Books can be difficult to teach for several reasons. They can be too stuffy, profane, archaic, mundane or pretentious. There are many students who would happily banish novels like these from their classrooms, but there exists a whole category of books that aren't regularly taught for a simple logistical reason: they are too long.
This is not to say they aren't good — some of the most praised novels of the century clock in above 700 pages, but teaching Thomas Pynchon's "Gravity's Rainbow" (1973), William Gaddis' "The Recognitions" (1955) or Don DeLillo's "Underworld" (1997) is pretty tough. With these novels, it's not just the sheer amount of reading required, but also the diversity of themes, characters and plots that present a unique challenge to the reader and professor.
No novel from the past 20 years tackles the difficulties of modern American life with more scope and compassion than David Foster Wallace's "Infinite Jest" (1996), a sprawling text that chronicles the lives of elite tennis players, recovering drug addicts, Canadian terrorists and a bevy of other characters over the span of 1,079 pages. Students who have longed to cover writers like Wallace and novels like "Infinite Jest" in a more formal academic setting have had few options at Tufts until now.
"Reading Infinite Jest: David Foster Wallace and the Future of the Novel," a course currently being offered through the Tufts Experimental College (ExCollege), tackles this mammoth novel and its myriad of quirky challenges through a suitably unconventional approach.
Jacqueline O'Dell, a Tufts graduate student in the English Department, is teaching the course using a combination of typical and innovative methods. O'Dell has taught English 1 and 2 at Tufts but wanted to cover a different topic with a fresh approach. The freeform nature of the ExCollege gave O'Dell the freedom she was looking for.
"Presumably, you can teach any [genre of] literature at the ExCollege, which is great for this book," she told the Daily.
Despite the daunting nature of "Infinite Jest" and the two−and−a−half hour class length, students have flocked to the course, giving it an attendance level on par with most traditional English classes.
"It's supposed to be a discussion class; we tried to form a circle in the class but we couldn't all fit," O'Dell said.
Given the demanding nature of the course and its topic, the students who have attended are all seriously interested and the discussions have been enthusiastic. O'Dell said, "It hasn't been a challenge to get everyone involved, the great news is everyone is into it and everyone likes the book."
Part of the appeal of "Infinite Jest" for students is how directly its themes apply to people of our generation, particularly Tufts students. Many of the novel's characters — like many Tufts students — are youths who have grown up with material comfort and ample educational opportunities. Wallace examines how people can become depressed despite fulfilling all of the ostensible criteria for happiness: being well educated, having meaningful relationships, enjoying financial stability, etc. Wallace's exceptional ability to connect his characters' conflicted inner lives with the greater society they inhabit makes the novel particularly compelling and relevant to readers of our generation.
The despair that permeates "Infinite Jest" comes largely from the hollowness of the culture it depicts, in which videophones and home entertainment have displaced personal interaction and genuine life experiences. Though Wallace drives the eccentricities of American culture to often parodic heights, the novel reads as a mordant depiction of modern life as it exists for many Americans.
Students in the class also pointed to the allure of communal reading as one of the greatest assets of the course.
"I really wanted to read the book and have meaningful discussions about it, and this [class] was the best way to have that — to read the book with other people reading the book and talk about it with other people. I feel like it's better when you read with other people," said Kelly Zhang, a senior and English major taking the class.
The English department's relative lack of courses on contemporary authors and post−'60s literary movements, such as post−modernism, has given O'Dell's course a unique foothold on that aspect of American literature. This allows students who would ordinarily do the reading on their own the opportunity to do it within an academic setting. This fact doubtlessly contributes to the high enrollment in the class.
The format of "Reading Infinite Jest" matches itself to the unique structure of the novel, the fractured narrative of which eschews linear storytelling and forces readers to constantly re−orient themselves and their interpretations.
"In some ways, the course takes a cue from the novel and is always asking students to question the reading strategies they've grown accustomed to," O'Dell said.
While the class features standard English fare like analytical papers, these assignments form the backbone for more creative projects later in the semester. Discussions are bolstered by blog contributions, while the final exams for the class are designed by the students themselves. All of these guidelines give the course a more collaborative element than most traditional academic offerings.
"As students have read more, the course has been looking to them to guide it," O'Dell said.
During a visit to the class, I saw students addressing the themes of their traditional essays through a wide range of approaches. One group broadcasted their own version of a radio show from the novel, complete with surreal narration and a homemade soundtrack. Another group addressed social networking, one of the cultural trends "Infinite Jest" failed to predict, by transplanting several characters from the novel onto Twitter, sending out tweets as their literary alter egos to explore how the personas of the novel would adapt to a new medium. All of these creative approaches to the novel give students a new perspective for analyzing "Infinite Jest."
"We do discussions and talk about passages like you would in a regular class, but the creative assignments are important because we get to look at the book in the same way Wallace did. Instead of close reading all the time, we can just step back and take a look at the creative process in general," said Zhang.
These experimental projects allow students to elaborate on ideas they have solidified through discussions and their own readings, all the while contributing to a class atmosphere that fosters a wider range of student input.
Classes like "Reading Infinite Jest: David Foster Wallace and the Future of the Novel" depict the ExCollege's critical role in expanding the scope of the Tufts education. While there is no reason why courses like this one can't be taught outside the ExCollege, such a free−form environment invites innovation and experimentation in a way that regular classes do not.
This intellectual flexibility becomes particularly useful for classes on single books whose reputations have not been fully established. While teaching a whole course on a classic like James Joyce's "Ulysses" (1922) is a pretty easy sell, specifically focusing on a recent book like "Infinite Jest" is riskier. Thankfully, the ExCollege gives teachers and students the leeway to take risks on less established topics and methods, providing a testing ground for new courses and pedagogical approaches for students and faculty alike.
