Oxford English Students and Applicants

I was joking, of course they don't "expect" you to read any particular books, which is why I linked to their actual requirements. Sadly it seems nobody got it/ it really wasn't that funny.

I was joking, of course they don't "expect" you to read any particular books, which is why I linked to their actual requirements. Sadly it seems nobody got it/ it really wasn't that funny.

I ask because, being an American, I've read quite a bit of my own country's literature. The authors I mentioned were Fitzgerald, Shakespeare, Joyce and Wolfe. I find it hard to believe that they discount Robert Byrne, Joyce, Faulkner or Wilde just because they weren't "English English."

No-one said they discount all authors who aren't "English English", just that the focus tends to be on literature of English origin. I'm telling you this as someone in their second year on the course, who would dearly love to be able to study more non-English literature; unfortunately, the fact remains that there's not an awful lot of scope for that in an Oxford English degree. Those non-English authors who can be studied usually either have some connection to England, or are deemed so massively important that they can't be overlooked.

That said, Joyce and Wilde do get covered; my tutor is actually a Wilde expert, as it goes. Not heard of anyone doing Faulkner, and I'm not sure whether you meant Robert Burns (the Scottish poet) as opposed to Robert Byrne (the American novelist); the former can be covered, but the latter is too modern to be covered on any of the regular papers, even if he were English.

Hope that helps clear things up a bit.

I got it/found it funny If people are looking for a book that might help them out then the Bible's always a good start. Although it's probably a little late to be starting that one now...

I got it/found it funny If people are looking for a book that might help them out then the Bible's always a good start. Although it's probably a little late to be starting that one now...

Just to put my fears to rest, could an English applicant let me know if the list of works I'm prepared to discuss demonstrates the kind of reading an Oxford tutor wouldn't have a problem with?

Irish:

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - Joyce
Dubliners - Joyce
Molloy - Beckett
The major poems of Yeats

American:

The Great Gatsby - Fitzgerald
Look Homeward, Angel - Wolfe

English:

To the Lighthouse - Woolf
Heart of Darkness - Conrad
Oliver Twist - Dickens
Othello - Shakespeare
Macbeth - Shakespeare

Also, my submitted work was on Shakespeare. Take note also that of the texts only Macbeth and The Great Gatsby were assigned.

Christ Church for me! My friend has decided to have a giant allnight party on Saturday night. Oh well... I can just sort of guess what happens in Dostoevsky... right?

Hey guys

Had an english interview at St.Hilda's from Sunday 6th to Tuesday 8th.

My interviews were traumatic haha I don't think anything can prepare you for the "my mind has been wiped blank" experience. I couldn't remember any characters names in any of the novels I'd mentioned in my p.s.

When do we find out if we have an offer/rejection?

Shortly before Christmas. And it may well have gone better than you thought, so don't spend too much time fretting about it.

What?! Really? I thought it was mid-January
Is this just for Christ Church or every college? I applied to St Edmund Hall.