3.3
Quality3.3
DifficultyN/A
Would Retake83
ReviewsN/A
Would Retake
83
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
30
4
13
3
14
2
13
1
13
What Students Say
“well, the worst professor I've had in college yet”
LIT61M - 1.0 rating“Interesting class, it's lit, it's confusing”
LIT61M - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
100%
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.25 avg changeRatings by Course
HIS80
5.0
(1)LIT061M
5.0
(1)HIST60
5.0
(1)MEDEA
5.0
(1)61M
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
HIS21
5.0
ANCIENTMYTH
5.0
CLASSICMYTH
5.0
CLASSMYTH
5.0
COMSEXLIT123
5.0
Reviews (83)
Interesting class, it's lit, it's confusing. Excited about what she teaches, goes very in depth, just read and you'll do fine.
Interesting Course, Excited Prof, but the massive amount of material prevented any one work from being examined in detail. Too much to cover, not enough time.
Gamel's class was filled with all the excitement fascination and fun of a dictionary, but without the usefulness.
She's a cool teacher. She knows what she's talking about.
Massive amount of material, but she knows what she's talking about and knows how to relate the texts to the students.
Knows her stuff, and she imparts it!! Tons of info in lecture, hope you can write fast! Really interesting, decent group of guest lecturers. Keep up on the reading and you'll do fine. Don't be intimidated by the amount of it either.
Enthusiastic about lectures, entertaining. Reading load is very light for a lit class (about 100 pgs/week). Extra credit available, lecture notes online. http://humanities.ucsc.edu/classicalmyth
Very boring professor, obsessed with phallic symbolism and sex, makes mistakes with pop culture references. Took good texts and made them dull. Good reading, but annoying professor. Doesn't delve enough into texts. Very easy class, though.
made a subject very boring and her grade scale is not very fair. In order to get an a + extra credit must be done. Points scale very unfair because final worth too many pts. Points done not by percentage but done by points itself. Very lopsided.
scoring very bad
Mary-Kay rules! An extremely intelligent and educated woman, she managed to make us all feel like her friends in a 550 person class. Impressive presentation, funny as all get-out, and extremely appreciative of student creativity and ideas and her TAs.
ohmigod i hated this class... ugh. i thought it would be interesting but myth really is as stupid as i thought it was in high school. and she is obsessed with sex, and she makes weird exclamations in the middle of lecture like "waaouah!"
boring. sitting through her lectures were painful at times. i really liked he TA David Namie's lecture on the symposium. overall, she's an eccentric lady who needs to kick it up a notch
I thought she was a really good teacher. She was funny and extremely intelligent. I got a fairly easy A, you just have to do all of the reading and not fall behind.
It may be because of the size of the class, but professor Gamel has one of the worst testing systems ever, multiple choice tests are not apporiate for a college course. She gets extremely over excitied during lectures, but is top of stuff in cont.inter
Cloud-herding Mary Kay is awesome. In a class of 500, we felt like her friends, and she made the study of mythology a hilarious and fascinating ride. She works with wonderful, and for once qualified, TAs, and is very sensible about running a classroom.
Completely unreasonable and difficult to talk to. Lectures are boring with unapproachable amounts of outside work. Even did the extra credit and couldn't raise my grade.
she's a good speaker, puts the notes online-but they won't help you pass her impossible 200+ multiple choice tests. 3 tests and extra credit is your grade; HUGE curve though. interesting lectures, but they didn't help you pass the tests. TA David Namie=A+
took a frosh introductory course on medea by her - very fun, lots of good movies, interesting ideas are presented.. she grades a little too hard on the one project though, and she was easy for me to get along with. pay attention and be respectful.
You need to be in lecture to pass this class... even though the notes on online, if you plan not to read or attend lecture, don't enroll. Mary-Kay's insight is essential to understanding the topics. If you read, go to class, you'll be good.
Lots of reading
Mary Kay is an excellent lecturer. She made mythology very interesting. Be prepared to work and read, but also to learn a lot about history and literature. I loved this class.
Mary-Kay is the best ever. I love her. Her class was very interesting and fun. She was very personable and helpful. Always considerate as to the understanding of material. I definately recommend taking her classes!
Awesome class,very interesting lectures,she is enthusiastic.She even let me take the final the next quarter because I was so sick the day of the exam. But she did take the whole next quarter to give me the exam, then the whole following quarter to grade i
She is the greatest! She makes Classical Myth fun!
yall r crazy....hard class that goes too fast...i hate myth cuz of her
that professor is horrible, she tells you she'll post information online, and then doesn't, and when she does it's late. her lectures are boring and confusing, and her tests are ridiculously hard and have confusing wording. there are no sections, but there is a review session before each test.
She has good intentions but her lectures are very confusing and face-paced and there is no clarification made. The tests...ugh. I don't think there's a way to study for them.
The class isn't hard if you do the reading like she says, and there are office hours if you need help on most things, like studying for exams. The only problem is her clarity: she blazes through lectures, leaving you to wonder what the hell she just talked about. Alright overall.
She was hilarious and great, although I didn't necessarily like all the reading. Sections would have been more helpful.
She was a great teacher and her class was super interesting. I got an A in it because I did all of the reading and went to all of the classes. People who complain about the class didn't do their work and expected an A anyway. Take is if you are willing to put in the effort. She is fair and nice!
go to lecture and take notes... read the assigned text... thats all you need to do to pass
I loved Mary-Kay's occasional quirks. Greek myth is so weird and awesome. If you already know a great deal of myth, this course won't be as exciting for you. If you don't like reading, you're lost here. As long as you read and review you'll do fine on the tests.
She doesnt care if students learn. Test on slides that are not posted on internet. No way to study for ridiculously hard tests. Tests contain 50% trick questions. 20 hours of studying will bring you C-. Poor translations of interesting works. She teaches her opinion as if it were fact.
Her idea of a study guide is "know EVERYTHING we read". Her lectures are boring and even if you study for 5 hours a day every day you still will probably get only a C if you are lucky. 1/3 of the class failed the first test and 1/4 failed the second. The Guest speakers and TA's are awesome though
the class is easy if you just read and go to it. mary-kay is awesome, a wonderful woman. her lectures are interesting, she knows everything about ancient greece and she's very nice and helpful. couldn't respect her more. good sense of humor too.
She doesn't approach teaching this class in a good way. You have to know petty details like when a certain piece was written. The only good thing about this class was that the tests were always multiple choice. Sorry, Gamel. Better luck next time.
Very interesting and funny!!!
THIS IS THE EASIEST CLASS EVER. People who complain about how unfair the professor is, or how hard the class is, really have no idea what a college course asks for. The professor does very well with an imperfect situation.
No Comments
Gamel butchers the most interesting subject of Greek Myth into a vehicle of her own opinion. Films and guest lecturers are terrible. Translations of required readings are not always the best. No way to study for the test, a week of studying brings you a C. Don't take this class.
The lectures were generally very boring, her outlines were atrocious, and while she seemed to have a masterful command over the subject, she did not convey the information in a very organized manner.
Gamel was horrible! She turned off my interest in mythology and made my first quarter back to school a nightmare. Her tests were unbelieveably hard, because her questions were totally unreasonable. She expects you to know tedious details about text readings.. Do not Take her class!
Tests are ridiculously hard. If half the class is failing, that means there is something wrong, and its not the students. I found that the more I studied, the worse I did in the class. Trick Questions, big time. Her test review are worthless, all she tells you is to study everything.
If you know the main points from the secondary sources and read the plays, you will be fine. Study hard and it is not hard to get an A. Some lectures are kind of boring, but the selection of primary readings (all plays) are very interesting. Mary-Kay's interpretation of the works is interesting.
I got a b+ in this class but i have no idea how, the tests were hard, questions misleading, lectures nonsensical and study guides only semihelpful
my recommendation, don't bother taking this class. tests were very difficult and review sessions were no help. lectures were boring. don't waste your time or risk your gpa.
Mary Kay's class has become a gathering place for couch potatoes looking for the course equivalent of a video game. Fortunately it isn't that but it is a serious and fascinating course that opens up new worlds. Unfortunately scantron tests don't do justice to what is really interesting.
Mary-Kay is a theater geek. She teaches this course because she did her PhD work on the Metamorphoses and directs plays like those read in the course. Tests were tricky. Went to class and review sessions only to see slides. Read whats assigned and you will get a B for sure.
If you don't go to lecture, you're not going to do well in this class. If you don't read you will not either. This was the easiest class I have ever taken and those who say otherwise were probably just lazy.
I don't know what you guys are talking about... this class was easy if you read the material as closely as you're supposed to. Studying doesn't mean "read it once and hope the test will be on superficial plot points." I love myth, and I loved this class.
she is a great teacher and her class was really interesting. you need to do the reading and come to class to get an A, but there are NO tricks. Take this class if you are willing to put in some effort, and are interested in the subject.
The teacher for this class was very unfair. This was the second time that i was taking it and i still barely passed. For the final she didnt give us the slides that we needed and that hurt many peoples grades. She is very biased and does not treat students who are stuggling with the same respect.
This was advertised as a history class - well, Mary Kay Gamel is a literature professor and a theater buff. So, history majors, beware - this will NOT be what you expect out of a history class. The reading is BO-RING, tests are unfair and lectures disorganized. Don't bother.
I've had her for 2 classes. She is very smart and gives thorough, intelligent lectures. BUT- she talks fast and her "outline" notes are too sparse and unclear. Most of the stuff she covers in lecture is not the test which adds to further confusion. Study terms + who said them and the primary texts.
Mary-Kay is fabulous, but ya gotta work. Her class is not the type where you read things once and skate. You need to read often and closely and attend every lecture. Put in the time and you will do well. She's also very attached to her email:I've emailed her and gotten responses very quickly even to stupid questions. Very open to new ideas.
This class was a bore, and scantron tests in the lit. dept. are inexcusable. The lectures were densly packed with outline "points" of little interest, but no real engagement with or criticism of the texts is encouraged.
No Comments
Do not underestimate the "intro low-div" status of this class, because you must put in the time to get the grade. Read closely, take GOOD notes, & DO NOT DEPEND ON THE OUTLINE b/c it is an OUTLINE, not a silver platter with your notes on it. Study, read, highlight, ask, listen, blah.. BE A STUDENT basically.
Mary-Kay was my professor for my senior seminar, ancient myth modern poetics. This was the best class I had at UCSC, I only wish I had the class sooner. Of all my professors she showed the most passion for the subject, and was incredibly helpful in and out of the classroom. She encouraged our writing in a way that seemed as if it was personal. It is too bad that some seem to have taken her class with an attitude that class should be easy and that you shouldn't have to work at all to get something out of it.
I think this last person who wrote IS Mary Kay Gamel; or else one of her zombie minions. If you work hard in almost ANY class you will learn. The point here is that as a lecturer she is boring, incomprehensible and completely off the mark.
If you are thinking taking a class with this woman, i suggest getting a demo of her teaching style by going downtown santa cruz and asking a bum on meth his/her opinion on mythology, as the twitching glassy eyed transient barks inchoherent convoluted words at you and staggers about preaching his opinions you will see what to expect from Ms. Gammel
She is a tough cookie, but it makes for a good class. She packs in a ton of info, which means a lot of reading. Surprisingly challenging scantron tests.
Even though the subject was interesting and the lectures was interesting, you really need to read the books and take the class a little more seriously than you normally would've. Her tests are kinda hard =/
Avoid at all cost! Scantrons are too difficult with a****ty study guide offering little support. I'm an A-B student in all of my classes and I got a D here. Impossible! Spent days and days studying. Didn't do any good. Wait for a different professor to take this class, because it's a good class, just a****ty teacher.
TERRIBLE! Gamel is a terrible terrible professor. She talks too fast, goes on too many tangents, and pretty much you want to get the most of your college education, do not take any classes with her. Her study guides are just a list of pages and pages of terms,that you would have to look deep into the readings to find, and arent relevant. TERRIBLE!
Mary Kay is one of the best professors at UCSC. Her classes are not easy, but she knows her****. Anyone who hates her is probably just an idiot. I took Approaches to Myth and American film violence and I learned more from those classes than from any others I've taken. If you want an easy A don't take a class with her, if you like Lit, go for it.
Horrible class. Ruined film, comedy and sex. TA's were horrible, lectures were all over the place. Sucked.
Amazing class and fantastic professor! The hardest class I've ever taken but absolutely fair. I'd recommend not taking any other reading-intensive classes with it. Professor Gamel is incredibly responsive and helpful. Only take her class if you're willing to put in the time, though. And DEFINITELY meet with your TA at least once.
I love Mary Kay. She is a fun lecturer, but is absolutely behind the times. She shamelessly plugs her own work, which I find funny. She is really interested in the stuff she teaches which made me more interested in it. Her lectures are hard to follow and the tests are ridiculous, but no papers is nice for a change.
Was an all right class. The title "Comedy and Sex in Theater" is pretty misleading. The only grade in the class is the final, so don't forget to study.
A challenging but do-able Latin course. Mary-Kay is one of the most intelligent professors I've had, a fair grader, fun, and really accessible via email. Plus, she threw us a party after the final. She loves theater and incorporates films and other fun things into the course.
She is interesting/sometimes entertaining/always speaks quickly but as if is excited about own lectures. Always explains how the films watched are connected to plays read. Offers extra credit opportunity. Midterm/final are not too difficult if one reviews names/characters/plots/symbols of films/plays and main terms (don't need all) from readings.
I LOVE Mary Kay! She's extremely engaged and excited about her own lectures, which gets me excited as well. Most of her film choices for this class were interesting, the comic ones were the borefests to be honest. Midterm and Final weren't hard at all, as long as you studied. Papers were graded too hard by the TA's for a Lower Div course.
Mary-Kay is an excellent professor and will do everything to help her students succeed. She hosts study groups every day, and is always willing to help you individually in office hours or via email.
Gamel is... well, the worst professor I've had in college yet. She is completely unprofessional, technologically incompetent, unwilling to acknowledge her own faults, and lectures the class much like a scolding mother. Her tests are nonsensical and she boasts her opinions as though they were facts. I don't understand all the positive comments here.
Good teacher overall, however she can sometimes stray from the topic or let her personal views interfere with content.
The tests were difficult to study for and there is a lot of unneeded reading. A lot of the test questions involved the student understanding the professor's opinion.
Gamel is an amazing professor, always excited about what she teaches, is prompt in replying to emails, offers extra credit, lectures are organized/informative, studyuides are detailed/clear, if you are careful to read all the primary texts (there are many)/attend all lectures, you'll do well, tests are hard but very fair/do-able if you study.
An exceptional teacher who goes out of her way to make sure students understand what she's teaching and make herself available whenever someone needs her. However, even with all the help the classes are fairly difficult and will require a lot of effort for a good grade.
Way too challenging, most of the class is failing, and she doesn't curve. Way too disorganized. However she is interesting and a good professor.
Mary-Kay is my hero. I love her like as a professor, a mentor and a friend.
Mary-Kay is the best! I love her - her classes are awesome and super interesting; she's hilarious, understanding and works with you to help you do the best you can - you just need to be honest and up front with her.
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
100%
Textbook Required
100%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Rating Trend
Improving
+0.25 avg changeRatings by Course
HIS80
5.0
(1)LIT061M
5.0
(1)HIST60
5.0
(1)MEDEA
5.0
(1)61M
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
HIS21
5.0
ANCIENTMYTH
5.0
CLASSICMYTH
5.0
CLASSMYTH
5.0
COMSEXLIT123
5.0