Trinity Western University

I'm really excited that a book I've recently co-edited will be making its appearance in the next few months. It's on Daniel Defoe, the author of Robinson Crusoe, Moll Flanders, and Roxana (to list only three of the countless works attributed to him). Quite some time ago I helped to establish the Daniel Defoe Society and I currently co-edit the journal of that society. The more I am immersed in the works of Defoe, the more fascinating I find his distinct way of viewing the world which is, paradoxically, both deeply invested in his historical moment  yet strangely and compellingly futuristic or prophetic. In this respect, he reminds me very much of John Milton.  Defoe is intent on remapping the world in which he resides, both literally and figuratively, drawing on the past and present to imagine a better future. Fourteen essays that adopt new approaches to the works of Defoe appear in Topopgrahies of the Imagination: New Approaches to Daniel Defoe, which will be published early next year by AMS Press (http://www.amspressinc.com/titles/64869.html). It includes an essay by me and my sister, Dr. Sharon Alker: (Re)writing Spaces of War: Daniel Defoe and Early Modern Siege Narratives." 

A brilliant English undergraduate student, Natalie Boldt, helped with the production of the volume. It is students like Natalie that we hope to support with the Anonby / Downey / Holmes English Essay Awards. If you want to make a tax-deductible donation to the scholarship fund for English students like Natalie, you can do so on this site or you can e-mail Darlene Heriot at darlene.heriot@twu.ca.

Dr. Sharon Alker and I are heading to Indiana State University in Terra Haute, Indiana, to give a lecture on James Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd. He is who I like to call the "other Scottish Bard." Almost everyone knows Robert Burns, the best known Scottish Bard of all time. But far fewer are familiar with the truly remarkable writer James Hogg (1770-1835), even though Hogg was much admired, even lauded, in his own time.  So I'm off in mid-November to give a lecture on his life and writings, especially on his major contribution to Scottish Romanticism, as part of the Schick Lecture Series at Indiana State University (http://www.indstate.edu/english/josephschick.asp).

In the English Department of Trinity Western University we teach literature by writers across the globe (including Scotland of course). English studies involves teaching all aspects of English language and literature: creative writing, rhetoric and composition, literary criticism, literary history, cultural studies, and more. And we are in the process of developing an Inklings Institute given that our department includes two scholars who have strong research interests and publications on the Inklings!

If you would like to make a contribution to the training of the brightest and best English students, you can make a donation to our Anonby / Downey / Holmes English Essay Awards online or in person.

Good News! Our dream is closer to a reality.  When we recently added up the online and offline donations to the Holmes / Downey / Anonby English Essay Award for the brightest and best English students, we found that we now have $6137.00. We only need $3863.00 to begin giving out an annual award to a gifted English student! If you would like to make a donation online, you can do it at this site. If you would like to donate another way, simply contact Darlene Heriot by e-mail at darlene.heriot@twu.ca.

Holly Faith Nelson

I have just this very minute finished co-editing a fascinating volume of essays on the impact of Robert Burns in the Americas ... especially in Canada and the United States. It's called Robert Burns and Transatlantic Culture and it will be published by Ashgate just after Robert Burns Day early next year. My sister Sharon and I wrote a chapter on Robert Burns and the World Wide Web for that collection ... it's really amazing to see what happens to a writer in the digital age, especially someone like Robert Burns who has become a global phenomenon.  I'll be heading off to Scotland in July to talk about another Scottish Bard: the working-class poet James Hogg (the Ettrick Shepherd).  So many Scottish writers, so little time! 

My students are an invaluable source of assistance on these projects ... Laura E. Ralph was an excellent research assistant on Robert Burns and Transatlantic Culture. It is this kind of student who we are excited to award our new Elsie Holmes, John Anonby, and Deane Downey English Essay scholarships. We have already raised about 40% of the funds required to start giving out these awards (since many of the donations thus far will be matched at the end of the year!). If you'd like to make a donation and have it doubled (the deadline is December 31, 2011), just go to: http://impact.twu.ca/project/project.aspx?asset=581. And in the process you'll be honouring our must-loved retired English faculty members. 

Have a wonderful Christmas!

JAN LERMITTE'S TESTIMONIAL: TWU English Dept Tribute to Holmes, Downey, Anonby

The four years that I spent at TWU had a profound influence on my life. The foundations of my Christian faith were strengthened, my intellectual abilities were sharpened and many core life skills were established. Not only that, I met and married my husband Paul while I was still a student!

When I first went to TWU, I planned to stay only one semester. It took only one month for me to decide that I wanted to stay for four years. One of the most influential people in that decision was my first year English professor, Dr. Elsie Holmes. Her love of language and practical approach to improving our writing skills inspired and challenged me. I was intrigued by her Christian approach to novels, poetry and short stories. Likewise, John Anonby illuminated the presence of scripture in literature, and Deane Downey exhibited a thoughtful enthusiasm for Canadian and Commonwealth (what would now be considered "post-colonial") literature. They inspired me, challenged me, and taught me to shape my own ideas about literature. They encouraged me to think critically about a text, both from the perspective of a Christian and a literary critic. Was this easy? Not always! But I am grateful for the influence these three educators had on me then, and continue to have on my work as an academic. My decision to major in English literature shaped my life, and over the past thirty years, most of my work has focussed on writing, reading, teaching and analyzing the written word. Four years ago, to fulfil my desire to enhance those skills, I went back to university (this time to UBC), and completed a Master of Arts degree with an English major. The skills I learned at TWU provided a firm foundation for the challenges of graduate school.

I am delighted that the English Department is setting up a scholarship to honour these educators who had such a profound influence on their students. Like the men and women who work in the English Department today, they inspired academic excellence and a Christian approach to work. I challenge you to join me in contributing to this worthwhile endeavour to provide financial aid to current students who share a love of literature.