Hello, my name is Hannah McCann and you may be fascinated to hear what convinced me to pursue English Literature as my major. Sorry if I babble, this is a topic I am always too eager to share about.
Growing up, reading never appealed to me, in fact I remember staying up all night reading an entire book because I had waited until the night before it was due to start it…multiple times. However, writing was always my favorite part of class. Through elementary and junior high to high school, sharing my creativity and imagination brought me joy. I didn’t care if mine was the best, I just wanted to put a pen to paper.
It is also worth mentioning that I had some Rockstar teachers and English teachers that influenced my love for the subject. I can’t say I have ever had an English teacher I didn’t like…those teachers deserve more credit for sparking my passion than I usually give them. Some of which still proof read my important papers for me. So a big “thank you” to all of them, and an apology from me for never reading the books they assigned.
It wasn’t until about my Junior year of high school that I really enjoyed reading a book. I found that I just didn’t like being told what I had to read; I wanted to choose what actually interested me. Now, I love to grab a good book and escape from all the other worries or concerns in my life and enter a world where you can use words to imagine faces and places. It is an experience you can’t get anywhere else. I went from sleeping through Shakespeare (literally), to attending live performances of the plays at the Globe Theatre in London and noticing when the players skipped a line.
My fascination with Shakespeare blossomed from the challenge it held, it was like learning a new language. Each time I read a new play, I understood the language a little more, and soon I became addicted and would be content re-reading his plays over and over again. I love analyzing the different ways it can be spoken and the pronunciation of each word, the rhythmic patterns of iambic and the realness of prose.
I cannot wait to teach the beauty of William Shakespeare to my students and only hope they share a little bit of my love for him.
see self portrait under the “Reflect” tab for more
