Friday, October 12, 2012

School, school, and more school

The past week has consisted largely of reading, writing, and trying to create a consistent schedule for myself. I have officially received assignments for both of my classes--Political Thought from Bentham to Weber, and Philosophy of Religion. This coming week I have a 5-page paper due Monday on the political writings of Henri comte de Saint-Simon, and a 10-page paper due Wednesday on the question "Is Religion Faith Irrational?" For each of these I have massive amounts of reading to do before I write the paper.

I had my first class, or tutorial, last Tuesday. I met with the professor (tutor) and read my 5-page paper on Jeremy Bentham aloud. Every paragraph or so he would stop me and ask questions about what I had just read. Why did I think that? Could I think of alternative points of view? Etc. It was nerve-wracking at first but I got less nervous as time went on, and I assume it will be better during my next tutorial.

I have started figuring out a consistent schedule for myself to make sure I get enough work done each day. I get up in the morning and have breakfast/coffee in my room. Then I respond to email and start reading. I read for 1-2 hours and then get ready to head over to the college. I make sure my room is tidy before I leave (Mom I know you're proud!) because someone empties my trash everyday, and she also vacuums once a week. Then I go to the college and eat lunch. After, I head to one of the libraries, the Bodleian, Radcliffe Camera, or Social Science Library, and read for 4-5 hours. Many of the books I have to read cannot actually be checked out, so I have to read them at the library and take notes for my papers. Then I go for a run and then head to dinner. After dinner I come back to my dorm and do more reading!

The Radcliffe Camera, with the shadow of the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin. Once I was studying in here and a tour group came in and watched all of us study!

The Hertford Bridge, or Oxford's own Bridge of Sighs.

The Bodleian Library, the second largest library in the United Kingdom.

No comments:

Post a Comment