The Struggles of an English Student

Everyone assumes that an English degree is basically a large book club. That we have a great degree because all we do is sit around, read books and then casually chat about them afterwards…And of course we get a reading week…don’t we? Well, no, it’s actually very different. Here’s a list of struggles we English students face on a day to day basis. 

1.      The Reading

One of the main struggles of being an English student is the fact that our degree, which actually requires the most reading, is not deemed eligible for the reading week. Seeing other degree students with their free week, having nothing to read (or even do) while I’m struggling through Wolf Hall, Persuasion and an actual fleet of Old English poetry, is enough to make any English student lie down and question how in the world this can be justified.

2.      The Essays

And then there are the essays. You picked an essay-based subject but you didn’t really stop and think about what that actually meant. It means constant essays, and when I say contast, I MEAN CONSTANT. Essay prep, essay practice, essay submission…. The Christmas break couldn’t come sooner… oh no, wait… more essays.

3.      Being Called ‘Arty’…

And then of course there’s the problem of being stereotyped as ‘arty’ and ‘pretentious’. Well, this one I have to agree with, English is a very creative subject and some people take this stereotype to the max. On my first day, one incredibly over-excited girl listed every book she had ever read as if reeling off jobs on a CV. It’s a bit silly to brag about how much more you’ve read than everyone else… we’re already at uni, the interviews are over.

4.      … And Useless!?

But the main, MAIN struggle of being an English student (even worse than the heavy bags full of books, the busy timetable and the crazy tutors) is hearing that one sentence which drives every English student up the wall, because, despite everything you deal with, you can’t help but love literature. You may have handed in that 3,000 word essay, finally organised your timetable, and finished all the reading for the week… but there will always be that one person who turns to you and asks, ‘What can you even do with an English degree?’

Well, just brilliant.

Edited by Georgina Varley

Sources:

http://shechive.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/post-29188-i-take-a-nap-right-here-gif-2mef.gif

http://thefunnyplace.org/tag/calm-down-funny/

http://winoverworry.com/wp-content/uploads/stress-cantuse.jpg

http://www.oakenbookcase.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/bigger-pile-of-books.jpg

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