tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post745098970742757559..comments2023-12-23T04:56:29.702-05:00Comments on Ferule & Fescue: Loosey-gooseyFlaviahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17832765671541392835noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-55743215748854972712015-05-31T10:30:56.254-04:002015-05-31T10:30:56.254-04:00I'm glad to hear others have had such positive...I'm glad to hear others have had such positive experiences (and CPP, your story made me laugh out loud). I think that I'd seen unprepared/underbaked presentations enough that it didn't occur to me that preliminary work could <i>not be like that</i>, but that it could be well-organized and well-delivered, based in strong, interesting research, and have its audience's needs and interests in mind. (I'm sure I'd seen such presentations before, but just not recognized them as such!) <br /><br />And Jason, I've given this a lot of thought--why Miltonists are more prone to retreating behind erudition (or playing "gotcha!" with small details). It's definitely not the majority who do this, but it's a much more visible minority than in other subfields: That Guy can appear in any conference panel on any subject but Milton panels/conferences <i>always</i> seem to have one, and sometimes several.<br /><br />Some of it may be an attempt to live up to Milton's own self-depiction, but I agree that a bigger part may be a way of shoring up Milton's cultural authority: to be a real Miltonist, you need to have read all his works and know all the ins and outs of his biography (that's what justifies being a specialist, or having such a thing as a Milton specialist).<br /><br />I actually saw almost none of that behavior at this conference, which was one of the warmest and loveliest I've attended (and I've never seen enough of it anywhere to put me off Miltonists). But I can't say I saw none.Flaviahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17832765671541392835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-41225317772510643722015-05-31T09:29:02.828-04:002015-05-31T09:29:02.828-04:00A) I am doing this RIGHT NOW: writing a paper on t...A) I am doing this RIGHT NOW: writing a paper on the very edge of my research to give in three weeks. Like you, my previous efforts have usually been pulled from work that's much farther along. I worry that I'll still be writing on the train to the conference.<br /><br />B) Perhaps we Miltonists are hectoring pedants because, primed as we are to see nobility of being on the losing side (whether of the Restoration in 1660 or the modern Shakespeare/Milton employment divide), Hector is our favorite character in the Iliad.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00951557224645946181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-11325514887418399232015-05-30T17:33:31.891-04:002015-05-30T17:33:31.891-04:00Loosey goosey is very fun and rewarding!
One of t...Loosey goosey is very fun and rewarding!<br /><br />One of the best conference talks I ever gave I was the chair of a session and not scheduled to give a talk at all. An hour before the session begins, I get a cellphone call from one of the speakers that she is very ill and can't speak. So I go running around the conference venue looking for the program chair, and finally find him and ask what to do. And he is all like, "I DON'T CARE!! BUT YOU BETTER FUCKEN FILL THAT SLOT!!! YOU GIVE A FUCKEN TALK!!!! HOW ABOUT THAT!?!?!?!?"<br /><br />So during the first two talks of the session, when I'm not busy moderating, I'm looking around on my laptop for some interesting new data, and find some shittio that is totally not ready for prime time, but looks very intriguing, but we really don't even know how to begin thinking about it. So I basically put those data up on the screen, and ask the audience if they have any ideas what it might mean. Led to one of the best discussions I've ever experienced at a conference.Comradde PhysioProffenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-31345765731958159582015-05-30T16:18:32.334-04:002015-05-30T16:18:32.334-04:00I wish more people felt free to present material w...I wish more people felt free to present material with open questions. Whenever I do, I get really helpful feedback. When I present stuff I think is more polished, I think I know all the answers, and am much less open to comments and suggestions.<br /><br />And it's great to have a draft chapter at the beginning of the summer!Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09716705206734059708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27054305.post-37021027833360808682015-05-30T09:36:03.830-04:002015-05-30T09:36:03.830-04:00I can totally relate on the fear of getting asked ...I can totally relate on the fear of getting asked a question that involves a text I haven't read or something like that. The fear accompanies me at every SAA. One time, I got asked a question with a word in the question that I didn't know the definition of. I didn't handle that well. <br /><br />Anyway, this sounds like a great experience. Congrats on getting some good work done early in the summer!! Fie upon this quiet life!https://www.blogger.com/profile/12047096700049201873noreply@blogger.com