Invasion of Privacy: Shakespearean superfan and avid napper Diana Morley
Photo via Diana Morley
In Act 4 of Shakespeare’s King Lear, Lear poses a poignant question that has held the captivation of audiences for centuries: “Who is it that can tell me who I am?” For junior English and adolescent education major Diana Morley, there seems to be a clear answer—and, like Lear, only she can tell herself who she is.
Morley grew up in the “quaint little town” of Fayetteville, New York, just outside of Syracuse. Morley spoke fondly of her hometown: “Fayetteville, New York is one of my favorite places on Earth, but that is because of the home-ness of it. I don’t think I would necessarily like it if I weren’t from there, but it is just a little town, and it’s cute.”
Here at Geneseo, where Morley is the Junior President of the Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society, she has been able to cultivate a second home, not only in the spaces she shares with her friends here on campus, but also in the English department itself. Though she may not have anticipated how much the English department would mean to her, it has been one of her most rewarding experiences.
“I had no idea about anything to do with the English department [initially],” said Morley. “So, when I came to Geneseo… I wasn’t even paying attention to the English department. It just happened to be incredible.”
By studying English, Morley has gotten the opportunity to delve further into the works of William Shakespeare, of whom she is a self-proclaimed superfan.
“I love Shakespeare. I literally eat him up,” Morley said. “I have yet to read a play of his or a sonnet [of his] that I’ve been like, ‘this is bad.’ I love it. I love the way that someone [so long ago]…felt the same things we feel now… It’s just my favorite thing in the world that the human experience has always been the same.”
Incidentally, Morley’s favorite Shakespearean work is King Lear. She has a deeply personal connection with the text and admires the way it moves her as a reader.
“He wrote a story about a daughter having to take care of her father who was dying and in the process of dying. And then now hundreds of years later, my mom is going—or was going through—the same exact thing,” Morley explained. “I think that really solidified my connection with King Lear. I think it also just has really strong messages…it’s beautiful.”
When Diana isn’t busy reading Shakespeare or planning Sigma Tau Delta’s birthday party event for Shakespeare, (which will run as a mini-Shakespeare-in-the-Park on Apr. 23 in the South Amphitheatre), chances are you can find her sleeping.
“I have such a bad problem with napping,” Morley laughed. “I literally lay down on my couch…[and] all my roommates will be in the room making themselves dinner, yelling, laughing, watching a movie: I won’t budge. I’m like a rock.”
Her napping habits may be a bit irregular, but one of her most recent napping stories certainly encapsulates the true essence of being a college student: “I was doing homework and I was like, ‘I’m just gonna lay my head down for a little,’ [and when] I woke up…I was napping on my computer. For hours.”
Shakespeare and napping aside, Morley hopes that all who read her interview have another friendly face on campus. Above all, one should walk away from this invasion carrying Morley’s three most important principles in life: “Never say sorry, nothing’s embarrassing, and always tell everyone every compliment you have.”