Published on: 9 May 2019


Term 2 has kicked off with a diverse line up of speakers engaging the boys in wider literary and scholarly topics through the School’s English program.

Emeritus Professor, author and noted UWA lecturer Dennis Haskell AM joined Year 12 Literature students recently to offer insights on iconic poet T.S. Eliot and modernism as a cultural and aesthetic phenomenon.

“Think of modernism as anti-Romanticism,” Professor Haskell said during his talk.

“Whilst the Romantic celebrates the limitless imaginative potential of individuals, the Modernist reveals man as a cog in a fragment world.”

Among attendance was School Prefect Nicholas Patrikeos who commented, “The links between art and music that Professor Haskell made, connecting the ‘jagged’ style of Prufrock to Picasso’s work and ‘The Rite of Spring’, was particularly interesting.”

Also joining our recent line up of guests was local novelist and poet, J.P. Quinton. Speaking to our Year 10 Extension students, Quinton discussed his approach to large writing projects. This comes as the Year 10 Extension students set to embark on their flagship Extension assessment; a 7500-word, self-devised, year-long dissertation project.

Assistant Head of English Mr Spencer Davis said, “As teachers, it is fantastic to have access to a diversity of speakers as offered through the School’s Centre for Ethics.”

“Not only does a speaker like Professor Haskell help raise our discourse to the tertiary level, it helps model the kind of passion for literature that we value.”

“Similarly, individuals like J.P. Quinton can help our extension boys overcome anxieties around larger project-based learning.”

The English Department in collaboration with the Centre for Ethics look forward to continuing such opportunities in the classroom. Should you like to get involved as a potential speaker, please contact the School’s English Department or Centre for Ethics.