Why English is the Best Major

He is one of the most famous egomaniacs in literature. He is also one of the most famous disabled characters in literature. Who is he? Chances are Herman Melville’s Captain Ahab was not your first guess. Although the character’s missing leg is one of his most defining features, the crazed captain of the Pequod is…

Former GW-British Council Writer in Residence Nadeem Aslam has a beautiful little story in the New York Times magazine entitled “The Homesick Restaurant.” Check it out. Share on FacebookTweet

I recently learned of this web site, which I think many of our wordsmiths will love! The free site combines a game to test English vocabulary and donations of rice to countries suffering from hunger and poverty. The game is simple: every time you correctly choose a word’s definition or synonym, you have donated 20…

As I write, the news coming out of Haiti is unutterably sad. This small island nation, despite its proud history, has been battered again and again by disasters both natural and man-made. No doubt the poverty of Haiti is one reason the earthquake that struck near the capital, Port-au-Prince, has taken and will take such…

We’re looking forward to greeting colleagues and friends from near and far for our fabulous Plotzfest conference in honor of Professor Emerita Judith Plotz on Friday. The fun begins at 10 am in the Marvin Center, Continental Ballroom, and continues throughout the day, with a culminating reception at 4 pm in Phillips 411. Please join…

In anticipation of Michael Chabon reading at GW on March 23 at 7 PM (Jack Morton Auditorium, SMPA), I offer this piece that I composed back in 2006. I was in the third grade when I first read this book, and already suffering the changes, the horns, wings and tusks that grow on your imagination…