If you’re a bookworm and/or a feminist, you’ll feel at home in Anne Fernald’s office.
Fernald, a professor of English and women, gender, and sexuality studies, has taught at Fordham for more than two decades. Her office at the Lincoln Center campus is filled with items both cool and kooky, from a student-made Virginia Woolf diary to a statue with special powers.
‘Anne Is as Good as Any Man’
Framed on a wall in Fernald’s office is her campaign poster from when she ran for sixth-grade class president. Written in pencil is her slogan: “Anne is as good as any man.”
“This was the late 70s—the height of the Cold War. We hid under desks, and there was a lot of talk about what would happen if there was a nuclear armageddon. My platform was unilateral nuclear disarmament and passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. Meanwhile, my opponent ran a platform of longer recess and better snacks,” Fernald said. “I didn’t win, but I keep this poster to remind myself of my values.”
‘Manga’ Anne Fernald
Decorating her office is a manga version of Fernald, sketched by a former student.
“I once taught English as a second language to a teenage Japanese student. His parents made him take summer school, and he was miserable. He drew manga throughout all of class and was about to get an F,” said Fernald. “But I told him, ‘Look—I’ll make you a deal. You’re two points shy of a D. Draw me in manga style, and I’ll pass you.’ He did a really good job.”
A Sketch by a Security Guard
Above her desk is a drawing of the main library at Yale University, where Fernald earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. in English.
“A security guard at the library drew that. As he sat at his desk, he took big pieces of cardboard and felt-tip pens and drew all day long. Eventually, the union told him he couldn’t draw anymore because they thought he wasn’t paying enough attention to checking bags,” Fernald said. “But I thought his art was incredible.”
Cartoon Alvin Ailey
Taped to her office door is a cartoon of Alvin Ailey, drawn by her child, Izzy, when they were about 10 years old.
“Many years ago, that was made on a Take-Your-Kid-to-Work Day. Izzy made an oral report about Alvin Ailey during Black History Month, since I have a lot of student dancers,” said Fernald, who has two children—Izzy, now 19, and 23-year-old Olivia.
The Anne Trifecta
Sitting on her bookshelf are many items, including a photo of the late Anne Mannion, who taught history at Fordham for more than five decades.
“I used to meet up with her and Anne Hoffman, who’s also deceased, in Lowenstein and conspire about stuff. We called ourselves ‘The Annes,’” said Fernald. “I miss them a lot.”
Beside the photo of Mannion is a rainbow pin that signals Fernald’s support for LGBTQ students, as well as a toy soldier from a student project.
“I had a student veteran to whom I taught the novel Mrs. Dalloway, which features a World War I soldier. I keep it to remember my student and how much he identified with the veteran in that book,” Fernald explained.
Reminders of War
Fernald, who teaches classes on war, keeps a collection of wartime paraphernalia.
“I hate war, but we need to understand it. I admire the impulse of young people to make a difference in the world. Sometimes, that impulse translates to joining the military. But many of my student veterans end up having lots of questions about what they were asked to do. And so I like to invite people to think critically about this strange, horrible thing we do as human beings—killing each other in an organized way in order to achieve a political goal,” Fernald said.
The Faculty Senate Gavel
On Fernald’s desk is a souvenir from when she served as president of Fordham’s Faculty Senate from 2015 to 2017.
“It was an amazing, eye-opening, painful, and wonderful experience,” she said.
A Powerful God
Hanging above her guest chair is a god from the South Pacific.
“It has a very special and important power—turning bad men into women. If someone is driving me crazy in my office, I can look up and silently ask this god if they could perform their magic on the recalcitrant guest,” Fernald said. “My mom gave it to me because she thought I had some bad men in my life that needed to understand what it means to be a woman. It makes me laugh.”
A Student Diary About Virginia Woolf
The most abundant items in Fernald’s office are objects related to feminist writer Virginia Woolf.
“I fell in love with her sentences when I was in graduate school. Then I learned about her life and all she overcame,” said Fernald, who studied Woolf’s work for more than three decades. “She became a beautiful writer, a strong feminist, and a woman of tremendous ambition. It’s inspiring.”
On display in her office is a final project by a former student—a study of Woolf’s diaries and the student’s own diary.
“Woolf paid so much attention to every word, comma, and punctuation mark. I want my students to understand that power of caring about details,” Fernald said.
A Final Reflection on Woolf
Hanging above her desk is a poster of Woolf—a reminder of how Woolf not only made Fernald’s career, but also hurt it.
“Early in my career, being interested in Woolf marked me as a feminist, and not everyone loves a feminist. It’s cost me opportunities, but I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Fernald said. “I want us to celebrate people of all genders. It’s something that I’ve fought for—and it’s worked out.”
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
