While it turned out that the majority of guests were alumni, I really enjoyed attending this event on Saturday. Basically, the English department invited professors to come and speak about English as a course of study.
Prof. David Crystal's lecture included a tangent about how Shakespeare needs to be performed in the original pronunciation (OP) of English, because so many puns are lost otherwise. For example, one scene in As You Like It involves a character talking about the hour and another character saying he laughed for a good long time about his companion's comment. This doesn't make sense until you realize that the OP of "hour" is the same as the OP of "whore," and then the comment becomes this fantastically dirty joke.
Jillian Barker commissions poets to respond to various works of art she helps to obtain for the National Gallery in London. One of the more interesting scenarios she mentioned were Helen Chadwick's Piss Flowers, sculptures based on patterns made by the author peeing in the snow. Poet Jo Shapcott responded by writing a poem about farting in the bathtub. High society for sure!
During the little breaks between speakers, we could have snacks and tea. You would go to the bar, get a cup of hot water and a saucer, then find a spot at one of those white podiums and mingle with academics and sip your Dutch blend and nibble on a delicate sandwich. Or, if you were me, you would scarf down olives and take pictures of the venue.
This little dude was outside the venue.
Events for this week may include: movie night downstairs, a scavenger hunt around the city, and a possible night of dancing to Kill All Hipsters at a club called Bitterzoet.
Mwah!
xo
C
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