Sub ry
The English students at the University of Helsinki
Meet Your Teachers – Merja Polvinen
- Your name?
Merja Polvinen - How do you like to be addressed by students?
Merja - What courses are you currently teaching?
I do one group of Literature Tutorial, one Proseminar group on Literature and the Mind, and in the MA programme I teach Research Design for Thesis Writers in Literature. I’m also one of the HOPS advisors and am supervising a group of PhD candidates. - What is one positive thing social distancing has brought to you?
A really nice electronic desk at home! 😀 - Any good book tips every student should read?
Where to begin… 😅 But thinking about language and intercultural communication, I’d say China Miéville’s Embassytown (2011): two-mouthed aliens who do not know how to lie, until they discover metaphor. Another book I’m fairly obsessed about right now is Robert Macfarlane’s Underland: A Deep Time Journey (2019), a cultural history and a physical exploration of what lies under ground and how we think – or don’t think about – buried things. - We also hold SUB’s movie Thursday every week. Any good movie tips?
Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride (1987). No contest… - What are your tips for students starting their studies right now?
DON’T PANIC [make those large, friendly letters]. - And lastly: what is the meaning of life?
42 (need you even ask…?)
Sub ry 