No.. this aint a description of how a time bomb blasted or something.. its actually a record of how to spend 55 minutes in an english honours class, with a professor who is payed for teaching but only dictates notes which you need to take down really fast, and after a while you realise you are no more majoring in english but in stenography.
Surviving 55 minutes under such conditions is not easy. But you see we are barve people and then, we need attendance. The 75% yardstick has to be dealt with or else you need to pay to sit for the sem exams. Not that we are dying to sit for them, but again its a custom and formality and even a necessity in order to keep entering the college.
So there are various methods devised by my very own class.
1.
The copy-what-you-will methodIts the kind which is most obvious and most popular too. The tecaher syas what she wants to.. and you take down only what you like. People who dont wanna take chances adhere to ths method.
2.
The Judha methodJudha is teh name of the inevntor of this method. He has shown me his copy and I was surprised. Really! He's got good ideas man... he copied the plot of an english comedy of manners as teh teacher was dictating, actually in hindi and it sounded like the sketch of some 1960-70s hindi kitsch! And yes, he did that remaining true to the plot of the play for sure! Cool, na?!
3.
Judha method-part 2Now, thsi guy is a genius. The other method he ahs is to stop the prof in the middle of a lecture and ask him/her questions which are too confusing to be answered and more commonly than not, are rhetorics! hehe
4.
The first bench methodThe copies of these poor souls can be seen from the professor's desk.. so they cant do much. However quite unwittingly a few of them write in a handwriting that makes it more illegible than hebrew. So you better not try to decipher it!
5.
Last bench methodThese guys are the winners for sure. They pass comments, joke and entertain themselves all the while while the teacher dictates. But tehn they take down the notes too, if not they religiuosly photocopy other ppl's notes after the class.
6.
Day dream while you writeIts anotehr good method where in you are taking down notes abot say.. Restoration,. but thinking how to restore your relationship with some XYZ after the fight last day....
7.
Not feeling well methodThis one is like a wild card, but has to be used less and only if you have good acting skills. After the attendance is over safely, and you've taken down say a page of the crap stuff, get up and with a dying expression go to the prof and say.."ma'am/sir can i-" they wont hera the rest. Numbed by the inertia of dictation and the indomitable spirit to go on... they wud say-"Go.." And you walk out... into the corridors... and then there's freedom.