The OWU English Department Blog
âAre people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?â A line from the opening song that cements a popular theme that drives the narrative of âWickedâ throughout the film. The line itself is sung by Glinda (or rather Galinda), the Good Witch of the North, which is in reference to the Wicked Witch of the West, otherwise known as Elphaba.…
The life of the former Queen of England, Lady Jane Grey, was anything but a comedy. Her life was certainly not a story most would make the center of a historical, fantastical, romantic comedy. But a 2016 novel, My Lady Jane, by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows did just that â and eight years later the Amazon Prime television show My Lady Jane was born.…
The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen was originally titled An Intimation of Things Distant. It consists of five fiction stories by Nella Larsen that were written in the 1920s during the Harlem Renaissance, which was a movement to foster Black culture and pride through literature, art, and music. The pieces in her collection discussed tensions and hardships of the Black middle class in Harlem during the 1920s: restlessness, isolation, searching for belonging, psychology, marriage, race, and the complexities of having mixed-race heritage.…
(Note: This review is not spoiler-free)
In times of political unease, it is important to remember the value of books, the lessons and the values that they contain. Given the current political climate, one of the greatest examples of a book with such values and lessons is the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel âThe Roadâ by Cormac McCarthy, first published in 2006. …
Mental health has never been a bigger topic than it is right now. Despite this, some college students still struggle to seek counseling or other necessary resources. While maintaining mental wellness can feel difficult for every college student in the depths of a hectic college life, those who are navigating mental illness often feel as though it is impossible.…
The closer we come towards the end of the semester, the harder it is for us college students to find time to decompress from the stresses of our everyday lives. Some may struggle to find the time to unwind with competing deadlines and their full schedules. For others, it may be an issue of not having enough money to treat themselves for their hard work.…
With the number of classes, assignments, and responsibilities that many college students face, staying in shape and expanding our knowledge of health and fitness can feel overwhelming. While many student athletes find counsel from coaches or teammates, students like myself, who donât play a sport but simply want to improve their health, can easily feel lost without a guide in the vast world of health and fitness.…
With Womenâs History Month coming to an end, now is the perfect time to do some last minute reading of literature written by women. In 1987, the United States Congress passed into public law a set of resolutions which officially set March as âWomenâs History Month.â Now, March is recognized in the United States and the Caribbean as a time to honor the remarkable contributions and achievements which extraordinary women have made over the course of history.…
Dark Histories, a podcast written and hosted by Ben Cutmore, is a great choice if you adore terrifyingly captivating tales. Under the genres of documentary and history, this strangely addicting podcast tells spooky but less-well-known stories of murder, ghosts, demons, and crime from times long past with sound effects and music.…
There are many common misconceptions about what it means to be a librarian. For example, some believe that librarians have the answer to every question fathomable. This is not true at all! Librarians are not AI come to life, and âOften, it comes down to simply being human.â To find the answers that patrons need, librarians will use the resources that they have, including fellow staff members, to help answer their patrons’ questions.…