Paperback Pandemonium 2022; or, The English Major’s March Madness

You thought March Madness was just for basketball? Well, think again! There is nothing better than discussing your favorite book with friends! However, these conversations can lead down a competitive path. What better way to defend your favorite book than to vote in a book tournament? This March, the Alpha Theta Eta chapter of Sigma … Continue reading Paperback Pandemonium 2022; or, The English Major’s March Madness

#Shakespeare After Shakespeare

On Friday, February 18th, the Literature Track hosted a pre-show event in conjunction with the Manhattan Arts Center’s production of The Book of Will. First staged in 2018 and written by Laurie Gunderson, The Book of Will shows how friendship, not scholarship, motivated Shakespeare’s actor-friends to gather all his plays into a single collection seven … Continue reading #Shakespeare After Shakespeare

Winter 2021-2022 Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Cover for Karma Animalia (Social Justice Anthologies, 2022) by Ania Payne   Each month during the academic year, we assemble a newsletter of the department's recent publications, presentations, announcements, and awards. As we begin a third year living with COVID-19, we continue to direct energies towards teaching our courses and to supporting others during the … Continue reading Winter 2021-2022 Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Spring Preview

Spring Flowers (photo: Office of the President) This week's glimpse of warmer temperatures offers a preview of what's ahead, once we experience some more winter weather. As we dodge snow and the latest COVID-19 variant here at the start of the semester, we'll look for signs of spring where we can! Here are some of … Continue reading Spring Preview

Really, It’s in Your Best Interest to Join Captain Jack in a Life of Piracy

Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) Today we share the final entry selected for publication from an assignment in ENGL 801 “Graduate Studies in English”: a piece of public scholarship (700-1,000 words) which tailors an academic paper and its scholarly intervention of 10-12 … Continue reading Really, It’s in Your Best Interest to Join Captain Jack in a Life of Piracy

November 2021 Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Cover for the online journal Fleas on the Dog, where Ania Payne's work appears.     Each month during the academic year, we assemble a newsletter of the department's recent publications, presentations, announcements, and awards. As COVID-19 continues, we continue to direct energies towards teaching fall courses and to supporting others during the pandemic. We're … Continue reading November 2021 Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity

Sex List

Today we share the third of four pieces of public writing selected for publication from an assignment in ENGL 801 “Graduate Studies in English”: a piece of public scholarship (700-1,000 words) which tailors an academic paper and its scholarly intervention of 10-12 pages for a general-interest audience. Read more about the assignment and the first … Continue reading Sex List

Death and the Afterlife in Ecclesiastes and Hamlet

Ahmed Adly, “Human Skull in Black -- Proud of Death” (2019) Today we share the second of four pieces of public writing selected for publication from an assignment in ENGL 801 “Graduate Studies in English”: a piece of public scholarship (700-1,000 words) which tailors an academic paper and its scholarly intervention of 10-12 pages for … Continue reading Death and the Afterlife in Ecclesiastes and Hamlet

Our Thanks to Christina Hauck

Christina Hauck in her graduation video for Haley Kuenzi (BA '20) in December 2020 Last Friday, as part of our annual holiday party, we celebrated the contributions of Christina Hauck who is retiring this December after 27 years of service to Kansas State. Our celebration was on Zoom, given the rise of recent COVID variants, … Continue reading Our Thanks to Christina Hauck

Over the Garden Wall is Trying to Scare Your Kids, and That’s Not a Bad Thing

A tree from Over the Garden Wall (Episode 1 “The Old Grist Mill”) In ENGL 801 "Graduate Studies in English," a required course for incoming M.A. students, we have always asked our graduate students to develop an original contribution to a current scholarly conversation about a literary or cultural text. Starting last year, we added … Continue reading Over the Garden Wall is Trying to Scare Your Kids, and That’s Not a Bad Thing