(note: this is the latest in a series of posts by fourth-year student Kyle Larson about New College students and their thesis projects.)
Jared O’Connor is one of my fellow literature students and co-workers at the Writing Resource Center. And I personally believe that he is one of the better students to have in a literature class too. (His sassiness in lit classes is particularly amusing, and often warranted.)
Jared’s thesis topic came from Prof. Robert Zamsky’s “Black Mountain/New York School Poetry” class. Dr. Zamsky’s encouragement for in-depth analysis allowed Jared to explore the intricate dynamics of the works, leading him to a fascination with the aesthetics of the New York School poets.
His thesis topic began with the idea to track the changing poetic styles through the three generations of the New York School (1950-1991) alongside their contemporary artists. Jared also traveled to New York City (with funding from New College’s Council of Academic Affairs) to visit an exhibition based on one of the poets and the poet’s artist friend.
Realizing the breadth of the topic through the thesis process, Jared decided to narrow his focus on the New York School’s three generations to a specific focus on the major authors, John Ashbery, Frank O’Hara, Ted Berrigan and Joe Brainard. Their contemporary artists include Jane Freilicher, Larry Rivers, Grace Hartigan and Elaine de Kooning.
Jared is using one of his thesis chapters as the writing sample for graduate school applications. The undergraduate thesis is also great experience for those of us planning to have a career in academia.
Here are Jared’s words of wisdom:
“Future thesis writers: remember this is not the end all be all of your academic career—your interests will change (probably while you’re writing it). However, it is important to do good work—so just ‘write the damn thing,’ listen to your advisor, but always trust your instincts. It’s your project, so make it yours!”
Jared is right. The thesis will change. It will evolve. Don’t let it scare you because it is not the end of the world. The thesis is simply one project out of the many projects that you have already rocked.
You’re wonderful, Jared. Keep up the great work, and the sass.
This blog is run by work-study students in the Admissions office at New College of Florida. Please note that bloggers will *not* be able to answer questions about the average time it takes to receive a decision letter, a financial aid package, or how long the review process takes. All questions pertaining to the status of your application should be directed to your admissions counselor.
