Thank you to all who attended the inaugural meeting of our newly named "Riotous Mob," the Dalhousie Department of English Victorian Reading Group. We've already arranged a public shaming for the skivers.
Among the broad range of topics discussed this afternoon, we decided upon our upcoming meeting times, and brainstormed ideas for the group.
The Riotous Mob will meet on the 3rd Monday of every month at 4pm. Locations will be secretly divulged to members 3 hours before each meeting. (Okay, not really, but that would certainly be in keeping with our nineteenth-century co-operatives, wouldn't it?)
Possible plans for our society include:
- Film Screenings (in conjunction with an English 4000 class or the Undergraduate English Society?)
- Victorian Iron-Chef Cook-Off
- Pub Night
- Organize a speaker series or a Victorian panel discussion for the department colloquium
- Theatre night at the Neptune or Dalhousie
The group can be as formal or as informal as we want to make it. To help generate discussion, feel free to bring a question, thought, picture, piece of music, or comment about the week's text, or post something about the text on our blog in advance of the meeting.
We also welcome anyone who has an interest in the texts we're reading: Victorianists and non-Victorianists alike!
FYI, Melissa will take over as interim chair while I (Meagan) am away in the UK.
Next meeting: Monday, September 17th at 4pm. Location TBA. Text:
The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist:
E-text Until next time, onwards and upwards with austerity and diligence.
Our second official meeting took place Monday, September 17th at 4pm. After a rather thorough discussion about the wiles of academia, we launched into a lively investigation of Conan Doyle's The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist. While the jury is still out on whether or not this was one of the lesser of the Sherlock Holmes stories, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, and a great many ideas floated across the tables. 
