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Learning
to write well is an important feature of a Davidson education and
a special emphasis in the English Department, where all courses
involve instruction in writing. While students at Davidson cannot
major in writing, they can take a variety of writing courses throughout
their four years. The English Department is pleased to offer a wide
array of writing courses, made possible by both permanent staff
and the visiting McGee Professor of Creative Writing.
The McGee Professorship
Through a gift of Davidson alumnus John McGee, the College hosts
a writer in residence for one semester of each academic year. The
McGee Professor is an outstanding writer of national stature, whether
a poet, fiction writer, playwright, screenwriter, or essayist. Many
McGee Professors are accomplished in several of these areas at once.
While on campus, McGee Professors teach writing classes, help direct
senior honor theses, and contribute to the life of the College through
readings and other appearances. Recent McGee Professors have been
Stephen Sandy, Pinckney Benedict, Maxine Kumin, Robert Morgan, Davidson
alumna Sheri Reynolds, Jill Ciment, Maria Irene Fornes, Josephine
Humphreys, Al Young, Susan Allport, Douglas Glover, and Diana Hume
George. The
McGee Professor for 2006-2007 will be poet Henri Cole.
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2006-2007 McGee Professor Henri Cole is the author of
six volumes of poetry including Middle Earth, a
finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. He holds degrees from the
College of William and Mary and Columbia University; he has
taught at Brandeis, Columbia, Harvard, and Yale
universities. His awards include the Berlin Prize of the
American Academy in Berlin and the Rome Prize in Literature
from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Henri Cole
will be in residence for the spring term. |
Creative Writing
The English Department regularly offers creative writing courses
in four genres, in courses taught on the introductory and advanced
levels. In introductory courses, English 202 includes the
writing of both poetry and fiction, while English 203
focuses exclusively on poetry, English 204 on fiction,
and English 205 on either screenwriting or playwriting.
On the advanced level, English 301, "Writing Non-fiction
Prose," is a class in the art of the creative essay, English
303 focuses exclusively on poetry, English 304 on
fiction, and English 305 on either screenwriting or playwriting.
All creative writing courses are taught by a combination of permanent
faculty and the visiting McGee Professor of Creative Writing.
Courses in creative writing at Davidson are workshop-based: they
rely upon peer critiques as a fundamental aspect of instruction.
Classes are limited to sixteen students on the introductory level,
and twelve students on the advanced level. Permission to enroll
in advanced creative writing courses is required prior to registration;
the application procedure may include submission of a writing
sample. For further information, contact Prof. Alan
Michael Parker, Director of Creative Writing.
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Financial Support For Students
Composition and W-Courses
Every incoming student is required to take an introductory course
in college composition, either through the two-year Humanities
Program, through one of a group of first-year seminars offered
by a variety of departments, or through English Composition
I. While every member of the English Department teaches English
Composition, some sections take a topical orientation –--
for example, "Food as Symbol and Spectacle," "The
Architecture of the Essay," or "Environmental Writing"
–-- while others involve reading a wide variety of essays.
English 100 W, "Composition and Literature,"
offers instruction in composition through learning how to write
about literature. It carries a double core-requirement credit
–-- one credit for composition and the other for literature.
English 101 W, "Instruction in expository writing
and the research paper." Not available to students who are
in Humanities or who have otherwise exempted the composition requirement,
except by permission of the chair during Drop/Add.
English 201, "Intermediate Composition," is a
follow-up course to English 101, providing instruction in writing
across the disciplines and more advanced college essay-writing.
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The Writing Center
The Literary Life at Davidson College
Visiting Writers
Each year, approximately ten visiting writers come to Davidson
College to give public readings, meet with students both in classes
and informally, and participate in college life. The list of distinguished
guests who have visited includes winners of the Pulitzer Prize,
MacArthur Foundation "genius grants," and the Nobel
Prize. Robert Frost gave a poetry reading at the college, as did
Robert Bly. William Styron has visited on numerous occasions,
as has alumnus Charles Wright ('56). A.R. Ammons, Maya Angelou,
Margaret Atwood, Seamus Heaney, Reynolds Price and Lee Smith have
all come to campus to read and teach. Recent visitors have included
Marjorie Agosin, Dorothy Allison, Aliki Barnstone, Tony Barnstone,
Willis Barnstone, Frank Bidart, Ralph Black, Robert Olen Butler,
Fred Chappell, The Hon. Martin Clark ('81), Lucille Clifton, Wanda
Coleman, Michael Cunningham, Clyde Edgerton, Alice Fulton, David
Galef, Diana Hume George, Nikki Giovanni, Garrett Hongo, Wayne
Koestenbaum, Paul Krugman, Catherine Landis ('77), John Lane,
Campbell McGrath, Joyce Carol Oates, Tim O'Brien, Jacqueline Osherow,
Richard Powers, Annie Proulx, Anna Rabinowitz, Janisse Ray, Ishmael Reed, Salman
Rushdie, Zadie Smith, Yevgeny Yevteshenko.
For upcoming readings/lectures, see the
2006-2007 Literary Calendar.
Writing Contests
The English Department sponsors three yearly contests for student
writers, each judged by an illustrious visiting writer. Poet and
essayist, David Kirby, will judge this
year's Charles E. Lloyd and R. Windley Hall contests and offer a
reading from his work on Wednesday, March 14, 2007; and poet
Eleanor Wilner
will select the Vereen Bell winners and give a public reading
on Thursday, April 12, 2007. Both programs will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the
C. Shaw Smith 900 Room of the College Union, and will be free
and open to the public.
The Vereen Bell Memorial Award in
Creative Writing
The Vereen Bell Memorial Award in Creative Writing is given annually
to a member of the senior, junior, or sophomore class who has
done the best work in fiction, poetry, or drama. The award is
given in memory of Vereen Bell of the Class of 1932, a promising
and successful young novelist and short story writer who gave
his life for his country in the second battle of the Phillipine
Sea during World War II.
The Charles E. Lloyd Award for Non-fiction.
The Charles E. Lloyd Writing Award is given to a member of the
sophomore, junior, or senior class for excellence in the field
of non-fiction. Essays submitted for the award may include both
formal, scholarly essays and personal essays. The award is given
in memory of Professor Charles E. Lloyd, Professor of English
at Davidson for many years and twice coach of championship College
Quiz Bowl Teams.
The R. Windley Hall Award for First-Year Writing
The R. Windley Hall Writing Award is presented to the member of
the first-year class at Davidson College who submits the best
piece of fiction, poetry, or non-fiction prose. The award is given
by his family and friends in memory of R. Windley Hall, a graduate
of the Class of 1963 whose life was cut short on January 18, 1967,
while he was a graduate student at Vanderbilt University.
Student Publications
Opportunities for students to write for student publications
abound. The annual creative writing magazine, Hobart Park,
is student-run and edited, as are the student newspaper, The
Davidsonian, and the alternative magazine, Libertas.
Informal writing groups, workshops, and salons are frequent, and
student-run. Creative writers enjoy a dynamic and supportive community
among their peers on campus.
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