Midterm Results

I was surprised today by the midterm exam results. The fact that I got an A, even though I had felt deeply disappointed in how I answered the questions (see Midterm Exam) - well, that was a pleasant enough surprise. But the fact that I got an admonishment from the professor, and what that admonisment was, was the REAL surprise.

In the instructions for taking the test, Dr. Davison had said we would not need to consult any outside sources for the writing of our response to the two questions she would select. I, sad to say, with my customary over-preparation and "excessiveness" (as others proclaim to be my wont), I cited over 50 outside sources! Granted, they were essentially dictionary or encyclopedic information, from such places as Answers.com, or LexicOrient. And granted, too, I may not have completely read ALL of them. Nevertheless, I clearly went beyond what was called for, and I have subsequently discovered I went beyond what was deemed acceptable. Should I do so again, she proclaims, points will be deducted...

Well, I guess she got my attention this time! After the surprise settled down, I realized, with relief, this is just the sort of reining in I need in order to truly master this material. It is just so EASY, for me, to get caught up in trying to read more and more about the Middle East, so much so that I am in danger of ending up understanding nothing at all! What a far easier task it will be to simply understand what one man wrote, at one point in time, about his understanding of the last 2,000 years of history in The Middle East. As if even that would be easy! For indeed, I have to assume Bernard Lewis, who has written so many books about the Middle East, and is so oft-cited in other's articles about the Middle East - I have to assume his writings are the result of thorough investigation and analysis of many others' sources. So why should the culmination of his research not be sufficient for a beginner's understanding of the area?

I believe I have a month more to go in this quarter. So, it's not too late to change strategy! I wrote earlier that I already intended to change my strategey. However, sad to say, I haven't been very successful. I intended to write more often, and copy text information onto notecards less. That intention lasted about a week. I soon discovered it took an incredible amount of time to write about anything (see Land Tenure and Assassinations). Furthermore, I found it difficult to write anything without first having my own notes - those 8X6 cards I keep writing even though they take forever, and they are physically incapacitating (being a sure-fire way to aggravate my letter-carrier-career legacy of carpal tunnel syndrome).

Well, I shall see what this new restriction brings. Surely it gives me permission to focus entirely on just one book, and to cease continually augmenting it. And just as surely it will make me DIGEST the material, instead of just consuming it. Who knows, maybe it will show me a whole new way of studying! Ultimately, it feels like a relief to know I'm not expected to know any more than what's been said, either by Bernard Lewis or by Dr. Davison. The onus is on me, now, to truly understand this more limited assignment. Let us see what results...