Thank goodness that’s over! By the end of the exam period the inside of the library had reached an alarming point of familiarity. I always find the beginning of revision easier as the content of what one is learning isn’t overly familiar, and can provide new insights into the topics being studied. It’s the end which I find arduous: fervently flicking through reams of crumpled notes with the hope of grasping some sort of ultimate philosophical understanding. The frustrating thing about revising philosophy is (paradoxically) the more you know, the more you feel that you don’t know. In the midst of tackling such concepts one can begin to feel quite lost!
However, coming out the other side feels good to say the least. A post-exam reading week gave me some much-needed breathing space, and the knowledge that I have completed 50% of my second year is also relieving. Exams are hard for everyone, and it was especially accommodating that the department opened up all their available rooms for people to revise in, with the bonus of a kettle to facilitate the ongoing flow of tea to fuel revision. The lecturers also provided helpful revision sessions and extended office hours to ensure everyone had the support they needed.
Moving forward, the modules I have begun this term are interesting and diverse. The philosophy of mind has interested me for years, and finally being able to do a module in it has been exciting. My other modules, “Death, Dying and Disease” and “Modern European Philosophy” have introduced me to a more continental style of philosophy, which is different from the more analytic side of things which I focussed on last term but is equally as valuable. Reading such pieces as “kierkegaard’s seducer’s diary” has provided a welcome change to the challenging technicalities that, for example, the philosophy of language module last term entailed.
Max
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