First Year Writing @Barnard · Columbia University
3 essays and rough drafts read 3 books and discussion based in class
There are readings for every class, usually either a section of the novel, an article/short stories, or both, and occasional discussion posts relating to the text. There are also two short (3-5 page) essays, where you submit both a rough and final draft, plus a group presentation. The prompts for the essays were more abstract than I was used to, as there is more of an emphasis on developing interesting ideas about the texts as opposed to writing a more rigidly structured academic essay. While I probably spent longer than I needed to on the essays, the class is pass/fail, so its really up to you how much time you are willing/able to spend on work for it.
This class has a really interesting concept — exploring how music shapes storytelling across different genres and mediums — but the execution didn’t fully live up to its potential. There were moments of really engaging discussion and cool readings, but it sometimes felt like the structure and focus weren’t totally clear. It’s definitely more about narrative and language than technical music analysis, so don’t worry if you’re not a music expert. The discussions depended heavily on who was talking that day — sometimes thoughtful and layered, other times awkward or surface-level. If you’re someone who values structured guidance or detailed feedback on your writing, you might find the course a little uneven. That said, if you’re creative, flexible, and enjoy thinking about how sound and story interact, you can definitely get something meaningful out of it — just know that you’ll get out what you put in.
I loved Professor Weybright and this class! The classes were mostly discussion-based, where she'd direct our attention to certain details and aspects of the readings and guide the discussion with bits of her own (really insightful) analyses, but overall it was a very open discussion environment where you could bring up whatever you found interesting about the text. Over the course of the semester we read three novels: Emma, Sula, and Swing Time, plus lots of shorter articles and short stories. I found most of the texts to be pretty interesting, and we moved at a reasonable pace so I didn't feel overwhelmed with readings. I cannot stress enough how incredibly intelligent and knowledgable Prof. Weybright is; she would frequently draw connections and make points about the readings that hadn't even occurred to me and that completely altered how I looked at the texts, and she has very thoughtfully designed the discussion post and essay prompts to help you deepen your understanding and explore your ideas. She is also very kind and understanding; she truly wants to help everyone succeed in her class, and I never felt intimidated or like I couldn't talk to her. Overall, she is clearly a very talented academic and instructor, the topic is incredibly interesting, and I cannot recommend this seminar enough!
This class has short discussion posts and/or readings due every class and three essays which is similar to the workload of most other FYW courses. Since it's P/F grading is completion based. Of course, Weybright will still give plenty of feedback to make you a better writer. One thing I will note is that sometimes her feedback can be confusing, particularly if your strengths aren't in English courses.
You can tell that Professor Weybright is passionate about what she teaches and hopes to pass this on to her students. She makes the classroom environment collaborative and welcoming. However, I would not recommend this class to anyone who doesn't enjoy very standard/typical English courses that heavily lean into classic books and essay writing. If you don't enjoy this type of content (which is what Weybright centers the class around) you might end up bored or confused when reading classics such as Jazz (Toni Morrison) or Persuasion (Jane Austen).
Not crazy and standard for most FYW. Three papers (drafts and final drafts). You will receive feedback on both. There are consistent discussion posts and weekly readings. Make sure to stay on top of readings because they weave into your papers and discussions a lot. The readings and discussion posts are very fair and very manageable. Discussion posts are relatively open-ended and straightforward.
Dr. Weybright is a great professor! She is very down-to-earth and understands your extenuating circumstances if anything comes up. I highly recommend this class; she is passionate about what she is teaching. Her main two readings are Morrison and Austen. She loves literature and getting down to the finer details. I really liked the discussions in class as they really did not have structure, and everyone was able to contribute without feeling boxed in. Sometimes, there were points where it felt somewhat high school-like where she was giving very structured worksheets for us to complete, but this was rather rare or when a paper was coming close to being due. Her essay feedback is incredible and she is very knowledgeable about her subject area; it was very valuable and you learn a great deal about style. She is very open-minded and loves to hear other perspectives. To really do well, just try hard and show improvement, and her class will be a great experience. Also try taking risks in her class--she loves them, and it may help your writing!
Three final essays total, and a rough draft submission for each. There's also about one discussion post each week and I would say 1-2 hours of reading weekly. Workload is no problem.
I really liked Prof. Weybright, and this was an interesting class. If you're interested in music or even just like Toni Morrison and Jane Austen, this is a great choice for your FYW requirement. Weybright LOVES literature and it's cool getting to talk to her about readings, which are all pretty great. It sometimes felt a little too lecture-y for a 15-person seminar, and there could definitely be more discussion with less instructor intervention. This class rocks, and I would highly recommend for Barnard frosh.