Lauren Clark

lclark@oberlin.edu

Majors: creative writing, Latin

 

IÕm a third-year majoring in creative writing and Latin, which makes me one of many Oberlin students who are subject to a lot of questions and weird looks when they explain what theyÕre studying. IÕm still getting used to it myself. I came to school thinking IÕd be a creative writing and history major, but I met the members of the classics department on my third day in Ohio, and I was hooked. By studying simultaneously in both departments, I can delve into what is in entailed in the process of translation, which is my passion.

 

Coming from New Jersey, the most densely populated state, Ohio and its cornfields were quite an adjustment. I learned to get involved on campus pretty quickly. Last year I became one of the editors-in-chief of The Plum Creek Review, OberlinÕs oldest literary magazine. Working in and among OberlinÕs brilliant community of writers is the most rewarding part of Ohio life for me. IÕm also a docent at the Allen Memorial Art Museum, which I love, and this fall I begin work both as a Latin tutor and as an intern with the creative writing program.

 

In my free time, I like to speak German, go to the Apollo movie theater, and test the limits of what the postal system will allow me to mail. YouÕll see me riding around campus on my red bike—if I look grumpy, itÕs only because I have bad eyesight and IÕm trying not to hit anything, so feel free to stop me if you want to talk about on-campus publications and writing events or, even better, the five independent uses of the Latin subjunctive.

 

Short List of Favorites

 

Local Cuisine: I dream about DeCafˇ smoothies when IÕm not in Oberlin. I recommend the ŅLauren SpecialÓ—raspberries, blackberries, mango, one or two strawberries, lots of ice, and a half-chai, half-grape-juice base. Trust me, itÕs good.

 

Favorite Historical Figures: I have a thing for American presidents, both as a unit and as individuals, both good and bad. I can list them all in chronological order in under a minute.

 

Favorite Under-utilized Resource at Oberlin: I owe a lot to ObieOpps, the online internship and job database which led me to the major literary agency (run by an Oberlin alumna!) where I worked over winter term 2009 and then again that summer.

 

Favorite First-Year Course

 

German 101: Elementary German. The wonderful Professor Hamilton taught me so much. Learning a language as rich as German made me understand the other languages I know better, while the conversation exercises in the textbook gave me some lasting friends.