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Changes In the Plan

Well, after about two months of not blogging for Holy Cross, I’m back with some pretty big and exciting news. Next year, I had planned on taking a year off from academics and working in England, which would give me some time and money to prepare for commencing my PhD next year in 2014.

Well, I found out last week that I was successful in my application for a fully funded PhD scholarship at King’s College London, which was my dream school due to my ideal advisor being there. The scholarship application just opened in June, and I was lucky enough to find out during my family vacation on Cape Cod. The scholarship is the first that King’s has given out, and it’s good for all three years of my PhD (yeah, getting a project done in three years. Welcome to higher education in the UK!). My project will focus on 10th century Anglo-Saxon manuscripts, specifically how the construction and layout of the Anglo-Saxon manuscripts works within the matrix of manuscripts imported from the Continent. In reality, the project emerged from the research that I started for Professor Perry’s seminar paper on the Libri Carolini (nearly four years ago now), and some of those questions that I encountered with that research just still keep on popping up even in my research now.

I’m extremely shocked (yet grateful) that I won the scholarship. Had you told me when I first arrived at Holy Cross nearly six years ago next month (uhm…what?) that I’d be pursuing a PhD in medieval manuscripts, I would have laughed. Yes, I came to Holy Cross with an interest in literature, but it was really at Holy Cross that I was able to discover this passion and then meet so many people along the way who continue to inspire and encourage me.

So, if you need to find me in the next three years, odds are that I’m in some library looking at 10th century manuscripts. After that, you’ll be able to find me as Dr. Curran…which is a really scary thought.
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Library Free, Another Crusader Reunion, and Anthony Diggison

Since Blackpool, I have been holed up in the library every single day – either the English Faculty Library, the Sackler Classics Library, the Radcliffe Camera, or the Duke Humphery’s Library (it’s very easy to unlock the different levels of the ‘Bookworm Badge’ on Foursquare in Oxford). The past month has really been quite a blur. To quote my Paleography professor on March 5th, ‘This is the most difficult part of your course. If you survive, you will be fine.’ Reassuring words, I think? We had our Paleography exam on March 8th, in which we had three hours to discuss two out of three manuscript plates given to us. We had to correctly identify the hand, the date, and give articulate reasons as to our logic. You wouldn’t realize it, but the crossbar above a ‘t’ can tell you a whole lot about the date/tendency of a hand. After that, Margaret, HC ’11, and Carrie came to visit for the weekend.

Margaret is currently a first year law student at William and Mary. She was on her Spring Break, so she decided to take her parents up on her graduation gift of a ticket to England and re-live some of the highlights of our junior year abroad. Luckily, the weather cooperated, so we had a wonderful weekend exploring Magdalen College gardens, our favorite outdoor cafe, and the Eagle and Child.

Unfortunately, Margaret had to leave to return to Law School, and Carrie has a job. Psh. And…well, I had two essays to write. The first one was on the linguistic aspects of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, specifically how he refers to himself within various landscape settings. I was exploring the actual construction of the words and the metrical stability of the words. I turned in that essay on Monday, and then I had to turn around and write my Paleography essay. One of my friends (a DPhil Student), Zach, alerted me about a rather peculiar version of Gregory’s Pastoral Care. The work in of itself is not interesting, but it’s how people received it and responded to it that is. There are these curious Middle English glosses throughout the text, a book curse, a book price (rare), and several names. I was able to track down three out of the four names, but Mr. Anthony Diggison remains unfound at the moment. Why is all of this important? My personal research is beginning to look at book culture itself – how people received texts, what they did with them, how they passed them on, etc. Identifying three of the named owners of this text helped situation this manuscript in a different setting in a different range of years; each of these different owners did something different with it. My research ended up focusing primarily on the Middle English glosses, and I’m fairly confident that the book was a Latin primer used in a monastic setting. More research will have to be done, but that’s where the paper stood when I turned it in on Thursday.

The last event of this incredibly busy term happened on Sunday. I’ve had a total of five dance competitions over the past month and a half. That is a lot of hair gel and fake tan. It’s been an interesting five competitions as well; sometimes, the results were wonderful, and other times, the results were dreadful. With such an unstable range of dance results and my first free weekend after a very busy term, I was quite reluctant to attend the competition yesterday. Well, I’m glad I did, since Dean and I ended up winning. The wins came as a huge shock to the two of us – we haven’t really practiced since both of our exam sessions began earlier this month, and we didn’t expect to do well; we just went to have some fun. Apparently, that’s the attitude that we need to maintain from now on. We have another competition in late April, and then a major one against Cambridge in May.

Until then, though, I’m headed to Vercelli, Italy next week to research some Anglo-Saxon manuscripts. After that, I’ll be working non-stop on my dissertation, with the hope of finishing it in early May so I can enjoy the rest of a wonderful summer in Oxford. However, I’m taking a bit of a break…for now.
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The Next Steps

I am officially the most unnatural shade of orange that I have been in my entire life. But, the good news is that this month of dance competitions has finally concluded. I spent last weekend at Blackpool (it’s beginning to be my home away from home) for the 50th IVDC (essentially, the national university championships). It was such a fascinating experience – the organizers brought in the Empress Orchestra to play the music for our final team match rounds. Dancing to a live orchestra is always an honor, but dancing in the Winter Gardens to the Empress Orchestra? That’s a rare treat that only the world champions really get to enjoy.

Dean and I did well. We managed to dance the best that we’ve ever done in ballroom. We were a bit disappointed with the Latin results, but these things happen. We came 13th in both events – so now we’re asking the awful nagging questions like “If I had held my poise a bit more, would the judge have marked me? Would I have been through the next round if I smiled a bit more?” Overall, we can’t really complain about our performances. Oxford unfortunately lost the Overall title to Cambridge. We have our Varsity match against the Tabs in May where we will hopefully reclaim our rightful title.

Now that the dancing high has worn off, I’ve chained myself to my desk. I have a massive Paleography exam on Thursday and two essays due in two weeks. It’s going to be a busy two weeks… For the Paleography exam, I have to transcribe a given set of plates and correctly date them (within fifty years) and identify the script used. You never knew it, but the crossbar above a “t” tells you a whole lot about a manuscript’s date.

In very exciting news, I’ve been accepted to speak at my first conference. I will give my paper at COLSONOEL, which is a conference geared specifically toward topics relating to Old Norse, Old English, and Latin studies. The conference is going to be held at Cambridge in May. I’m rather excited about this next step in my academic career.

And now, I’m off to study more manuscripts!
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6th Week

Is it really already February 19th? Where on earth has Hilary Term gone? Today begins the 6th week of term, which is a bit stressful. At the end of this week, I have to submit essay titles for my B and C courses, in addition to a 200 word abstract of my dissertation. For my B Course (Paleography), I’m planning to look at the rewriting of Old English in the 12th Century, specifically at one particular manuscript in Oxford (MS Wadham 11) and see hwo this manuscript preserves and alters the Old English tradition through Middle English glosses. For my C Course…well, I don’t have a clear idea yet. My C Course is on Middle English Literary Language, so I’ve been studying Chaucer through a linguistic lens (fascinating stuff, really). There are so many topics that I’d love to explore – the use of dialect as a character, the play of enigmatic language when discussing authority in texts, the alliterative poetry revival, etc. I’m leaning more towards exploring the alliterative poetry revival, specifically Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Watch this space, though. I’m so excited to begin writing my dissertation, though. The idea is really coming together now – I’m exploring the tension between word and image in the Junius manuscript, specifically in demon illustrations. I don’t want to give away my argument right now, but I’m very, very, very excited to start. Basically, this dissertation will be a cross between art history and literature, and both disciplines will feature as respective chapters in the dissertation before I bring them together in the final one. It should be interesting. I’m scheduled to consult various manuscripts at Cambridge, the British Library, and a few other places. I’m also preparing for my Paleography exam that is scheduled to take place in two weeks. Ack.

In addition to academics, life continues to go well, despite the busy schedule. Dean and I competed with OUDC at the Sheffield Social on February 4th.

Frankly, it wasn’t the best that we’ve ever competed. We were out quite quickly out of the Latin rounds. We came back with a strong performance in the Team Match (basically a dance relay – four couples will dance one of four dances), but overall, it wasn’t a good day for Oxford. We lost for the first time in 25 years to Cambridge and Imperial. Ouch. Despite our low spirits, we managed to play in the snow on the six hour long coach ride back.

We also competed at SUDC, which is the South University Dancesport Championship. The competition was yesterday, and I think I still have gel in my hair. Oxford rallied back with a strong performance on all accounts. Personally, it was the best that Dean and I have ever danced in ballroom. We made it to the semis with a brand new waltz routine, and we were delighted with those results. Our Latin was also much stronger than it was two weeks ago, which is encouraging on all accounts for the nationals in two weeks. Oxford also had a very strong day. Despite some weird placing in the Intermediate Latin event (seriously, it was a tad odd), Oxford managed to place second to Cambridge…BY ONE POINT. We weren’t too dismayed since it was just by a point, but still. Also, Neil Jones and Ekaterina (who are the current World and International Amateur Latin Champions) were the demo couple, so it really was a fantastic day.

In addition to school and dance, I’ve also been hanging out with my friends from St. Hilda’s and the Catholic Chaplaincy. 

Looking ahead, this week is quite busy. In addition to all of the school work, I have another dance competition this weekend. I also have a dinner with PD James, who is an Honorary Fellow of St Hilda’s. And, as a bonus, one of my very good friends from Holy Cross, Tom McGlynn, is visiting me on Wednesday. Tom is currently a Fulbright Scholar in Germany, and he’s visiting his cousin in London for his winter break. I’m excited to see him and show him around my new home.

Until next time!
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Crusader Reunion

After a relaxing three weeks in America, I’m back in England. I arrived about a week and a half ago, and there was luckily no snow (please compare this advantageous effect to my last arrival in England in January 2010. Not a pretty sight). Classes and lectures began on Monday, but prior to that, I had a Crusader visitor:

One of my best friends from Holy Cross, Bill, arrived last Friday. Bill is currently living in Turkey as a Fullbright English Teaching Assistant at Canakkale University. This was the first time that Bill and I had seen each other since Graduation in May, nearly eight months ago.

I showed Bill around London – Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, Piccadilly Circus, the British Museum, Buckingham Palace, etc.

Of course, his five day visit included visiting some of Oxford’s finest pubs for dinner. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I don’t think I want to eat bangers and mash ever again in my life. His five day visit flew by, unfortunately.

Since I no longer have a visitor, I’m back to my studying, dancing, and tea-consuming intensive life-style. This term is going to be the most busy – my workload has literally quadrupled, and I have a dance competition every weekend starting February 4th through March 5th. One entire month of fake tan = a very unnaturally orange Colleen. Although there’s a lot of work ahead, I’m really excited about what I’m studying this term. My Paleography class continues to be my favorite, and I’m working with a new manuscript every single week (as in, actually touching said manuscript). In 8th week, I have a Paleography exam, in which I have to identify a manuscript’s hand (script) and date based upon either linguistic features or just the handwriting. I also have to write a Paleography essay – right now, I just cannot decide on a topic. I’m currently leaning toward the re-writing of Old English in the early Middle English period, but we’ll see how long it takes me to change my mind…five times. For my elective course, I’m taking Middle English Literary Language, which is fascinating. I’m personally interested in the transitional period between Old and Middle English, particularly as displayed in post-Conquest Old English manuscripts. This course has been an immersion into dialects, vocabulary, lexicon, etc., but it’s also been intriguing. And, of course, the dissertation is always on the back burner. I’m working on the interrelationship between word and image in the Junius manuscript, particularly if there’s any Carolingian influence. That’s not due until June 11th, but my advisor told me that I should be finished with my first draft by the start of Trinity term. Erm. Hello, libraries.

In other really exciting news, I’m spending Easter in Vercelli, Italy, as a funded researcher at the Archivo Capitalore. I’m really excited since I’ll be able to work with their collection of Old English manuscripts. One of my primary interests is the transmission and reception of Old English manuscripts (secular or religious) on the Continent, so this is really the starting point of my dissertation research for next year (yes, I have to write two dissertations). So, in addition to brushing up on my Old English and Norse, it looks like I’ll have to learn a bit of Italian.
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8 Weeks Later

Long time, no post. My lack of entries on this blog has been due to the immense amount of work that I’ve had to do in the past eight weeks…and the sad news is that I’m not finished yet. All undergraduates finished today, but my final term paper is due in two weeks. But, before I start on that topic, let’s do a brief update, shall we?

By the first week of November, I was already in intensive training mode – for both academics and ballroom. Every week, I was responsible for preparing for my three classes, which included about five books per class meeting. For my paleography classes, I’ve been expected to consult at least one manuscript a day to make sure that I’m learning how to engage with manuscripts properly. Yes, it is such a cool feeling to just waltz into the library and say, “Yes, I’m here to collect x manuscript.” The first time that I did it, I giggled incessantly because it was just such a cool feeling. Unfortunately, due to copyright issues, I cannot post any photos of the manuscripts that I’ve consulted. Let’s just say that they’re very, very old.

This entire first term has been an introduction/easing into graduate study. Some of us just graduated from college in May; others have been working for the past few years, so our course conveners have been trying to cover all of the bases. My first class was a general course on Medieval English literature that alternated between Old and Middle English every week; this course will continue next term as well. My second class was my Paleography class, and we met four times every week. Yes, it’s been a bit intense, but I can now identify when a manuscript was written based upon the handwriting. My last course was a comparative analysis between Old English and Old Norse conversion narratives, and I’m currently finishing up my final essay for this class. I’m using some of the skills that I learned in my Literary Theory class at Holy Cross by reading an Old Norse saga through a spatial theory lens. The paper is much cooler than it sounds, I promise!

So what’s the major difference between undergraduate and graduate? Well, firstly (and most importantly), I get to access manuscripts. Secondly, graduate school has been more about individual work. The reading lists are more of a guideline, and we’re expected to read more (…what…) than what’s on the syllabus. Although more is expected at this level, I’m having the time of my (academic) life. I adore all of my classes, and I am reminded on a daily basis of how lucky I am to be back at Oxford and studying what I love.

So now onto the more exciting part of my life – dancing. In the past eight weeks, I’ve had four competitions. It’s be absolutely crazy, and my skin is finally returning to the normal pasty white color rather than the bright orange that fake tan makes it. Those four competitions have been rather successful. My first competition was with Neil’s school, Rubies, and…well…it didn’t go as well as I hoped. I didn’t even make it back to a final for my solo. I came second with my new partner, Dean, which was exciting.

Yes, he is very tall.

The next weekend, I headed off to Blackpool to compete at Nationals. There’s an unqualified section, so I danced both my ballroom and Latin. Surprisingly, I made it into both the ballroom and Latin finals.

Yes, I came second in Latin…again. One of these years, I will win!

But, most excitedly, Dean and I won our Latin event.

We were so pleased with that result, and it’s been the start of a successful partnership. We’re slowly working our way up on the university circuit scene, too.

Our fantastic coach, Neil, has really been working us since our first university competition. We spent three hours on the first fifteen seconds of our cha cha routine. No, I’m not kidding. The dancing has been intense, but we’re starting to see some wonderful results. At the last competition (Warwick), Dean and I made it to the quarterfinals of ballroom (which Dean hates) and through the quarterfinals of Latin. Those results are really exciting since we’re up against some really talented couples.

More importantly, the Oxford team looks very strong this year. Hopefully we’ll be able to keep our winning streak against Cambridge going this year.

Well, I’m off to get some sleep before spending all day in the Bodleian tomorrow. Since it’s the Christmas season, my friends and I are planning to do some traditional English Christmas events, which will definitely be a nice break from writing about Old Norse Literature.

Until next time!
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Once a Crusader, Always a Crusader

About two days ago, I received my huge course booklet from the English Faculty at Oxford. The first two terms of my first year are taught courses, and my third term involves a dissertation. Then in my second year, I’ll write another (i.e. bigger) dissertation. For the first two terms, I have two required courses – one is an introduction to studying Medieval Literature at the graduate level, and the other is on paleography and textual criticism. The general Medieval Literature course alternates between Old and Middle English works, so I’ll have a fair amount of exposure to both traditions. We’ll explore key themes like the medieval concept of orality and written works, authorship and what it means to revise a text, etc. We’ll explore literature ranging from the Exter Book Riddles to Bede to Ancrene Wisse. In my paleography course, we’ll learn how to identify specific English scribes based upon their handwriting. We’ll be able to tell in what year and where (approximately, at least) they’re writing based upon the fashions in their scripts. Most importantly, we’ll be able to look at manuscripts (either the originals or fascimilies) and transcribe the documents.

I get to choose my third course, and the options are overwhelming (in a good way!). For the first term (Michaelmas), I could choose Memories of Conversion in Old English and Old Norse, Middle English Arthurian Texts, Imagining the Polity in England 1377 to 1422, or Older Scots Literature. For the second term (Hilary), I could choose Early Middle English Devotional Writing for Women, Old Norse Literature, Heroic Poetry in Old Norse and Old English, or the Language of Middle English Literature. As I was reading through my options, I realized that I needed help in choosing. So, I asked Professor Kee for his recommendations. He gave me some great advice for my future career as a medievalist, and also reminded me that the best way to handle graduate school is to just follow my heart. So, I will be taking Memories of Conversion in Old English and Old Norse (this was what I wanted to write my senior thesis on before I found the Julian/Flannery topic) in the first term and the Language of Middle English Literature in the second term. Bring on the reading lists!