Lilith Todd

3 papers (2-3 pages each), discussion post due every class, midterm, final and participation. its a lot of work but she makes it so worth it

We have reading responses Mondays and Wednesdays- except before, during, and after a paper is due, which okay yeah most people would find annoying to do discussion posts, but they're genuinely useful when it comes to ideas for your essays. These posts are worth 15% of our grade and are graded on completion, and you are allowed to miss one. We have 3 papers- first two are worth 10% and the last is 15%. And a midterm and final- final worth 15% (the midterm was just practice for the final for us) and of course a participation grade worth 20%. You are also are allowed extensions, she is pretty lenient about them- she just asks that you at least turn something (it can literally be a sentence or paragraph or even brainstorming) to her the day of the original deadline. Essays can be annoying to write for anyone, but she genuinely helps you complicate your idea or reach one when you visit office hours with her, what's fun is that you can write your essay and hype yourself up like wait I lowk ate that, and she'll usually agree. And she's a generous grader and gives thorough feedback on your papers- with a page explaining what she likes and parts she was confused on and then annotations on your essay.

3 essays, the first two being 10% of your grade and the final essay being 15%. You also get a 5% booster to your highest scoring essay. 3 essays is kind of on the heavy side compared to some other lit hum professors. The essay prompts are very challenging and far more difficult than the typical lit hum essay. Also usually biweekly discussion posts (300-500 words) to discuss what you read before that class. These discussion prompts are also quite difficult. Her grading is a little on the hard side (coming from someone who generally considers themself to be a good writer), but she is very helpful during office hours and gives extensive feedback per essay.

kindest, nicest, most humble professor out there. she truly cares about you as a student, and your contributions in class. very discussion based. trips to the met and moma! creative project spring semester of your choosing. gave us her phone number during protests in spring 2024, and told us if we needed anything she was there to support.

I literally took a worse lab chem professor next semester so I could stay in her class. I love her class so much, its the breeze of my day. I don't agree with the other review- they might just be a bad writer. #JusticeforLilith I'm so serious, the rest of the class loves her so much. I find our discussions in class very interesting and eye opening. She poses questions to go through in discussion each class and provides interesting media to compare our books to. She really helps to complicate ideas for the essays and overall become a better interpreter. Lilith makes you feel like a true literature and philosophical being. The intellectual discussions we have in class are exciting and quite literally the reason I wanted to come to Columbia, it's spaces like these that make your Columbia experience memorable. #ThankYouLilith

Lilith is fantastic at not only directing the discussion of the class but also making the class very friendly and inviting. The class is very engaging--usually minimal lecturing/teaching through presentations and far more discussions, which take up nearly the entire class time. She asks questions that are far beyond the critical + creative thinking and close reading rigor of any literature class I've been in and I am confident in saying her essay and discussion prompts are far more difficult than other lit hum teachers' prompts. The rigor of the questions is intimidating at first, but she is good at breaking them down and encouraging people to share any and all thoughts. She's kind and very understanding not just as a teacher but also as a person. She is generally very generous with extensions and seems very interested in getting to know each student during office hours as well. Overall, Lilith is very kind and has done a tremendous job at making the lit hum class one of the friendliest and most fun classes I've ever taken. Although she is a challenging teacher, I truly think I've improved SO MUCH through her class, both in terms of critical thinking and writing. You WILL get smarter through the discussions and the way she leads them.

Professors grading is very harsh and I found it unreasonable when I got feedback because she did not elaborate in Office Hourse of my mistakes. So if you want to genuinely learn and believe that you would love to learn in an environment of encouragement and support, choose a different professor for Lit Hum. One of the worst professors I have had at Columbia thus far.

Weekly readings and discussion posts, around 3 paper, midterm (graded on participation), and final exam (same thing as midterm, just a bit longer)

I was excited to be introduced into this class and learn more about the role of literature in our western civilizations. Teaching style all over the place, she seems very hesitant to be open to peoples observation, I felt that every time I brought up a point she never listened or attempted to understand my point of view, and she put me in a position where my observations were wrong as she hesitated. When I went to Office Hours she did not help improve my mistakes rather just said " I didn't understand your point." Avoid taking Lit Hum with her, she will not help you improve as a critical thinker while reading the texts. Content of the course is the basic lit hum book.

Lilith has been one of the best professors I’ve had the privilege to learn from. Her depth of knowledge on each aspect of the book, and ability to make even the most complex topics approachable is remarkable and helps me a lot to understand the most boring and hard literature we have to read in this class. Lilith encourage critical thinking and creates an inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable contributing, her office hours have also been so helpful and I try to go every time I am available. The negative comment, is honestly not true at all and when I read it, I was very confused because the comment spelled the word “Hours” incorrectly, which shows why Lit Hum is definitely not in their capability whatsoever. I truly appreciate the thoughtful feedback Lilith provides on the papers, I am not the best writer and her feedback has helped me improve throughout our paper. Her class has helped me grow not just academically but also as a thinker, which is a key aspect of Lit Hum and will carry me a long way through Columbia. Lilith passion for the subject is evident in every lecture, and it has made this class one of the most rewarding experiences of my academic journey. If you have the opportunity, please take her class, it truly is so enjoyable and the workload is so manageable.