Remote learning stories: When truth and fiction collided, Kathleen Blumreich saw an apt opportunity

When deciding how to organize the content this semester for ENG 105, Literatures in English, Kathleen Blumreich returned to a genre she had used before: dystopian fiction. 

One of the novels that Blumreich, professor of English, included in the syllabus was one by Emily St. John Mandel, "Station Eleven." The book tells the story of a traveling troupe that performs Shakespeare throughout the Great Lakes region during contemporary times about 20 years after a worldwide pandemic.

And then she and her students were confronted with truth that mirrored the fiction.

"When the COVID-19 pandemic really hit I thought, 'What am I going to do? I’m getting ready to teach a novel about a pandemic," Blumreich said.

She surveyed students to ask if they found it too distressing to read this novel and offered an alternative; she found that only a few wanted an alternative, and only for logistical reasons.

Next came a decision by Blumreich to examine more closely the sense of community that is a key element in the book. While Blumreich likes to teach the novel because she considers the writing straightforward and without gratuitous violence or scare-mongering, given the current situation she saw an opportunity to focus on the importance of human connection.

"I shifted focus away from the horror of the pandemic to those other things, the importance of friendship, bonding, communication, theater, all of those things that last as opposed to the aspects of civilization that are lovely to have but not absolutely essential," Blumreich said.

Blumreich has missed the chance to interact with her students in person, to see their reactions and expressions, but said she has been gratified to see robust engagement and interaction among students in an online discussion board. She wrote prompts to spur discussion, such as asking why the author focuses on the arts and community.

"A lot of the students said we need something to remind us there is more to life than just us. Beyond that, we need to be able to enter a different world," said Blumreich, who added that many students indicated they have been listening to a lot of music these days.

The last assignment for the book was a group project in which students, having spent weeks studying what they wouldn't want in an dystopian environment, were asked to build their own utopias.