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It's a love/hate situation. VERY high expectations. Rude/demeaning/intimidating. Articulate. Honest. Brilliant. Sarcastic, but witty. Ideal for people who desire a challenge and a real learning experience outside of dumbed-down english courses.

Eccentric yet unbelievably smart

easily one of the smartest people I've ever encountered. His lectures are dense and engaging, jam-packed with information. Has the rare ability to be unrelentingly hilarious without breaking his Lestat/Branaugh's Hamlet character. High standards, high results, yo.

Bloody hard class, but Bracken made it interesting. Don't take him if you're unsure about yourself. I learned a lot but really had to work for it; he's very smart and expects you to be as well. His attitude is fun even when you're on the receiving end.

The most intelligent prof I've ever had, but isn't about to give anything away for free. Those who find him demeaning, from what I saw, probably deserved it, because he will bend over backwards if you show up and work hard.

The most intelligent academic mind in the University. I went from hating him because he was so intimidating to having the utmost respect for him by the end of last semester. His classes are extremely rewarding and challenging. He seems to be angry at the world.

An absolutely phenomenal prof - one of the truly rewarding classes I've taken in my 4 years here and I attribute this to Bracken's incredible intelligence and ability to help students improve and aim higher. He is ruthlessly stingy with marks unless he thinks you really deserve them, but in the end I think the hard work really pays off!

The course was notably difficult, and he was sometimes unnecessarily rude and unhelpful. Fortuately, the difficulty either resulted in the student either overachieving, or failing/dropping the class. Contentwise, the course was so profound that it actually changed the way that I think and talk. I credit the professor with that.

He's tough. I love it.

One of the freakiest people you'll ever encounter in your life. VERY strange sense of the world. Unlike any other prof you'll ever encounter during your post secondary education, I guarantee it. Yet the suffering of his class is almost worth it, just because I hate to admit he IS brilliant, knows his stuff. Gives you something to write home about.

A hate-the-marks/love-the-prof type.Dont come hoping for high grades but rather because you want to learn.Well read, clever, and very funny guy.I tried to switch out of his class in the beginning but now glad I couldn't- he is the best prof I have encountered thus far.I learned a lot in his class.

greatest prof ever!!! devastatingly sexy, intensly frustrating, will improve your writing and comprehension skills

Very open manager, not fascist director, of ideas. Felt like studying with someone, not like being ordered into intellectual submission

Bracken is my god. Undergrads beware, he doesn't want to hold your hand, but the cliff he's pushing you off is the best of your entire education. If you fancy yourself a thinker this is your man. His topics are fascinating, his views twisted and he really DOES care what you have to say (just make sure you actually have something)

He will demolish your GPA but you have to lose some to gain some. Hard marker, great prof. He truely improved my skills in ever aspect and sparked my interest in reading into the text instead of glazing over it.

Theory bootcamp. If you come in knowing next to nothing, you leave with a working knowledge that becomes essential if you're an English major. Anyone who is not an English major in their second or third year will not benefit from what this classe does to GPA's. He's not rude, he's professional. He runs a mature classroom and values input.

I don't know what these raters are smoking, he was one of the nicest profs I had. He provided a ton of constructive feedback throughout the course and graded fairly. This was the most difficult class I ever took though so if you're looking for a basket-weaving course, this is not it. Definite GPA killer.

It seems like students either like him or hate him. I liked him. His expectations might seem unreasonably high, but I think he pushes students to develop a crucial skill set needed to read and write well in university and also to shed the misconceptions and bad habits that have been inflicted on them by the high school english curriculum.

He comes off as scary in the first couple classes but he's one of the smartest profs. Knows what he's talking about but relies a lot of students to teach the class; he's not scared to interupt and tell you if you're wrong. Either you hate him or you like him. Not that hard of a marker but you do need to put in effort to get a good grade.

Excellent prof! Take his course. If you put in the effort to improve you will be rewarded. Isn't that exactly what this university thing is about?

Great prof. Clear and concise and knows his stuff.

Everything said before is true, he can be arrogant and he does mark ridiculously hard but all for the reason of improvement. My first essay was a C and after taking his feed back and applying it to my writing I improved a whole letter grade. This is university, teachers are not going to hold your hand. He knows his stuff and expects you to work

I learned a lot from this course. Definitely the best I've taken at U of A.

You should choose to take Professor Bracken's courses because he's one of the few critical minds at the University of Alberta who actually takes a bite out of reality. The only issue is that Professor Bracken is so good at what he does that not only does he make other professors seem unqualified but he also reveals your own skill level.

Very strict at first but lightens up as the semester goes on. He's a tough but fair grader but gives good feedback to help you improve. He explains the readings and what he expects on the essays if you bother showing up to class. His lectures are dry but have great content.

This was the last class of my degree and certainly one of the best -- if not the best! He's an interesting lecturer. Excellent course material. Puts in the effort to provide helpful written comments. Willing to discuss the readings with students in person after class.

You get what you give. Bracken is not afraid to call students out on laziness and his "honesty" and high standards seem to unnerve undergrads. However, he's intelligent and well read, and classes are funny and exciting. He doesn't like email and office hours were near nonexistent, but if you've gone to every class, he will make time to talk to you.

SO MANY READINGS, be prepared. Kinda has a thing against undergrads. Tough grader, and very strict on grammar. Incredibly useful info in lectures, but doesn't post anything online so take lots of notes. Great with giving feedback on essays and how to improve. Only test in this course was a midterm take-home assignment. Final is a Research Paper.

Professor Bracken does not deserve the bad rep he gets. He is an amazing professor, not a tough grader at all, just realistic for a 200-level english class. His lectures are very well organized and he provides good feedback on how to improve for your next essays.

Professor Bracken openly dislikes undergraduate students. As the semester progressed, I discovered that that his dislike of undergrads is really just a dislike of the lack of effort and respect that many undergrads bring to class. I learned more in this class than any other class I've taken, but don't take this class if you aren't ready to work.

People don't like Dr. Bracken because people don't like putting in the work. His political opinions can sometimes be controversial, but he's an nice and sometimes funny guy who is passionate about what he does. If you put in the work--including talking to him when you're struggling--you'll do fine.

Bracken's rep is both accurate and not. I do wish the guy was a little less standofish, but if you put in the work you'll find his disdain for undergrads is really just about lazy people expecting to coast through on recycled ideas. He's one of the funniest, most intelligent people I've ever met, and I left his class a better writer and thinker.

Bracken is a polarizing professor. Try one of his courses for at least a week and see how you feel, though I definitely would not recommend him for a first year course due to his surprising bluntness. Though others may have good reasons for disliking him, Bracken has given me the most insightful instruction I have ever received.

He can be really intimidating especially during the first few classes and does express dislike to laziness, and he is strict with his expectations. You have to put in effort and work and be able to show him what you've done. If you talk to him after class and show you care, he will help you a lot. My writing and work ethic greatly improved.

Read any notices, the syllabus, and course outline carefully. Do the work and communicate with him (in a way that respects his time and preferences) and you will do great and feel comfortable. There is much to learn from Professor Bracken. He is one of my favorite professors in the department of English because he helps his students grow.

He's an AMAZING lecturer, and very funny. He made undergrad jokes but it was teasing and pointing out common mistakes. I learned so much from this class. He's strict but he tells you exactly how to do well if you listen. I'm a science major and I had time to read some of his suggested readings; they helped. PUT IN THE EFFORT and you can do well.

I don't understand the low ratings at all. We had an extremely interesting topic for an English 103 class, the lectures were open and class directed, and he made his expectations very clear. The final class paper could be written on anything as long as it could be examined in relation to the topic.

ENGL 398. Interesting readings and lectures. It would be a difficult/tedious class if you don't like reading or aren't interested in literary theory. There were only two graded papers because you get full marks for the assignments just for submitting. Very forgiving with extensions and lots of feedback. Happy I took this class!

Professor Bracken was amazing! Was kind and understanding when it came to giving extensions. I enjoyed the course reading, and the lectures really pulled you in. It is a hard class if you are a massive procrastinator because the course contains heavy reading material. The assignments were fairly easy, and you get a pass for handing them in.

Ok, so: -not into New Criticism. -informed by historical perspectives and law -tells u how academia works. -theory and praxis- shows how stuff you learn in class actually apply to your everyday life -to understand things about the state of literary criticism today as well as its history in general. -his pedagogical perspective is very good.

Definitely an acquired taste. Very dry in his humor but surprisingly entertaining and captivating. Incredibly smart and well informed in almost every subject. Assignments are easy, you just have to be willing to do the work. While his classes can be difficult to understand, trust me, you know more than you think.

You're the rock climber and Bracken's on belay. You have to do the climbing yourself; blisters, challenges, creative freedom and responsibilities, all that. But he's not without a heart. Leap for that hold just beyond reach, he won't let you plummet if you push too far and slip. Keep going. Have fun. From the top, the view is well worth the effort.

You've got to be willing to put the work in, but effort and improvement over time are rewarded. Readings are interesting, and Bracken has a fascinating teaching style keeping you engaged. The pass/fail assignments and flexibility in essay topics were greatly appreciated; this supports students' autonomy and lets them make the material their own.

I enjoyed his lectures a lot. I think he's one of those guys either you love him or you hate him. He brings up a lot of pretty interesting concepts from outside of specifically assigned course material which I enjoyed a lot. Overall keeps lectures pretty enriching. Enjoyed his sense of humor lol.

Forgot to rate the difficulty in the previous post. I'd say about a 3.5. As long as you're trying, you show up, and he can see you're actively improving you'll be fine.

A lot of the low ratings come from students who expect to breeze by in their courses. The course was tough but he wants you to really succeed and contrary to his "I don't give feedback" attitude, if he sees you are trying, he absolutely does! The readings mattered to the duration of the course. I walked away knowing I actually learned something.

I really enjoyed Prof. Bracken's class. He can be demanding of students, but I felt this was helpful for my learning. He definitely made my writing better.