<p>These two seminars are 200 level, and require either a 4 or 5 on AP, a 700 on an SATII or another FWS as a pre-req, but they don't qualify for a liberal arts distribution for the COE, are probably graded at a higher standard and have less appealing topics(IMO).</p>
<p>Sooo are there any doors these seminars can open for you that a 100 level one cannot? Or are they simply there for those freshmen who really want to challenge themselves/ have some odd desire to learn about those oh so boring (jk .. i guess =) )subjects?</p>
<p>I took ENGL 2700. That was the most I’ve learned about writing and 2nd most I’ve learned about reading throughout my entire school career. Even if I didn’t like all of the short stories we read, I loved most of them, and learned a great deal about myself and others through reading them.</p>
<p>It is a lot of work, particularly since you have to read at least 1 well known short story for every class period, and there are a lot of toughly graded essays.</p>
<p>All in all, however, I do feel like the benefits outweighed the costs.</p>
<p>Does any FWS give you an actual ADVANTAGE? I mean, they only exist to make sure that most, if not all, college students can write on a post-secondary level. They are a testament to your ability to write, but their contents might not matter that much.</p>
<p>What do you mean ADVANTAGE? To become a better writer? I’m pretty sure the only reason why probably 90% of the school takes FWS is because it is a requirement to graduate, rather than to learn how to become a better writer. Just saying.</p>
<p>All I meant by advantage was if it could potentially get you out of something later. I’m sure that this class can be rewarding, it sounds quite a bit like my IB English classes actually, and I know I learned a whole heck of a lot from them.
Of the 12 authors listed in the course description, we actually read literature by 7 of them (including much more Virginia Woolf than I’d have elected to read on my own, lol)
Thanks!</p>
<p>A lot of FWSes are rewarding in their own way. You do learn a lot, but sometimes it’s not always something you’ll use. It could just be more knowledge. But at the same time, it can be very helpful for some other classes. </p>
<p>For example, a philosophy FWS probably would not help a science major though it might be really interesting. Take something that sounds interesting and you think might help you later on.</p>
<p>ENGL 2700 sounds like my junior year english class. All we did is read a new short story every day, discuss it in depth during class, and then go write an essay on it once in a while.</p>
<p>no A Room of One’s Own or To the Lighthouse? haha. To the Lighthouse is a very difficult book to read in April of one’s senior year…I had a friend who actually didn’t turn in his commentaries until after graduation… that’s not really allowed rofl but i guess it’s okay because he’s going to Harvard. i am actually serious about all of that.</p>
<p>I took 2710–The Reading of Poetry. No, there is no concrete “advantage” to taking any of those three FWS’s (there’s also 2720 I think–The Reading of Drama). If you’re not at all interested in the subject, then don’t take one! Other people in those classes are genuinely interested and if you’re not going to have anything to contribute then I don’t see the point in signing up.</p>
<p>However, I loved this class and here’s why:
Unlike most of the other FWS’s, all three of these are taught by tenured professors rather than incompetent graduate students who care more about their own academics. And these are good professors, because Cornell’s English department, from what I’ve heard, is phenomenal. You’ll get great comments on your writing, and mine definitely improved a lot–as did my ability to really analyze text. I also think that on average, the volume of writing you have to produce is less. Not a lot less, but other FWS’s I heard about asked for 6 or 7 essays per semester whereas mine asked for 5 (however, we had some short, simple writing exercises to do as well). However, I do think the grading is a bit harder.</p>
<p>So it’s really a question of whether you actually care about the subject and want to improve your reading and writing. If you don’t, don’t bother.</p>
<p>I took English 1127 (Shakespeare) first semester and English 2710 the second semester. Both courses were great, and neither really required an overwhelming amount of work, but 1127 was taught by a grad student and 2710 was taught by a tenured professor. The professor was a really tough grader, but he was still an awesome teacher. The 200 level FWSs are supposed to prepare you for an English major, but very few in my section were English majors, and there was no real advantage to taking the course except that the subject interested me.</p>
<p>My parents told me not to do it for fear that I would be taking a harder course that might drain my energies from my main courses, my friends asked [along the lines of], “lolwut?”</p>
<p>But, I told myself that I felt that high school had not really prepared me to be a good writer and interpreter of literature, and I decided that it was about time that I learned to be one. The course was a challenge. I had never been forced to rewrite a paper before, and I’ve never received comments like the ones I received in that course. While my peers wrote 4-5 page papers covering genders video game, I was writing 7-8 pages after analyzing The Crucible.</p>
<p>Afterwards, however, I emerged a better writer, armed with greater analytical ability, as well as a new sense of confidence - I was ready to take on any course that required heavy writing. </p>
<p>To be honest, it was the best and most fruitful course that I took in my freshman year. My professor was brilliant and my classmates stimulating. </p>
<p>If you’re looking at college courses from the same perspective that you looked at High school courses, I personally think you’re in the wrong. It’s not about taking the courses that look best when you apply for whatever comes next - it’s about exploring your interests, taking risks, and bettering yourself.</p>
<p>i took 270 and it has been one of my favorite classes at cornell. These upper level classes are usually taught be professors, while the majority of FWS’s are taught by graduate students. I’d say one advantage to these classes is you get a close relationship with a professor early on, which might be good in case you need a recommendation letter after freshman year. </p>
<p>In terms of class content, that class also taught me a lot about writing and analyzing which have proved useful in my other (albeit few) writing classes.</p>
<p>Ah, okay. I would have taken The Reading of Fiction if one of the seminars fit into my stupid schedule lol (would a 720 on the SAT II Lit test have been enough, or two semesters of a Humanities Seminar - basically a freshman English seminar - at Queens College?)</p>
<p>But now that I think about it, it’s probably best to take it easy my first semester, and then take 270 or 272 in the spring.</p>