News and Events
Events
Recent RCL Alumni and Faculty Journal Articles
Faculty and students in the English Department participated in the recent International Day for Sharing Life Stories held at the Wexner Center and sponsored in part by Project Narrative. The Ohio State University was one of 80 different sites in 17 countries taking part in the event which provided participants a platform to tell life stories or discuss the role of narratives in their research and teaching.
The day-long event began with a Digital Storytelling Showcase, in which Junior English major Patrick Valentino's piece Smoking was featured as one of eighteen video narratives.
The Live Storytelling Presentation featured, among nine other performers, a reading by English Professor H. Lewis Ulman and Industrial, Interior and Visual Communication Design graduate student Frances Buschur. Professor Ulman and Buschur read from Samuel Sullivan Cox's "Journal of a Tour to Europe (1851)." Cox, who served as a U.S. congressman from 1856 until his death, used the journal as a sketch pad for his book, A Buckeye Abroad; or, Wanderings in Europe and in the Orient (1852).
The day culminated in a panel discussion featuring six faculty, including English Professors Adeleke Adeeko, Joe Ponce, and, serving as convener, David Herman. In his opening remarks, President Gordon Gee said that narrative "is emerging as a common denominator" among the many diverse disciplines of the University. Then, after an introduction to basic terms and narrative tools by Professor Herman, each panel member was given the opportunity to answer questions about the role of narrative in their respective fields.
Professor Adeeko spoke about his research into the Nigerian tradition of praise poems. Praise poems are epithets added to a person's name that praise their achievements and role in society. Professor Ponce discussed narrative and its role in creating identity in marginal cultures and their literature.
The event was sponsored by the Digital Storytelling Team of staff from University Libraries, Technological Enhanced Learning and Research, the Digital Union, and Faculty and TA Development, with support from the Project Narrative.
