For those who have not even set foot in Oxford, the city still lives in their imaginations alongside elite debates, candlelit balls and formals, tempestuous love stories, and mysterious, perhaps ever-existent secret societies.
But what if the stories came back to Oxford? What happens when the myths and tales about Oxford, carefully packaged in screens and pages, find their way back to an audience who are, in fact, living them?
Recently, Netflix has released a movie set in Oxford, titled My Oxford Year. It features a 22-year-old American girl heading to Oxford for the Master of English Literature thanks to the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship and then falling in love with a “smart-mouthed” local, so-called teaching assistant.
The trailer made its way back to Oxford, and the Oxford Reddit immediately exploded with discussions. Several of my friends from Oxford shared the trailer on Instagram. While waiting for the film’s release, I decided to read the book which inspired it. This is my take on My Oxford Year: comparing it to other Oxford books, and considering whether it offers a distorted view or accurately depicts the Oxford experience.
Personally, as a girl who used to read and watch Oxford stories and movies in the hope of one day being part of that wonderland, I now find myself viewing with a very critical eye. I have divided Oxford fantasies into three categories: ‘Spot-On’, ‘Stretch of the Truth’, and finally ‘Straight-Up Fanfic’. To give you a sense of what I mean, I’ll place Surprised by Oxford, The Last Enchantments, and Beloved Oxford into those categories, respectively.
The first category, ‘Spot-On’, features what I consider to be the genuine Oxford. The ‘Spot-On’ book must capture both the historic setting of the old colleges and the emotional challenges of Imposter Syndrome found in Oxford. When depicting the fantastic relationships, it is worth mentioning devastating heartbreaks, too. Yes, there are fun drunken nights, but there must also be nights when you’re stuck writing in the college library until two in the morning. Surprised by Oxford is a memoir of Carolyn Weber, the first female dean of St Peter’s College. It is a story of an ordinary girl who works incredibly hard to get to Oxford, and once there, struggles with life, love, religious beliefs, and academic pursuits. It is ‘Spot-On’: I can understand the stress of the workload, the embarrassment in the first tutorial, and even the blush between the romantic lines. It beautifully depicts Oxford but also keeps the genuine Oxford student experience, which is not always rosy and perfect.
Books falling into the second category, ‘Stretch of the Truth’, are often written by those who have lived and studied in Oxford. Therefore, those books can depict the city and the University very well. However, the stories themselves do not properly resonate, as seen in The Last Enchantments by Charles Finch. It follows an American politician who comes to Oxford for a Master’s in English Literature and seeks to relive his university years. The book acknowledges its setting in the university and the town. Still, as the stories progress, with several drunk nights, hook-ups, dramas, and a lack of academic presence, Oxford becomes increasingly blurred, making it hard for readers to connect with the tales. It paints too perfect a picture. It just feels too privileged.
The third book, Beloved Oxford by Vietnamese romance writer Dương Thụy, is an example of the ‘Straight-Up Fanfic’ category, which is the least reliable. The book is intentionally sweetened with the Oxford title to draw in readers, even though it has nothing to do with Oxford, whether the town or the gown. Beloved Oxford is a lighthearted romance between a Vietnamese and a Portuguese Economics postgraduate student at Oxford. However, although the love story is set at Oxford, the only real “Oxford” moment is when the female lead muses that “the school is very prestigious” and she had to work hard. That’s it.
So, what category does My Oxford Year belong to?
To be honest, it is a typical romantic novel set in Oxford, featuring the cheesy ‘enemy-to-lover’ and ‘forbidden-love’ tropes. I find that the author accurately portrays Oxford, both the city and its traditions, as well as the experience of being an international student who struggles to understand Oxford and English customs. However, some points seem illogical, such as the main character’s background in political science being relevant to her receiving the Rhodes Scholarship for a Master’s in English Literature.
I would tentatively classify My Oxford Year in the second category, ‘Stretch of the Truth’, closely bordering on the ‘Spot-On’ category. The book is amusing to read, and the author tries to capture the student experience in ways that I could relate to so much. I did some research and found that the author attended Oxford as a visiting student, like me, perhaps even in the same programme.
Talking to other Oxford students about My Oxford Year, I find it interesting that there’s a contrast in reactions between matriculated and visiting students regarding the book and the movie adaptation. Matriculated students often feel irritated when they see their cherished University, parks, and city distorted to fit stereotypes associated with Oxford.“It would be like Emily in Paris, but Emily is funnier”, a friend of mine, a DPhil graduate, shared. “Netflix is milking Oxford the same way they milked Paris.”
Meanwhile, visiting students adopt a more accepting attitude; some shout “stop milking content from Oxford”, but others genuinely enjoy watching and reading them.
“I don’t need to see the movie to know it will be ridiculous, but I don’t mind watching it again and again, enjoying spotting the names of the buildings in the background each time”, a visiting student who had already returned to the United States after a semester at Oxford shared with me. “It is the nostalgia of the place you used to love that matters.”
When the movie was finally out on August 1st, I was excited to see it, only to be buried in disappointment later.
The movie does the book a disservice.
As the 300-page book is condensed into a one-and-a-half-hour film, it omits many of Oxford’s key selling points, from the intellectual rapport between the characters to their development. Jamie, the male lead, becomes a playboy, wealthy, and privileged instead of being witty, playful, but deeply thoughtful. Likewise, Anna from New York (or Ella from Ohio in the book), the female lead, is portrayed as flirty and sexy rather than independent, goal-oriented, and opinionated. In the book, the two are drawn to each other by coincidence and then connect academically and emotionally; the movie, however, depicts their relationship as merely lustful.
Nonetheless, both Jamie and Anna are made younger. Anna, a recent university graduate, has just secured a position at Goldman Sachs instead of spending years working on political campaigns. She also did not win the Rhodes Scholarship as in the book. In the new movie, Jamie is still a DPhil student, while in the book, he was more mature, had completed his DPhil at “the other place” (Cambridge) and was returning to Oxford for a postdoctoral fellowship.
I would rank the movie below the book, just below ‘Stretch of the Truth’. My Oxford Year represents the most romanticised version of Oxford, the one seen on postcards and Instagram feeds. In this version, every Oxonian is either naturally brilliant or impossibly wealthy, navigating life without the burden of hard work. They always seem to have time for long, philosophical walks with friends or wine-soaked dinners in candlelit halls and mock pubs. Their wardrobes? Effortlessly perfect with Anna, mostly always in shirts and gowns. It’s an Oxford of effortless charm and privilege, stunning to behold but far removed from the messy, often exhausting reality of the place.As an Oxford visiting student, I could not bear watching My Oxford Year. Perhaps one day, long after I have left, I will be able to watch it and smile to recognise the city I used to love. But for now, I would rather live my Oxford year than watch someone else’s imagined one.
