Thomas’ multifaceted work as a translator, writer, and performer was exciting to expose my students to. I anticipated Thomas bringing a wide variety of material and experience to the classroom conversation. My hesitation with the event was the kind most instructors typically have in these situations – will the session be interactive and mutually beneficial for my students and the guest?
Thomas was impressive with regard to preparation, lively engagement, and deep insights into the topics of writing and translation. I saw my students be thoroughly engaged throughout the session. He was able to get students to participate with a flair that immediately eased my initial hesitations.
The talk focused on Thomas’ experience as a writer and translator. The course was designed to help students think about translation in different registers, including creative writing. Thomas’ passionate work across different languages, genres, and types of creative work, and his ability to highlight the otherwise hard-to-notice connections helped students see a great example of how the course was approaching translation broadly.
The level of professional commitment to the session; comfort working on Zoom and still engaging the audience; and tailoring the nature of his engagement, keeping the specific skills and interests of the class in mind.
Students were engaged, intrigued, and eager to continue engaging with Thomas through the session.
Students were talking about the presentation in the next class as well, saying how much they enjoyed the session (especially his magic tricks!)
They are eager to meet him in person and continue the conversation about writing and translation processes, and get their copies of The Kural signed!
Thomas was responsive as a speaker, promptly getting back to requests and emails, and eager to work with me and my vision for the session.