My Oxford Year: A Novel

“‘Are you consulting over there?’ ‘No, I have a…I got a Rhodes and I’m doing a—’ Gavin chortles. ‘I was a Rhodie.’ ‘I know, sir.’ ‘Gavin.’ ‘Gavin.’ ‘What are you studying?’ ‘English language and literature 1830 to 1914.’ Beat. ‘Why?’ ‘Because I want to?’ Why does it come out as a question? ‘You don’t need it. Getting the Rhodes is what matters. Doing it is meaningless, especially in literature from 1830 to 19-whatever.’”

Gavin’s assumption that Ella is in England on business highlights how the world from which Ella is coming is oriented around work. The idea that Ella would go to Oxford and study literature out of personal interest is so foreign to Gavin that he pauses before acknowledging her comment. Not only does Gavin think fulfilling the Rhodes is pointless, but he also emphasizes how literature is especially useless, setting up an early contrast between Ella’s broader interests and the hyper focused career she has chosen. This launches the theme of Career Ambition Versus Personal Fulfillment, as Ella must defend literature and personal curiosity against the instrumental logic of political success.

“‘She’s, like, a deity in the lit crit world. Her specialty is Tennyson, which isn’t exactly my area. Not at all, actually. I work in politics. American politics. But this whole year for me is about pushing boundaries, and exploring new things, and basically just, like, leveling up. As a person?’ Why am I rambling? Why do I feel like a fog is rolling into my head? Oh. Jet lag.”

Ella dumps all this information on Simon, the chef at the Happy Cod, because she cannot help but gush about her opportunity. She explicitly acknowledges how her year at Oxford is about changing her outlook, exploring opportunities she would have otherwise missed, and enriching her life outside of politics. However, the ending of this passage undermines her excitement by defaulting to terms like “rambling” and “fog,” which imply that her excitement is unusual, even for her.