until halfway through this (my fourth) semester, even though I go behind the circulation desk every day to clock in for work. What did I check out? An annotated copy of Alice in Wonderland. I'm a fan of getting academic article previews online, bullshitting evidence from what I assume is in the paper after reading the preview, and still siting it like it's an in-print source. I'm seconding these two and adding that I own no tweed vests. Do velvet or pinstripe vests count? |
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Post by mrodigga on Jun 1, 2011 11:33:39 GMT -5
I don't enjoy reading books (runs and hides). But honestly, the medium just doesn't hold my attention. I know I don't have a short attention span, because I can read a multiple-page thread on a forum in one sitting, so that's not it. I can't quite put my finger on what makes me dislike books as much as I do, I do spend a lot of time reading; I'm just not reading printed words. There was an article in Publisher's Weekly a while ago about how people who cry that teens these days aren't reading as much are wrong, because they are reading, but rather than reading books, newspapers, and magazines, the'yre reading wikis, blogs, and forums. That's my reading habits in a nutshell.
I also use "aggravate" to mean anger, even though it doesn't mean that, because I often find that the more correct words (annoy, bother, antagonize) just don't carry the connotation I'm looking for. Curse you, convenient colloquialisms!
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Post by tastyink on Jun 1, 2011 11:40:00 GMT -5
I never dominate class discussions. I get jittery when I have to talk in public and everything thing I say just sounds like nonsense. When I have something to say, I talk with my professor after class.
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Post by Olive on Jun 1, 2011 12:00:10 GMT -5
Ooh ooh, I thought of another one.
I over-capitalize. If I don't pay attention, I capitalize any noun that feels vaguely important. That's the German major interfering with the English major, I'm afraid.
That, and the overuse of ellipsis. I just love them... so damn much.
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Post by cyanea on Jun 1, 2011 12:06:17 GMT -5
I never dominate class discussions. I get jittery when I have to talk in public and everything thing I say just sounds like nonsense. When I have something to say, I talk with my professor after class. I totally, totally sympathize with this. The answer always sounds so logical in your head before you raise your hand... I'm also a bad English major because I hate most Renaissance and Restoration lit. I'm pretty much not fond of any of the English canon written between say...1500-1890. Early stuff? Love it. Recent stuff? Love it more. That period? The book will make a better pillow than a book. (Of course, I exaggerate and there are exceptions.) Oh, and...I'm also overly fond of the ellipses too. |
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Post by tastyink on Jun 1, 2011 12:07:58 GMT -5
OMG I use excessive commas! I don't really know when it's absolutely necessary to have them so I just sprinkle them in every where.
Another thing, I hate going to school. I like everything I'm learning but I just hate all the work that comes with it.
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Post by Olive on Jun 1, 2011 12:11:54 GMT -5
OMG I use excessive commas! I don't really know when it's absolutely necessary to have them so I just sprinkle them in every where. I really wanted to cry when someone explained to me that, according to recent MLA standards, you are not allowed to use a comma unless it is absolutely necessary. No more creating a pace, none of this "as I read though it, I naturally pause here, so I'm going to indicate that to the reader" stuff. Bullshit. Commas are my best friend, don't you dare take them away. |
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I used to read ALL the time. Now I'm always wasting away my days being unproductive
