ENGL 1500

Literature of Fantasy has honestly been my favorite course at UVA so far. Bruce is such a passionate lecturer and the readings are pretty interesting for the most part! Plus, who else can claim that they're reading The Hobbit and A Game of Thrones for a grade? I'm a huge bookworm so I did all the readings I could, but you don't ~technically~ need to do them to do well in the course, as long as you always attend lecture. I would recommend reading them anyways (I'm a bit biased) because they are really good books :) Also, you can write on basically whatever you want for the paper, so doing the readings is obviously helpful.

The class has four grades: a midterm (25%), a paper (25%), the final (35%), and discussion (15%). Both the midterm and final were structured similarly (multiple choice, passage ID/short answer, essay), and solely based on material he covered in class (i.e. he's not going to pick an obscure passage from the 600+ pages of A Game of Thrones). Going to lecture is super important (though he does post the powerpoints right before the final), but honestly I would recommend going to lecture because you don't have a reason not to - he's wonderful and really loves what he's teaching about (plus he has a great voice), and the class is at 2PM (or at least it was when I took it) so you should hopefully be awake. Recommend this class 110%! :)

1 midterm, 1 term paper, 1 final, and discussion attendance. An easily graded course. The readings are fun and lectures are always fascinating. Highly recommended relaxed English course for anyone who enjoys reading and fantasy books.

Literature of fantasy is probably one of the best easy classes you can take at UVA if you enjoy at all The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, Beowulf; pretty much that type of novel. All you have to do is read the books, there's 1 test, 1 paper, 1 final, and discussion attendance grade. If you've done the reading, the tests are easy and reading fantasy works is much more enjoyable than any other typical reading homework assignment. Holsinger is a passionate crazy lecturer who clearly loves every book on the syllabus and goes deeper into explaining them during his 50 minute classes.

Bruce is such a great guy and absolutely loves reading. I took his Literature of Fantasy course which focused on themes of magic and adventure. You get to read all kinds of books and stories, ranging from Beowulf to The Hobbit, and lots in between. I used Shmoop/Sparknotes for most of the books just because I'd either already read them or I didn't have time to do the reading. While doing the reading isn't necessary for class, it is helpful for discussion. Grade consists of a midterm, an essential free write paper, and a final. Participation in discussion is an easy grade booster, and also helps you understand the books better. Overall, great class with an even greater professor!

AMAZING class! I took it before they started requiring section but I would venture to say it is still worth it. Bruce makes clear that he wants you to read and enjoy the stories, but he won't know or care if you skip some chapters. Also, he loves what he is teaching and makes the lectures interesting. All around fun guy and fun class. Don't skimp on studying for the mid term because the passage identification will trip you up - essays are a breeze and easily graded.

Holsinger is the best professor I've had at UVA. I mostly took this class for Game of Thrones but I got along fine using Sparknotes for the other books, so I didn't end up having to read. However, it is definitely a different experience when you do read because he is such a great lecturer. There is practically zero homework besides a few easy forum posts and the reading, which, as I said, can easily be Sparknoted. The midterm and final were both very straightforward and I don't know anyone who didn't do well. Holsinger wants you to succeed and doesn't want to make your life hard, and it shows.

This class was fantastic (pun intended)! Holsinger is like a rock star in his field and he gives really entertaining lectures. This course introduces students to the genre of fantasy literature, beginning with its medieval founding works and covering ground all the way up to contemporary works (Game of Thrones!). The class is heavily reading-based, with hardly any writing component whatsoever. Grading is largely completion-based, ex. online forum participation, in-class writing exercises and (stupidly easy) in-class reading quizzes. Midterm and final exams involve MC, passage IDs and essays. My biggest complaint about the class may be that I found it to be too easy (for most people, of course, this couldn’t possibly be a problem). By this, I mean I would have found more of a challenge to be more rewarding. My experience of the course was essentially two-fold. I would read the assigned books for pleasure and I would study Holsinger’s take-aways for exams. Overall, as one who got an A in the class, I feel not that I am an expert on the genre, but that I could not have asked for a more thorough introductory study. Highly recommended to anyone with an interest in fantasy literature!

Best class for me this semester. Holsinger is fantastic - his lectures are entertaining, he is very passionate about our readings, and he usually lets out class after about an hour. This class gave me an excuse to read fantasy literature where i would not have had time to otherwise. He gives in class writing assignments and quizzes, but they are only really to check to see if you have done the reading or are coming to class. Class is fun anyways, so there is really no reason not to go. Would take this class each semester if I got credit for it each time.