New English professor Christopher Leise insists that he is candid, albeit cliché in explaining what drew him to Whitman.
“It was the students, first and foremost,” said Leise. “When I did my sample lecture it was with a group of students. They didn’t know each other, but as soon as they sat down they acted like they’d been studying together for weeks…They all had clear, specific expectations of what they wanted from their education, which is the most exciting thing you can work with as a professor.”
Leise, who has “liked studying literature from the beginning . . . for as long as possible,” attended Hofstra University in Long Island, N.Y. for his B.A. in English and got his Ph.D at the University of Buffalo. Leise was hired as a replacement for retired faculty Richard Masteller and Jean Carwile Masteller, who both taught American Literature period courses.
Leise is teaching Introduction to Fiction, Approaches to the Study of Literature [English 290] and American Literature after the American Century. Leise felt torn when asked which classes he was most excited about because “all the classes are exciting but for a variety of reasons.”
“In Intro to Fiction I get to work with a lot of really raw talent, so it’s arguably my favorite class,” said Leise, “But English 290 helps foreground literary knowledge by putting the agency in student’s hands. Also, American Literature is in my research area, and I feel very fortunate to teach literature as it’s coming out.”
The American Literature after the American Century course is unusual because it looks almost exclusively at contemporary works. The class includes writers such as Don DeLillo, Percival Everett, Shelly Jackson, Thomas Pynchon and a variety of contemporary poets.
“It really points students towards a world of literature that sometimes gets overlooked,” said Leise. “At one point, ‘Moby-Dick’ was first on the shelves and Shakespeare was new on the stage. It’s not clear that we’ll identify the new ‘Moby-Dick’ or find that Shakespeare, but we get to think about the fiction of our time as having that value and cultural purchase for us.”
Next semester, Leise will teach a seminar entitled “The Witches of Salem: Contexts, Reactions, and Representations” as well as American Literature, 1914 to the Present.
“[The Salem Witch trials] is one of my favorite cultural phenomena to mull over,” said Leise. “In the realm of historical catastrophes, Salem is relatively small . . . but this event has extreme intrigue for people today.”
Leise, like much of his research, is “grounded in the present,” so his future plans for his life at Whitman still seem far away. However, he is excited for the next semester. He is also excited to work on his research project about the representations of and return to Puritanism in contemporary fiction.
“I’m really trying to get at what individual writers say about this frequently explored yet relatively demonized group of people,” said Leise. “In the process, I’d like to see what comes out of this continued interest.”
Leise is also happy to be in Walla Walla, which was not a huge change from Plattsburgh, N.Y., where Leise formerly taught.
“The food here is better, and the wine, too,” said Leise. “So far, I find it delightfully appealing. I have two small children, so we’re happy to be in such a family-friendly place with good weather. I love it so far.”
Leise is thrilled about students’ intelligence, aptitude and interest in education.
“Students exceed every hyperbolic gesture that you can make in the classroom,” said Leise. “It’s the best environment I’ve ever been in. If there’s one thing that’s true to the Whitman sales pitch, it’s that the students really do seem hand-selected to be here.”
