Pleasure in the first degree

Abstract

The summer of 1955-1956: Following the publication of the Leaving Certificate results early in January, 1956 (in those days, we anxiously clustered around the 'Armidale Express' office to see the local lists posted in the window, in the first go-off), I was offered both Education Department and Commonwealth scholarships, tenable at New England, to do Arts. My intention on enrolment was to take my degree in Modern Languages, adding to my French a German Major starting from scratch; I figured I'd done enough Latin. My minor studies could be in English and History. My academic adviser during the enrolment process (young Mr Duncan from Economics), with a caution at least equal to my own, gave me pause: 'But what if you turn out not so good at German?' So, having finally plumbed the mysteries of the BA degree structure - the whole business of progression, major and minor sequences, the relationship between them - I took my proposal for approval by the Dean, Dr K.A. McKenzie of the English Department. This was for a single Major in Latin, and three Minors, in French, English and History - a rather off-beat and soon to be illegal structure. I still remember how forcibly I was struck, at 16 1/2 years of age, by the anomaly of being addressed as 'Mister Baker' by such a venerably old gentleman.