Hellooo blog! I am back after a week hiatus 🤲 This week, I’m going to write about all of my favorite literature I’ve read for my English classes. One of the biggest gifts the English major has brought to me is being well read. It’s something that’s a big flex for me. In my opinion, being well read is very underrated. Reading has also been something that’s grounded me throughout my life. Losing myself in stories for a few hours during the day always provides me with a comforting type of relief. I can never rank all of the things I’ve read in my English classes—it would be like picking my favorite child. In no particular order, below are my favorite books, poems, and stories that I’ve read for my English classes 🌟
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
A first edition of Jane Eyre that I got to see at Wellesley’s special collections!
I didn’t read Jane Eyre until my sophomore year. I devoured this book in three days. I related heavily to the environment Jane navigated as someone who yearned for independence in a traditional environment. Jane had to pick herself up a lot throughout the book emotionally and mentally, and that hardship was something that spoke to me during that point in my life. It’s a book that’s really comforting to me now, and I ended up writing my final paper for that class on Jane Eyre.
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
I am not one to cry when I read books, but I sobbed while reading A Raisin in the Sun. It’s so emotionally visceral and thematically expansive. I felt Beneatha to my core because of the relationship she had with her mom. We watched the amazing movie adaptation with Sydney Poitier alongside reading the book. This is one book that I know I want to teach when I have my own classroom as a high school English teacher.
“Daddy” by Sylvia Plath
I am a die hard Sylvia Plath fan. When I took modern poetry at MIT during my junior fall, I didn’t see her on the syllabus. When the semester was winding down and we started discussing our final projects, I talked to the professor, and he was so on board with me doing a Sylvia Plath poem. I chose “Daddy” because I was interested in rooting in the theme of home. This project was hands down my favorite one that I’ve ever done for an English class because I made booklets for everyone and had a turn and talk activity for everyone.
“The Sea Change” by Ernest Hemingway
I read this Hemingway short story in a seminar I took about Hemingway. This Hemingway short story is so underrated. It’s about a man and a woman going through a breakup because the woman has fallen in love with another woman. It was so ahead of its time. The way Hemingway writes is so subtle, yet it’s his subtlety that carries so much detail.
“Fern” by Jean Toomer
I never heard of Jean Toomer before I took my Harlem Renaissance class. “Fern” is another short story that I became obsessed with as soon as I read it. I love the way Toomer explores romanticizing the south, beauty, and gender dynamics in this short story. I was super engaged throughout the entire semester in this class because of Prof. González. He’s very passionate about Black and LGBTQ+ literature and knows a lot about history and culture.
I hope you enjoyed my picks from my English classes that I’ve taken during my time at Wellesley! Hopefully this gives you some insight on what the major is like 😀
Until next time! ☀️
Warmly,
Sofía ‘26