Introduction

Hi! My name is Myles Wright and I am currently a second year at SDSU. I am majoring in English and minoring in Public Health. So far, I have loved my time at SDSU learning about all kinds of literature. I have always loved mermaids and that is what initially drew me to this class. Based off our one class this week, I am already looking forward to all our readings and learning more about the historical backgrounds on mermaids and what they represent in literature. Also working on my essay writing and critical analysis skills.

I am from Atlanta, Georgia, and living in San Diego has been a dream. As well as my love for reading, I love the outdoors, hiking and backpacking, and exploring more of San Diego and California. I love the weather here and the beach, and have made wonderful friends and connections during my time here. I am currently reading the MaddAdam trilogy by Margaret Atwood and loving it so far. I’m looking forward to meeting more of ya’ll and learning more in this course!

Introduction

Hi everyone! My name is Sophia Fugazzotto. I was born and raised in the Bay Area, so San Diego is the only other place I have lived except for when I studied abroad. I am a third year psychology major, with an emphasis in neuroscience. I am not sure what I will do after graduating, but I am considering pursuing a PhD in clinical psychology in the U.S. or a Master’s in Germany. I am really excited for the discussion format of this class. I find it engaging to hear other’s perspectives, and appreciate the opportunity to share my own. 

Outside of academics, some of my interests include photography, videography, and cars! I also enjoy traveling and learning about different cultures and lifestyles. Some things I am looking forward to this year are going to Big Bear and Arizona, both for the first time!

Introduction

Hi Everyone,

My name is Emmanuel Alvarez and I’m sophomore here at SDSU. I am majoring in marine biology and am minoring in interdisciplinary studies through the honors college. Even though I am majoring in a very science based field I have always had a special place for anything to do with literature, as well being a marine biology major and loving anything to do with mermaids I became very interested in joining this class and it would be cool to be able to correlate tops that we study in class to my major.

When I am in San Diego I love to take advantage of this wonderful weather so I try to be outside as often as possible. I love exploring the different beaches and going swimming in the beautiful water, as well I love to collect seashells while on the beach. I also really like to try new cafes, go on walks, hang with friends, and reading books. Right now I’m reading Emma by Jane Austin and its so interesting. I am excited to meet everyone in this class and hope we can have a good semester.

Introduction

Hello! My name is Ashley Rubin and I am a sophomore here at SDSU. I am a Journalism and Media Studies major and I am hoping to work in the sports media industry. While that might seem completely different from what this class is about, I have always had a strong interest in literature as well as the environment which made me interested in this class! I love to read and am very interested and excited about this course!

When I am in San Diego, some of my hobbies include going to the beach, surfing, spending time with my friends, going to farmers markets, and spending lots of time outside. When I am home in New York I do things such as boxing classes, walking around the city, spending time with family and friends, and have recently been taking care of my new puppy. I am excited to meet everyone taking part in this course and hope to have a comfortable and open-minded community among us.

Week 1 Introduction

Hello everyone! My name is Sophia, and I’m a sustainability major at SDSU. I’m also transfer student, so this will be my first semester on campus. One of my favorite subjects in school besides environmental science has been literature. One goal I have for myself is to improve my critical analysis skills and become a sharper writer. I think that this class will help me to achieve this certain goal. I also would really like to learn more about environmental humanities because writing and other art forms have the power to make people care about the different environmental crises that are occurring.

Although I like relaxing at home, I also enjoy being outside. When I’m able to, I volunteer at the Tijuana River Estuary and help with the upkeep of the area. I mainly remove invasive species like ice plants and chrysanthemums, which is a great stress reliever in my opinion. I also like going to the beach and watching the sea lions play in the water. In addition to the outdoors, I really like to read. I don’t really have a specific niche/interest that I firmly stick to, but I veer towards non-fiction essays, especially about the writers day-to-day life. Anyways, I’m really excited for this class and I hope to learn from everyone here 🙂

Introduction

Hello Everyone,

My name is Hiba. I am an English major. I have a background in biology and I work in the Biotech field. I have always loved Literature and Science and so this class sounds very exciting because it seems like the two are combined.

A little more about me: I have interests in almost every subject from sciences to liberal arts. I like reading self-help books (not sure why because they never help me LOL). I find them inspiring haha. I love UFC and boxing but I also do Ballet. I like trying new things and challenging myself to be better. I look forward to meeting you all and learning more in this class.

Welcome to class!

Dear All,

I am very excited to meet you and study with you, as we explore the entangled relationship between literature and the environment via a focus on the ancient, historical, and powerful myth of mermaids. This is a class in critical reading, thinking, and writing; it is about how we humans tells stories, past and present, and it could not be more important to our contemporary moment… I hope you will agree!

This website contains our syllabus (distributed across the pages) and more information for our study. We will be using this site, rather than Canvas, for our class.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at jpressman@sdsu.edu

See you on Thursday, January 18 at 2pm in Geology Mathematics Computer Science (GMCS), room 308.

Until soon!

-Professor Pressman