An apple for the teacher
Yet it would be difficult to make a case that Shore has not done "enough work" during his four years at Amherst. An English major, graduating magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with departmental honors and the Elizabeth Bruss Prize, Shore intends to make a career of teaching literature. He hopes to become involved in public education in the near future and has tested the waters already, having taught inner-city fifth and sixth graders at the Summerbridge program in Cambridge, Mass. after his sophomore year. "Teaching at all levels is wonderful," he said. "Education in general is something that's occupied my thoughts for a long time."
According to Shore, he has had some amazing examples to follow in this endeavor. "Amherst, especially English at Amherst, is a unique experience," he said. "The professors I've had have had an overriding appreciation of literature, insisting that the pleasures of reading always come first." "English 75: Literary Criticism" with Professor of English William Pritchard was crucial in helping to form his passion for criticism in literature. "I have always considered myself a serious reader, but that was my first real introduction to criticism," Shore said. "You're not supposed to like criticism better than literature, but I had a real obsession with criticism for a year before I began to focus again on fiction and poetry."
Shore was also able to take advantage of Oxford University during his second semester junior year abroad in England. "It was great academically; I was ready for the kind of independence that the English tutorial system offers." Such a benefit had to be carefully weighed against leaving friends as well as his girlfriend behind, whom Shore describes as hands-down the best part of his time at Amherst, as he interjects, "Did I mention she's wonderful?" During various parts of his College career Shore has divided his time among playing on the water polo team, playing in the orchestra and other musical ensembles and participating in social activist groups like Amherst Students Acting Politically; but his goals are, for the moment, very focused.
Paradise found
Under the guidance of Pritchard, Shore embarked upon his thesis: an analysis on the writings of Milton through a comparison with the Ranters, a group of radical Puritans from 17th century England who believed that everything they did and said was God doing and saying through them. "Society was afraid of them because they were anarchists, but they were also profound theologians," explained Shore. "It was fascinating to me; I hadn't done serious historical research before."
In recent weeks, Shore has also garnered the Francis Bacon Essay Prize, awarded by the Massachusetts Center for Renaissance Studies for his thesis, as well as the Moseley Prize for the best thesis or essay "dealing in a scholarly manner with religion," awarded by the Amherst College Religion Department.
A large part of what Shore got out of his thesis was "the process of what it's like to be involved with writing as a daily experience," he said. "Since January I've sat down every night for two hours, and if it came to me it came to me, if it didn't it didn't."
It eventually did come to him, to the tune of 70 pages. "It's what I want to do and what interests me, to be deeply involved in literature. That's the good part, that's the meat that you're always trying to get at," said Shore, a vegetarian.
Music to his ears
With a move towards English came a necessary departure from the pursuit of Shore's love of music. A French horn-player, he had toyed with the idea of a career in music in passing, and had a brief stint working with Lanfranco Marcelletti before focusing more on English. "Most of the courses that have really changed me have been in English and music," Shore said. They "changed the way I see the world-the way I enjoy the world-the most." The classes Shore had with Professor of Music Lewis Spratlan were particularly influential. "The music theory courses I've taken with him [Music 32 and 33] have been mind-blowing," Shore said.
"One of my biggest problems is that I feel like music has faded from my life in recent years. I'm trying to figure out the role that music will play in life after college," he added.
Welcome to the real world
During his time at the College, Shore described himself as simply "incredibly happy here." He added, "I had never really felt proud of being part of a group or organization before coming here. I'm very proud of Amherst College, and always will be."
Shore is in the midst of the graduation nervousness that's extremely common among seniors, especially exiting a small liberal arts college into the "real world." "I want to leave and am afraid of leaving at the same time," he said. "It's difficult to feel as if 'hey, everything always turns out alright in the end.'"
"Socially I think that Amherst is an incredible place in terms of the close connections that you can make with people," he added. So what will he remember from his days at Amherst? "All those times when I've studied in the library till one a.m. and then stayed up until five in the morning talking to friends-and not regretted it at all."