Oxford Modern Languages Students and Applicants
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Original post by qwertyuiop1993
Do you study French Sole? Because I'm starting that course in October at Oxford...
Just a quick question - please tell me you struggled with the 'Cahier d'un retour au pays natal' when you first read it....just a little bit? Also....the literary theory texts are pretty....thought provoking..
Do they expect you to just 'get' the texts when you arrive...or are they're expectations a little less exacting?
Just a quick question - please tell me you struggled with the 'Cahier d'un retour au pays natal' when you first read it....just a little bit? Also....the literary theory texts are pretty....thought provoking..
Do they expect you to just 'get' the texts when you arrive...or are they're expectations a little less exacting?
I do French and German but French sole isn't too different- you just do the extra film/thought stuff, right?
Cahier d'un retour is horrible. Bear in mind though that for the exam, the texts are organised in 'complementary pairs' so you'll only have to write about one from each pair. If you don't like Cesaire, do Baudelaire! That said, you will have to get through the tute on it..
And yep, as the person above has said, for the "short texts" you won't write about themes as such, but you'll do commentaries, which are just close analyses of extracts which you'll be given in the exam. So definitely worth reading these ones in the original French.
Ummm with terms of 'getting' it, I'm gonna go against what the others have said slightly... No, they're not expecting great things, but nor are they going to teach you the text as teachers do at A Level. You'll get set a commentary before your tutorial, so you're pretty much on your own with what to write (apart from criticism, obviously). Likewise, in the tute, they'll expect to discuss the text from the beginning, not teach you key concepts first.
I'd advise you to just read the text critically, and actively. Always be thinking about the sense of it, and what wider issues stem from that particular passage. Think about how the text fits together, as that's a big aspect of commentary. Also, you'll want to really enjoy freshers/your first year so it makes sense to do as much now while things are a bit quiet at home... because the busy life of Oxford will hit you pretty hard! In a good way : )
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by Livi93
Hi 
I am looking at applying for 2012 entry to study French and beginner's Russian at Oxford, and was wondering if anyone doing the course could tell me anything about it?
Anything at all would be helpful, whether it's the interviews and tests or the actual course and the year abroad - it all seems a bit overwhelming at the moment! Also can anyone recommend any literature to read beforehand for either language?
Thank you
Olivia
I am looking at applying for 2012 entry to study French and beginner's Russian at Oxford, and was wondering if anyone doing the course could tell me anything about it?
Anything at all would be helpful, whether it's the interviews and tests or the actual course and the year abroad - it all seems a bit overwhelming at the moment! Also can anyone recommend any literature to read beforehand for either language?
Thank you
Olivia
You can find a lot of information about the course from here:
http://www.mod-langs.ox.ac.uk/files/docs/handbooks/french_prelim_1011.pdf
I'd recommend Sartre - Huis Clos/Les Mouches and perhaps L'Etranger by Camus (Though I swear everyone reads Camus so it might pay to be a little different!)
Also....have you read Le Petit Prince? It's for kids but it's soo good! My submitted essay was on it...
Poetry is very helpful - especially at interview because you often get a poem to analyse (some colleges will give you a dictionary, like Trinity)
It might be worth looking at some Baudelaire, especially 'Les Fleurs du Mal' because they are on the prelims course and also are sometimes used for interviews. (last year it was 'La clôche fêlée)
I'd personally recommend Pierre de Ronsard, Verlaine, de Lamartine - anyone really. It doesn't really matter who you choose, but that you enjoy it and can speak enthusiastically about it.
For beginners' languages the interview will be in English and you might get an English text to analyse.
The grammar test isn't too hard, though there are some tricky parts.
This is quite good for a brush up.
http://www.lang.ox.ac.uk/courses/tst_placement_french.htmlhttp://www.lang.ox.ac.uk/courses/tst_placement_french.html
Make sure you know your subjunctive/ne explétif/neuter pronouns/literary tenses such as the passé simple or passé antérieur as they came up.
The translations themselves aren't too hard, but they are always trying to test a specific grammatical rule so once you work out what it is then it's not so daunting.
Before 2012 entry, grammar tests were done in College but it seems you have to do it in November?
Hope that helped
(edited 12 years ago)
Thank you so much! Such a big help
Yeah we have to do the tests on the 2nd of November now - panicking slightly but practicing a lot!
Thank you for the recommendations - I've read l'etranger and Les Mains Sales, plus some Moliere and Vercors.. Not done any poetry though so thank you for that!
Would you say that keeping up with current affairs is a really big part of it? I've not done a huge amount on France, the literature's kind of taken over a bit..!
Thank you so much
Yeah we have to do the tests on the 2nd of November now - panicking slightly but practicing a lot!
Thank you for the recommendations - I've read l'etranger and Les Mains Sales, plus some Moliere and Vercors.. Not done any poetry though so thank you for that!
Would you say that keeping up with current affairs is a really big part of it? I've not done a huge amount on France, the literature's kind of taken over a bit..!
Thank you so much
Original post by Livi93
Hi
I am looking at applying for 2012 entry to study French and beginner's Russian at Oxford, and was wondering if anyone doing the course could tell me anything about it?
Anything at all would be helpful, whether it's the interviews and tests or the actual course and the year abroad - it all seems a bit overwhelming at the moment! Also can anyone recommend any literature to read beforehand for either language?
Thank you
Olivia
I am looking at applying for 2012 entry to study French and beginner's Russian at Oxford, and was wondering if anyone doing the course could tell me anything about it?
Anything at all would be helpful, whether it's the interviews and tests or the actual course and the year abroad - it all seems a bit overwhelming at the moment! Also can anyone recommend any literature to read beforehand for either language?
Thank you
Olivia
Hiya, I applied for this year entry to do French and German at Jesus, I start in three weeks (eek).
I'm not sure about beginners Russian, but my best friend applied to do Arabic ab initio last year as well. She had to do the Linguistic Aptitude Test whilst she was down for interview; it's where you have to like decode a made up language or something like that, but I have no idea whether you need to do that for Russian (have a look on the website, it'll all be there).
As for French, what I did was I mentioned in my personal statement that I'd read Camus, Sartre and Zola. I had read books by them, but before I got to Oxford for interview I made sure I'd read two by at least each author. I'd read The Plague, The Outsider and The Fall by Camus, Nausea and The Age Of Reason by Sartre and Germinal and Therese Raquin by Zola. I didn't read them in French though (I said something about wanting to appreciate their meaning more in my personal statement), but then I did say I'd read some short stories in French, I read quite a bit of Daudet's Lettres de Mon Moulin and some by Zola I think.
I would tell you in depth about my interview, but I honestly don't think it would help, it seems to be different for every college: I got given a choice between a text in French or German and a text in English, was given 45 minutes to read the two then had my interview (which was for French and German at the same time, you'll probably have separate ones cos you're doing one language ab initio). My best friend on the other hand, turned up to her French interview, was given a text and had to read, talk about it there and then!
DO revise for the French grammar test (there's a ****load of subjunctive, trust me). Just look at the grammar spec for the A level you're doing, they don't expect you to know anything that's not on your A level.
Honestly, don't stress too much about it. I didn't take my interview seriously at all; I basically only applied to Oxford on a whim and because my teachers told me I should do. I wasn't bothered at all about if I got in or not, I know it sounds ridiculous, but at the end of the day, it is just a university and your life will not end if you don't get in. My advice for the interview is just be yourself, don't come out with a load of stuff that you think they want to hear, just go in there and rock it. You obviously love languages and hopefully that'll shine through (if you need any help with personal statement etc, feel free to email me and I'll send you a copy of mine)!
Original post by laurenlaurenlaurenlauren
Original post by laurenlaurenlaurenlauren
Hiya, I applied for this year entry to do French and German at Jesus, I start in three weeks (eek).
I'm not sure about beginners Russian, but my best friend applied to do Arabic ab initio last year as well. She had to do the Linguistic Aptitude Test whilst she was down for interview; it's where you have to like decode a made up language or something like that, but I have no idea whether you need to do that for Russian (have a look on the website, it'll all be there).
As for French, what I did was I mentioned in my personal statement that I'd read Camus, Sartre and Zola. I had read books by them, but before I got to Oxford for interview I made sure I'd read two by at least each author. I'd read The Plague, The Outsider and The Fall by Camus, Nausea and The Age Of Reason by Sartre and Germinal and Therese Raquin by Zola. I didn't read them in French though (I said something about wanting to appreciate their meaning more in my personal statement), but then I did say I'd read some short stories in French, I read quite a bit of Daudet's Lettres de Mon Moulin and some by Zola I think.
I would tell you in depth about my interview, but I honestly don't think it would help, it seems to be different for every college: I got given a choice between a text in French or German and a text in English, was given 45 minutes to read the two then had my interview (which was for French and German at the same time, you'll probably have separate ones cos you're doing one language ab initio). My best friend on the other hand, turned up to her French interview, was given a text and had to read, talk about it there and then!
DO revise for the French grammar test (there's a ****load of subjunctive, trust me). Just look at the grammar spec for the A level you're doing, they don't expect you to know anything that's not on your A level.
Honestly, don't stress too much about it. I didn't take my interview seriously at all; I basically only applied to Oxford on a whim and because my teachers told me I should do. I wasn't bothered at all about if I got in or not, I know it sounds ridiculous, but at the end of the day, it is just a university and your life will not end if you don't get in. My advice for the interview is just be yourself, don't come out with a load of stuff that you think they want to hear, just go in there and rock it. You obviously love languages and hopefully that'll shine through (if you need any help with personal statement etc, feel free to email me and I'll send you a copy of mine)!
I'm not sure about beginners Russian, but my best friend applied to do Arabic ab initio last year as well. She had to do the Linguistic Aptitude Test whilst she was down for interview; it's where you have to like decode a made up language or something like that, but I have no idea whether you need to do that for Russian (have a look on the website, it'll all be there).
As for French, what I did was I mentioned in my personal statement that I'd read Camus, Sartre and Zola. I had read books by them, but before I got to Oxford for interview I made sure I'd read two by at least each author. I'd read The Plague, The Outsider and The Fall by Camus, Nausea and The Age Of Reason by Sartre and Germinal and Therese Raquin by Zola. I didn't read them in French though (I said something about wanting to appreciate their meaning more in my personal statement), but then I did say I'd read some short stories in French, I read quite a bit of Daudet's Lettres de Mon Moulin and some by Zola I think.
I would tell you in depth about my interview, but I honestly don't think it would help, it seems to be different for every college: I got given a choice between a text in French or German and a text in English, was given 45 minutes to read the two then had my interview (which was for French and German at the same time, you'll probably have separate ones cos you're doing one language ab initio). My best friend on the other hand, turned up to her French interview, was given a text and had to read, talk about it there and then!
DO revise for the French grammar test (there's a ****load of subjunctive, trust me). Just look at the grammar spec for the A level you're doing, they don't expect you to know anything that's not on your A level.
Honestly, don't stress too much about it. I didn't take my interview seriously at all; I basically only applied to Oxford on a whim and because my teachers told me I should do. I wasn't bothered at all about if I got in or not, I know it sounds ridiculous, but at the end of the day, it is just a university and your life will not end if you don't get in. My advice for the interview is just be yourself, don't come out with a load of stuff that you think they want to hear, just go in there and rock it. You obviously love languages and hopefully that'll shine through (if you need any help with personal statement etc, feel free to email me and I'll send you a copy of mine)!
Thank you so much, that's so helpful! Yeah I have a language aptitude test on the 2nd of November, it's changed this year so it's before the interviews
That's a good idea about reading more than one book from each author - did you find it helped a lot? I've read l'etranger, Le Malade Imaginaire by Moliere, Le Silence de la Mer, and Les Mains Sales (all in French) plus some of Trotsky's short stories in French translation (kill two birds with one stone) and one other Russian book, but I think I need to know more about all of them in more detail I think!
Aah I do the IB so don't have the same as A level expectations -.- I will find it though! Like we don't even need to use all the tenses the A levels do to do well, it's really annoying haha.
Also what made you choose Jesus? I'm trying to decide what college at the moment and it's in my top few
Thank you so much, it makes such a difference hearing all this!
Original post by Livi93
Thank you so much, it makes such a difference hearing all this!
Hi! Sorry to butt in, but if you're looking to read Russian books, may I suggest two: One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich which is - unsurprisingly - short, but really interesting both from a cultural and a literal perspective, and even better than that is The Master and the Margarita which is TRIPPY and severely Russian. It's also quite long and you have to (HAVE TO) keep a record of all the names, but it's seriously awesome.
I'm not a Russian student or anything. I've only got a Russian friend who told me to read these books, which I did, and I'm happy I did.
Also, I didn't talk much about the books I read in my interview. Bear in mind you'll only be talking about the books in your general, not your specific, interview. The interview is about 20 to 30 minutes long in my memory, though it may well be shorter, and you talk about everything. What you've done in school, why you want to study these subjects, if you've been to the coutnries, what books/films you've read/seen... and they won't grill you in detail. They'll probably just ask "Oh, so you've read two works by so-and-so. Did anything strike you about their style?", or "I see you enjoyed blah-di-blah. What pleased you in this book?".
I read a bucket load of books (for pleasure, not really for the interview), and only spoke about one or two, and that's because we were looking at a short Kafka story in the interview even though it was the general interview. So I talked about the other Kafka I'd read. The one book which I specifically read which I thought might come up in the interview (a book of short stories my fellow translated) didn't. So don't overprepare or you'll get yourself stuck in an unflexible corner. Oh, also, the book I mentioned in my personal statement also didn't come up.
Good luck, and enjoy
P.S. After reading laurenlaurenlaurenlauren's comment... Of course you must take my experience with a massive pinch of salt, and as she said, don't stress. I also applied on a whim. I totally didn't want to go to Oxford, it's just the only place which accepted me so I pretty much had no choice.
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by Livi93
Thank you so much, that's so helpful! Yeah I have a language aptitude test on the 2nd of November, it's changed this year so it's before the interviews
That's a good idea about reading more than one book from each author - did you find it helped a lot? I've read l'etranger, Le Malade Imaginaire by Moliere, Le Silence de la Mer, and Les Mains Sales (all in French) plus some of Trotsky's short stories in French translation (kill two birds with one stone) and one other Russian book, but I think I need to know more about all of them in more detail I think!
Aah I do the IB so don't have the same as A level expectations -.- I will find it though! Like we don't even need to use all the tenses the A levels do to do well, it's really annoying haha.
Also what made you choose Jesus? I'm trying to decide what college at the moment and it's in my top few
Thank you so much, it makes such a difference hearing all this!
That's a good idea about reading more than one book from each author - did you find it helped a lot? I've read l'etranger, Le Malade Imaginaire by Moliere, Le Silence de la Mer, and Les Mains Sales (all in French) plus some of Trotsky's short stories in French translation (kill two birds with one stone) and one other Russian book, but I think I need to know more about all of them in more detail I think!
Aah I do the IB so don't have the same as A level expectations -.- I will find it though! Like we don't even need to use all the tenses the A levels do to do well, it's really annoying haha.
Also what made you choose Jesus? I'm trying to decide what college at the moment and it's in my top few
Thank you so much, it makes such a difference hearing all this!
Hey, sorry it's taken me so long to reply; I really need to start paying attention to my e-mails.
If you're fretting about grammar, have a look on the AQA A level French website, on the specification. There's a grammar specification there, brush up on the stuff there.
Don't fret too much about knowing the books you've read inside out, I didn't. I think if they're going to ask you about the books, they'll ask you what YOU thought of them. So have an opinion. I didn't get asked about the books I'd read for my Oxford interview, I did for my University of London Institute in Paris interview, but again, they only asked me what I thought of Sartre.
What made me choose Jesus? I went to the Open Day last September and looked round quite a few colleges (I made a list). I looked round like Oriel, Exeter, Trinity and seriously HATED them all; the people doing the tours were all really stuck up and I didn't like them at all. Then as we came out of Exeter, we saw Jesus and just went in on a whim, and I loved it. It's a really nice college, it's small but really pretty and the people there were really nice and welcoming. It's one of the older ones and also one of the richer ones (so they have their own bursary scheme as well as the Oxford one, if you're worried about money). The accommodation is quite nice, they've just opened a new block of flats from undergrads across the road. I just really liked it. I think your best bet when choosing a college is just to go and look round a couple and get a feel for them. I wouldn't go for an open application though, all the people I knew who did an open application got allocated a college right on the outskirts of Oxford, Jesus is (by the way) also slap bang in the centre so it's really close to everything!
Hope that helped!
Original post by barefootfiona
Hi! Sorry to butt in, but if you're looking to read Russian books, may I suggest two: One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich which is - unsurprisingly - short, but really interesting both from a cultural and a literal perspective, and even better than that is The Master and the Margarita which is TRIPPY and severely Russian. It's also quite long and you have to (HAVE TO) keep a record of all the names, but it's seriously awesome.
Thank you! I've read One Day... , it was SO good. Really really enjoyed it, that went on my PS haha. I actually went to the Oxford open day on Friday, and I think the course was too literature-based for me, so I've decided not to apply - I think it's pointless just going for the name, not worth it.
Thank you so much, I'll definitely check out The Master and the Margarita too
Original post by laurenlaurenlaurenlauren
Hey, sorry it's taken me so long to reply; I really need to start paying attention to my e-mails.
If you're fretting about grammar, have a look on the AQA A level French website, on the specification. There's a grammar specification there, brush up on the stuff there.
Don't fret too much about knowing the books you've read inside out, I didn't. I think if they're going to ask you about the books, they'll ask you what YOU thought of them. So have an opinion. I didn't get asked about the books I'd read for my Oxford interview, I did for my University of London Institute in Paris interview, but again, they only asked me what I thought of Sartre.
If you're fretting about grammar, have a look on the AQA A level French website, on the specification. There's a grammar specification there, brush up on the stuff there.
Don't fret too much about knowing the books you've read inside out, I didn't. I think if they're going to ask you about the books, they'll ask you what YOU thought of them. So have an opinion. I didn't get asked about the books I'd read for my Oxford interview, I did for my University of London Institute in Paris interview, but again, they only asked me what I thought of Sartre.
Thank you! I went to the open day on Friday and decided the course was too literature-based for what I wanted, and the Russian side seemed a bit too intense for the way I like to learn.. So I decided not to apply
Thank you so much for your help though and I'm still checking all your reading recommendations as well! (also yes Jesus was so nice! I would have applied there..!)
Original post by epilogueofyouth
Last night, I posted something similar to this in the Cambridge thread, but I thought I'd give it a shot here, too! Again, I'm sorry if I am posting in the wrong place.
I have just started my AS courses, two of which are Italian and French. I'm pretty certain that I want to pursue Italian to a degree level, I really have always enjoyed it thoroughly.
I was just wondering, what would you recommend that I do over the course of the next year or so that would give me the best chance possible of getting accepted into a top university for modern languages? I have heard people say things about trying to read widely and to try and look into many aspects of Italian culture and life, but is there anything else I could do that in particular I could put on my personal statement?
Coming from a poor background, I have never been abroad, let alone Italy, and I truly do not see myself being able to go abroad before applying to university next year. Do you think that would be considered a problem, or that it would give me less of a chance?
Thank you
I have just started my AS courses, two of which are Italian and French. I'm pretty certain that I want to pursue Italian to a degree level, I really have always enjoyed it thoroughly.
I was just wondering, what would you recommend that I do over the course of the next year or so that would give me the best chance possible of getting accepted into a top university for modern languages? I have heard people say things about trying to read widely and to try and look into many aspects of Italian culture and life, but is there anything else I could do that in particular I could put on my personal statement?
Coming from a poor background, I have never been abroad, let alone Italy, and I truly do not see myself being able to go abroad before applying to university next year. Do you think that would be considered a problem, or that it would give me less of a chance?
Thank you
Not being to the country will not be a problem - if you are passionate about the subject then they know you eventually will get to Italy (The year abroad!) As long as you have a strong grasp of grammar (for universities that do tests - I think just Oxford and Cambridge) and have read widely then that will show your commitment to studying languages.
My sister had never been to France when she applied and she got 4/5 offers, the rejection being from Cambridge after an appalling interview (apparently).
Original post by Livi93
Thank you! I've read One Day... , it was SO good. Really really enjoyed it, that went on my PS haha. I actually went to the Oxford open day on Friday, and I think the course was too literature-based for me, so I've decided not to apply - I think it's pointless just going for the name, not worth it.
Thank you so much, I'll definitely check out The Master and the Margarita too
Thank you so much, I'll definitely check out The Master and the Margarita too
Too true! Way too literature based - that's why I didn't want to go there. I literally only applied on whim since I was so convinced that I would get in to Edinburgh. Regrets, eh?
Good luck on your other applications
Hey!
I've applied for French and Beginner's Italian for 2012 entry...I have 2 questions
1) Does anyone know where I can find more specimen papers for the French and Language Aptitude Tests, apart from the ones on the oxford-tests web page?! I can't find any anywhere and I'm starting to panic!!! ....Also any tips for these tests...?
2) I have never studied Italian before so can anyone recommend any (very) easy italian literature/poetry to get me started?!
I really appreciate any replies! It's great to read posts from fellow linguists....they are a tiny minority in my school!
Thanks
I've applied for French and Beginner's Italian for 2012 entry...I have 2 questions
1) Does anyone know where I can find more specimen papers for the French and Language Aptitude Tests, apart from the ones on the oxford-tests web page?! I can't find any anywhere and I'm starting to panic!!! ....Also any tips for these tests...?
2) I have never studied Italian before so can anyone recommend any (very) easy italian literature/poetry to get me started?!
I really appreciate any replies! It's great to read posts from fellow linguists....they are a tiny minority in my school!
Thanks
Hi, I was just wondering what to expect - I presume it will involve writing some kind of essay- I am doing the Spanish and French test on the 2nd of November and I just wanted to verify that because I am doing two languages that means I don't have to do the linguistic aptitude test- correct? I have downloaded a couple of tests from the website but it says they are specimen tests you will get at interview- Does anyone have any advice on how to prepare?
Original post by KatherineGiddins
Hi, I was just wondering what to expect - I presume it will involve writing some kind of essay- I am doing the Spanish and French test on the 2nd of November and I just wanted to verify that because I am doing two languages that means I don't have to do the linguistic aptitude test- correct? I have downloaded a couple of tests from the website but it says they are specimen tests you will get at interview- Does anyone have any advice on how to prepare?
As far as I know, the LAT is just the grammar test that used to be sat in-college.
I don't think there will be an essay question - this is probably covered by your submitted work.
Original post by qwertyuiop1993
As far as I know, the LAT is just the grammar test that used to be sat in-college.
I don't think there will be an essay question - this is probably covered by your submitted work.
I don't think there will be an essay question - this is probably covered by your submitted work.
Ok thanks- I can breathe a sigh of relief
Original post by Bella_18
Hey!
I've applied for French and Beginner's Italian for 2012 entry...I have 2 questions
1) Does anyone know where I can find more specimen papers for the French and Language Aptitude Tests, apart from the ones on the oxford-tests web page?! I can't find any anywhere and I'm starting to panic!!! ....Also any tips for these tests...?
2) I have never studied Italian before so can anyone recommend any (very) easy italian literature/poetry to get me started?!
I really appreciate any replies! It's great to read posts from fellow linguists....they are a tiny minority in my school!
Thanks
I've applied for French and Beginner's Italian for 2012 entry...I have 2 questions
1) Does anyone know where I can find more specimen papers for the French and Language Aptitude Tests, apart from the ones on the oxford-tests web page?! I can't find any anywhere and I'm starting to panic!!! ....Also any tips for these tests...?
2) I have never studied Italian before so can anyone recommend any (very) easy italian literature/poetry to get me started?!
I really appreciate any replies! It's great to read posts from fellow linguists....they are a tiny minority in my school!
Thanks
Oooh that's hard; my teacher has random old ones
Maybe email them if all else fails?It's weird because my sister is called Bella and her birthday is 18 Jan
Hi everyone,
I'm writing an article for The Cherwell about the 'Treasures of the Bodleian' exhibition which opened to the public today, and wondered whether one or two of you would mind giving a really brief quote about the exhibition.
The exhibition is highlighting some of the most rare and unique documents in the library's collection.
It doesn't matter if you haven't yet seen the exhibition, or even if you don't intend to. Just a couple of lines about whether you're interested in the exhibition or completely indifferent about it would be fantastic. For example, are you excited about the possibility of seeing handwritten drafts of famous texts?
I will of course give lots of lovely rep to anyone kind enough to reply! Just your name, college and a couple of lines would be fantastic - by PM if you don't want to reveal your identity online.
Thanks v. much!
I'm writing an article for The Cherwell about the 'Treasures of the Bodleian' exhibition which opened to the public today, and wondered whether one or two of you would mind giving a really brief quote about the exhibition.
The exhibition is highlighting some of the most rare and unique documents in the library's collection.
It doesn't matter if you haven't yet seen the exhibition, or even if you don't intend to. Just a couple of lines about whether you're interested in the exhibition or completely indifferent about it would be fantastic. For example, are you excited about the possibility of seeing handwritten drafts of famous texts?
I will of course give lots of lovely rep to anyone kind enough to reply! Just your name, college and a couple of lines would be fantastic - by PM if you don't want to reveal your identity online.
Thanks v. much!
Original post by such_a_lady
Oooh that's hard; my teacher has random old ones Maybe email them if all else fails?
It's weird because my sister is called Bella and her birthday is 18 Jan
Maybe email them if all else fails?It's weird because my sister is called Bella and her birthday is 18 Jan
Yeahh I think I may have to!
It is THE best name Original post by *Supernova*
Hi everyone,
I'm writing an article for The Cherwell about the 'Treasures of the Bodleian' exhibition which opened to the public today, and wondered whether one or two of you would mind giving a really brief quote about the exhibition.
The exhibition is highlighting some of the most rare and unique documents in the library's collection.
It doesn't matter if you haven't yet seen the exhibition, or even if you don't intend to. Just a couple of lines about whether you're interested in the exhibition or completely indifferent about it would be fantastic. For example, are you excited about the possibility of seeing handwritten drafts of famous texts?
I will of course give lots of lovely rep to anyone kind enough to reply! Just your name, college and a couple of lines would be fantastic - by PM if you don't want to reveal your identity online.
Thanks v. much!
I'm writing an article for The Cherwell about the 'Treasures of the Bodleian' exhibition which opened to the public today, and wondered whether one or two of you would mind giving a really brief quote about the exhibition.
The exhibition is highlighting some of the most rare and unique documents in the library's collection.
It doesn't matter if you haven't yet seen the exhibition, or even if you don't intend to. Just a couple of lines about whether you're interested in the exhibition or completely indifferent about it would be fantastic. For example, are you excited about the possibility of seeing handwritten drafts of famous texts?
I will of course give lots of lovely rep to anyone kind enough to reply! Just your name, college and a couple of lines would be fantastic - by PM if you don't want to reveal your identity online.
Thanks v. much!
Hmm, I didn't know about this! Shame, I was in Oxford yesterday. As an incoming fresher (I start next Sunday), this sounds quite cool, but could be a little exclusive depending on what kind of papers are shown, and what information is given about them. I think it might be more interesting for older students or people with a particular interest in the papers shown. For example, I'd be more interested in seeing a hand-written document by Henrik Ibsen or Virginia Woolf than by Isaac Newton, even though Newton is far more famous, because I admire the first two. it's almost comparable to celebrities, if I can make that connection. I'd rather meet someone like, say, Emiliana Torrini, who I admire but is a little less known, than someone much more famous like Rihanna who I can't honestly relate to. I hope that makes some kind of sense! That said, I have no idea what kind of papers are being shown so if I do have a spare minute during freshers week I might pop in and have a look around.
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by barefootfiona
Hmm, I didn't know about this! Shame, I was in Oxford yesterday. As an incoming fresher (I start next Sunday), this sounds quite cool, but could be a little exclusive depending on what kind of papers are shown, and what information is given about them. I think it might be more interesting for older students or people with a particular interest in the papers shown. For example, I'd be more interested in seeing a hand-written document by Henrik Ibsen or Virginia Woolf than by Isaac Newton, even though Newton is far more famous, because I admire the first two. it's almost comparable to celebrities, if I can make that connection. I'd rather meet someone like, say, Emiliana Torrini, who I admire but is a little less known, than someone much more famous like Rihanna who I can't honestly relate to. I hope that makes some kind of sense! That said, I have no idea what kind of papers are being shown so if I do have a spare minute during freshers week I might pop in and have a look around.
Thanks v. much for replying - rep on the way in the next day or two!
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