Bark-er Center Goes to the Dogs

A stately room, engaging conversation, and most importantly: Man’s Best Friend curled up at your feet. Yes, section truly is a home away from home.

Or at least that’s how Jason Manoharan, head TF for “Postwar American and British Fiction,” wants it to feel. He has discovered that there’s no better way of breaking a tense, academic atmosphere in class than by bringing his Old English sheep dog, Kaliban.

“He adds a touch of humanity to the austerity of Harvard,” Manoharan says of the enormous, shaggy creature that can be seen traversing the halls of the Barker Center.

According to students, both Manoharan and Kali (as the dog is affectionately known) are doing their jobs perfectly. Abigail J. Crutchfield ’10 praises the conversational atmosphere created by the dog’s presence. She describes the feel of her section meetings as “a book club full of very intelligent people.”

Similarly, Glenda R. Carpio, associate professor of African and African American Studies and of English and American Literature and Language, notes the occupational advantages of having her beagle, Placido, around at her office in the Af-Am Studies Department. “As a writer, I appreciate having someone sit at my feet, but then insist on taking long walks,” she says, adding that she always comes back to her work refreshed and refocused.

Carpio too is dazzled by how her pet brings out the human side of frenetic Harvard. “He has these standoffs with squirrels in Harvard Yard, and what’s most sweet is how many people stop and watch.”

Manoharan agrees, noting with a sigh how Kali has helped him through the demanding world of academia: “Grad school is a long haul, and it’s nice to have one companion who will not asses your work harshly.”