| Information | Review |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/30/2025 |
Prof. Passannante is really, really good at talking about Shakespeare; incredible lectures. Made me actually enjoy Shakespeare and I left the class feeling like I gained a lot of interpretive skills. Definitely fun if you are at all interested in literary analysis. Essays are on interesting topics; graded pretty lenient depending on TA. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL404 Expecting an A- blueterp310 11/28/2024 |
Passannante is very very passionate and very knowledgeable about Shakespeare, it's clear he loves his job and the subject. Be wary as this is a 400 Shakespeare class the reading is very fast-paced and he will constantly be telling you to "take out the microscope" and "read in between the lines" so just be prepared to read 1-3 acts a week and do a discussion board once a week as well. The same thing with the Montaigne readings. He grades attendance so be careful with your attendance. As for grading things, I only got the midterm paper graded and none of the discussions have been graded so I only have an idea of what my grade is right now with attendance, participation, and doing the discussions so if constantly knowing your grade is one of your concerns, then maybe this course isn't it. The midterm was about 5 pages long while the final is 10. Personally, I just got very out of tune and not locked in at all so I wasn't reading as much thus not listening or participating to the lectures as much so that might've lowered my grade a little bit more. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL404 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/22/2024 |
Professor Passannante is clearly an expert in his field. He has some really good ideas and adds depth and complexity to Shakespeare. He's lenient on grading, from what I can tell, and is empathetic towards us students. He initially had a no-tech policy in class, but it sort of went away over time. He's a stickler about late work, though, so if you're the kind of person who has a penchant for late submissions or requesting extensions, it's probably not the best place to turn. The lectures can get a little bit boring, but they can also get really interesting at times. I think it can depend on the play. Ultimately a very nice guy with lots of insight! Weirdly obsessed with Montaigne, though. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/19/2024 |
He's a nice guy and the class is pretty easy to do well in. Passannante has some flair, not necessarily a ton of substance. By this, I mean to say that he's an energetic lecturer who definitely knows a lot about Shakespeare... but the observations or insight he provides only seem to scratch the surface. It is an introductory class though, to be fair. Shoot, I might just be trying to nitpick honestly. He's a nice guy and the class is fun and an informative experience. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/19/2023 |
Extremely underrated class. Dr. Passanante's lectures can be rambly, but are still enjoyable to listen to since he's so passionate about the content, like the other reviews said. You read six plays across the semester and don't even have to buy the books if you just read a copy online and take notes during the lecture. You only have to do two papers and the final and as long as you follow the prompts, it's not bad at all. You don't need any previous experience with Shakespeare, he and the TAs do a great job of explaining what's going on in the plays. Highly recommend. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/14/2023 |
Dr. Passannante is a very engaging professor and his lectures are usually entertaining and informative. I am always surprised by how fast the 50 minutes go by. The plays are all interesting and he explains them in a way that makes sense. I love his passion for Shakespeare and even if you have no experience with Shakespeare in the past, he can help you discover the meaning behind these plays. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A naonic 09/18/2023 |
He is a very passionate and genuine guy, but the lectures were boring. The TA did the most important work, but if you understand Shakespeare enough you'll do fine. By able to read about six plays over the course of the semester. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/18/2022 |
Dr. Passannante is great and incredibly passionate about Shakespeare. Lectures involve him going over important themes and messages in various plays, and are not too bad unless you absolutely despise any amount of Shakespeare analysis. He is open to talking about anything Shakespeare-related, and really wants everyone to find and realize the magic and connection he has with it. 2 relatively short essays due across the semester, not too bad and he can certainly help you out with starting it if you don't understand the prompt or the plays. I personally don't care much for Shakespeare but still appreciated him and the TAs. |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL120 Expecting an A- Anonymous 04/13/2018 |
Incredible lecture. I actually enjoyed Shakespeare for once |
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Gerard Passannante
Expecting an A GoooooTerps 03/29/2016 |
Gerard Passannante is one of my all time FAVORITE professors! He is so entertaining. Like an actor, he seems to always be performing and engaging students in fascinating discussion. Seminars are small, so our class was 18 people and we all sat around a round table and just discussed DaVinci, Shakespeare, and Montainge in a relaxed atmosphere. No quizzes, no tests, just a few papers here and there. The papers weren't long though! The readings were interesting, but the class discussiongs we hands down the BEST PART! I REALLY recommend this class and this fantabulous professor. Good luck Terps! |
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Gerard Passannante
ENGL289I Expecting an A Ebethmarie 10/24/2013 |
This was one of the best, and most fun, English classes I have ever taken. Professor Passannant is engaging, interesting and has fun during the class, making it easy to understand and want to learn about the plays of Shakespeare. It's not a super easy A, but it is a very enjoyable one. |