174. Jenny Davidson, Professor of English & Comparative Literature

Show Notes: Jenny Davidson describes her continued passion for literature, reading, and writing, her interest in primatology, adventures in Tanzania, and her new hobbies.  Form and Technique in Powerlifting  She details her fitness routine, including powerlifting, running, swimming, triathlon, and yoga. Jenny shares her experience with a longstanding injury affecting her ability to do high-volume aerobic training. Jenny explains the basics of powerlifting, distinguishing it from Olympic lifting. She describes her favorite lift, the deadlift, and the other two main lifts: squat and bench press. Jenny shares her powerlifting achievements, including her recent competitions and her current lifting numbers. She emphasizes the importance of proper form and technique in powerlifting. Health and Community through Fitness Jenny discusses the impact of her exercise routine on her mood and energy levels. She describes how exercise helps her maintain a schedule and provides a sense of community through fitness activities. Jenny shares her experience with yoga and how it has become a significant part of her life. She mentions her weekly private Pilates sessions for therapeutic purposes. A Career in Literature Jenny talks about her career in literature, starting with her graduate studies at Yale. She specializes in 18th-century British literature and has been teaching at Columbia for 25 years. She mentions several books, including Clarissa and Moby Dick. Jenny enjoys teaching a mix of introductory and specialized classes, including comparative European novels and single-author classes. She shares her enthusiasm for teaching complex literary texts and the unique challenges they present.  Recommended 18th Century Literature Jenny recommends Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels and his other prose satires as essential reading. She highlights Frances Burney's novel Evelina and Edward Gibbon's History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Jenny also recommends Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France. She mentions Laurence Sterne's Tristram Shandy and A Sentimental Journey as accessible entry points to 18th-century literature. The Rise of Literacy Jenny discusses the rise of literacy and popular print in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. She explains how books like Pamela by Richardson were shared among multiple readers, increasing their reach. Jenny notes the evidence of reading among both elite and working-class individuals. She highlights the importance of marginalia and letters in understanding the reading habits of the time. Reading Habits Jenny shares her unusual relationship with reading, being a very fast reader from a very early age. She describes her reading habits, including rereading books she teaches and reading modern novels for pleasure. Jenny mentions her book, Reading Style: A Life in Sentences, which explores her life as a reader. She reflects on the challenges of finding enough reading material during demanding times of the semester. Primatology in Tanzania Jenny discusses her recent trips to Tanzania and her interest in primatology and being influenced by Jane Goodall from a young age. She shares her experience learning Swahili and conducting oral history interviews with Tanzanian field assistants. Jenny plans to create an oral history digital repository at Columbia and potentially publish essays or a book on her findings. She describes her collaboration with a Tanzanian guide, Rama, and their efforts to revive a tree-planting education program. AI in Humanities Education Jenny discusses the potential and limitations of AI in humanities education. She expresses concerns about students using AI for assignments, viewing it as a form of cheating. Jenny shares her positive experience with using AI for transcription of oral history interviews. She emphasizes the importance of creating a quiet mind and immersive reading environments for deep learning. Harvard Reflections Jenny talks about classes with Barbara Johnson, Elaine Scarry, and Writing Narrative History with Simon Schama. She also mentions the class Judith Clara taught on political obligation, and a class called The Development of the Modern State taught by Stanley Hoffman, Peter Hall, and Tom Ertman. Timestamps: 02:21: Powerlifting and Technique  07:45: Impact of Exercise on Personal Life  10:17: Career in Literature and Teaching  13:00: Recommended 18th-Century Literature  13:15: Reading Public in the 18th Century  26:45: Jenny's Reading Habits  29:09: Tanzania Research and Oral History  35:39: AI and Humanities Education  Links: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/214744151893608/user/112738 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenny-davidson-a89a7b1b5   *AI generated transcript and show notes.