Hello, and welcome to my neck of the woods! My name is Brendilou Armstrong, and I am a '26 hailing from the cornfields and grassy plains of Western Nebraska. This year, I plan to involve myself in The Dartmouth and WebDCR (Dartmouth College Radio). I couldn't be more excited to set out on this expedition through college alongside all of you. Thanks for visiting my page!
If you are interested in Victorian literature in any capacity, this is the class for you! It is a course taught by the WGSS (Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies) department and combines historical and political aspects into a literary seminar. The material is compelling and allows you to view female authors, including Mary Shelley, Jane Austen, and Elizabeth Gaskell, in a different perspective knowing the societal context of the time period and themes in their most popular works.
If poetic language and artistic writing styles are your forte, this is the perfect class for you! Taught by the English/Creative Writing department, Introduction to Poetry is an incredible foundation to storytelling, introducing students to poetry styles from prose to ekphrastic and written to slam. The approach to teaching the course revolved around the strategies of Robert Frost, where the Poetry Room in Sanborn Library held our class, and students' chairs were arranged in a circle rather than in rows of desks. CRWT 12 is one of the most unique and fascinating classes I have taken thus far, and as a result, has become my favorite class I have taken on campus.
Niche classes and concentrations define a Dartmouth education, and before this term, I never intended on taking an Asian art history course, let alone one with such a defined focus. Taught through both the Department of Art History and the Department of Asian Societies, Cultures, and Languages by Columbia University guest lecturer Seher Agarwala, this course contextualizes sacred architectural structures of the Buddhist, Hindu, and Islamic faiths. I left this course with a newfound interest in the artistic practices of East Asian cultures and an appreciation for their diverse historical backgrounds and religions.
For any Los Angeles natives or those generally wanting to delve into the history of southern California, this class is for you! Focusing mainly on the contributions of minorities to the area, this class provides insight on the seldom-discussed history of L.A. through the perspectives of non-white settlers from the 18th century to the present day. Through examining controversial films depicting L.A. (including La La Land and Once Upon A Time in Hollywood), I left this course with a deep understanding of the sacrifices made to construct contemporary Los Angeles.
If the history behind 1960s politics, fashion, art, music, and society interests you in any capacity, this class is the perfect fit for you! Taught through Dartmouth’s Humanities Department, this course covers the late 1950s through the early 1970s, focusing on the era's transformative nature while immersing students in the time period through samples of art and music. What an incredible introduction to an incredibly important decade!
My Spring in Full Bloom: What Have I Been Up To This Term?
In the context of classes, I have decided to continue my Spanish language journey with Spanish 2: Intermediate Spanish. With fifty-minute classes being held at 10:10 am for four days a week along with hour-long drill sessions every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I've begun to naturally remember and understand more of the language with each passing week.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have HIST 31.03: Migrant Los Angeles, a class taught by Dartmouth's history department on both the Indigenous and Mexican upbringings of Southern California. Directly following is ENGL 07.02: Toni Morrison, a class that has become one of my favorites that I have taken at Dartmouth thus far. With the intent to examine and explain the novels of author Toni Morrison, this class is acting as my first-year seminar and my final first year requirement. With the College requiring each first-year student to take a seminar directly following their first-year writing class (which, in my case, was last term), Dartmouth ensures that each undergraduate student is fully prepared for the college-level research and writing process.
As for extracurricular activities, I have decided to continue my involvement with WebDCR, Dartmouth's free-form radio station, as the host of Daydream Sound Machine on Thursday nights at 6 pm EST! For any incoming freshmen, stay tuned for a blog post in the near future about Dartmouth College Radio and how to either DJ your own live show, start a podcast, or work in the developmental sectors of the station!
My view during my show from WebDCR's studio!
This term, I also decided to transfer from the templating section of The Dartmouth's staff to the Arts section, where I am expanding my experience in journalism-based writing. This, along with a new remote internship that I recently received (and will write a blog post about in the near future) have served as amazing opportunities to further indulge myself in my future career plans in journalism.
I am ecstatic for what the second half of the term will bring with these exciting classes and clubs, and I can't wait to share these experiences with all of you, fellow readers. Stay tuned for more on my blooming spring term!
In addition to blogging, I work as a Fellow for the Tucker Center, which focuses on promoting spiritual and ethical life on campus. As part of this role, I'm leading the Interfaith Alternative Spring Break Trip. Read on to learn more about my work!
