This year in Scholars’ Seminar, one unit’s culminating project assignment asked students to create a customized holiday gift and to design thematically appropriate wrapping paper for a character selected from one of the novels studied in the course. Students then showcased their presents and wrapping papers in class, while their peers guessed the character for whom the items were intended. In addition to the hands-on aspect of designing the gift and wrapping paper and presenting their work in class, each student wrote an essay that included a character analysis as well as the reasoning behind their creative choices. 

Student Adelee B. chose to treat Pip from Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations with a bespoke present and festive wrapping. Adelee’s work is a great example of engaging literary analysis through creative means. She said, “For Pip’s gifts I dove into what the character wanted, but also what he needed. For the wrapping paper, I had a lot of fun drawing it and thinking of what would work. I thought more about the themes, plot, and other characters for the wrapping paper.” Check out Pip’s presents from Adelee below!

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