Caleb Woellhof, Class of ’25

Currently working on his novel series, The Bridge—a fantasy epic inspired by Indo-European mythology—Caleb has transformed his passion for reading and writing into a viable career path. Now enrolled in the Teacher’s Education Program, the BA/MA Program, and the English Honors Program, Caleb’s dedication to educate and uplift students drives him in his studies. 

What made you pursue English as a major?

Because it was discouraged by the religion I grew up in, I originally wasn’t supposed to go to college at all. In high school, I took a lot of computer science classes because I thought it would be a good profession to go into that didn’t require college, but my passion was always reading and writing. When I got out of high school, I went to BOCES for HVAC, but it didn’t really pan out. I didn’t have a passion for it. When Covid happened, however, online college became easy and affordable, and I figured “why not become an English teacher?” I went to Suffolk Community College for English, graduated, came to Stony Brook, and joined the Teacher’s Education Program. 

Tell me about your Masters Thesis. What is your topic about? 

I’m writing about how Viking/Norse-mythology-based media can be separated from the far-right, misogynist white-supremacists and Neo-Nazis who have latched onto it in recent years, and how we can write these stories to be better representations of history that don’t encourage harmful narratives. I briefly discuss the history of Nazi ideology’s ties to Norse culture, and I focus my discussion around Robert Eggers’ 2022 film The Northman, how it actually acts against the far-right narrative by subverting the traditional, ultra-manly Viking legend into a cautionary tale against the dangers of toxic masculinity and warrior culture (the very same kinds of toxic masculinity and warrior culture that the aforementioned groups idolize). I then develop my point by comparing its story to cultural precedents from Norse mythology and the Sagas, as well as by comparing it to other “good” examples of Norse media like Vinland Saga, God of War, and Twilight of the Gods, as well as other “bad” examples like History Channel’s Vikings and the film/graphic novel 300 (which isn’t Norse-inspired, but is a good example of everything The Northman is often accused of being, an ahistorical propaganda-piece that glorifies toxic warrior culture without critiquing it).

Is there a favorite class you’ve taken at Stony Brook so far? Has anything stood out to you?

During my first semester at Stony Brook, I took EGL204 with Professor Flescher, and it was great. We focused on plays by Bernard Shaw. Each class, he would choose a section and we’d read out the lines like we were performing a miniature play, and it added so much life and color into what we were doing. I was able to distinguish myself a little by how much I got into that aspect of class because I love acting. Whenever I’d read the lines, I would put on an accent and everything!

Have you done your student observation or student teaching yet? If so, tell me about that experience.

I did my observations at Newfield High School, Selden Middle School, and Brentwood High School. It was a pretty enlightening experience being able to sit in classrooms and watch the teacher go about their work and seeing how they encourage their students to approach the topics. In Newfield, the students work a lot with laptops, and the teachers computer is connected to all of them, so she could monitor what the students were doing and give feedback. It’s great seeing what they’ve done with technology in the classroom.