Rachael Davis began her college career focusing on questions, not answers. The South Carolina Honors College senior English major from Gilbert, South Carolina, entered the university as an undeclared major so that she could spend her first semester reflecting on why exactly she wanted to pursue an undergraduate degree. For Davis, who has loved to journal and read for most of her life, this reflective process is a natural one.
Her inquiries developed: What questions did she hope to answer through her studies? How could she use her education to help others? As her first semester progressed, she realized that answers could be found in exactly what she was doing: writing.
“I eventually decided on an English major because I saw that language and literature is a tool that helps us understand the world and empowers us to help others, which was important to me,” she says.
Though one decision was made, one answer reached, her reflections and connections were far from over. Davis began to develop themes for each semester, synthesizing ideas and information from her coursework. She continued this practice throughout her entire undergraduate career. As she prepares to graduate this May, we couldn’t help but wonder: What were the themes of her University of South Carolina and Honors coursework?
We thought that Davis could explain it best.
Question: When did you begin developing themes that unify your semester of coursework? What inspired this reflection?
Answer: Literature is about stories, and stories are essentially about connection. I always try to make connections between my classes, but during the fall of my sophomore year I noticed that climate change was a recurring discussion in almost all of my classes. I decided that the "theme" of that semester was, very simply, "The Climate and the Anthropocene." After that, I intentionally started looking for ways to tie my classes together each semester, challenging myself to find unique connections that lay underneath surface-level differences.
Question: What are some of themes you’ve recognized each semester, and which classes and instructors inspired them?
Answer: Some of the themes I've collected include "The Hero's Journey," inspired by my Honors Creative Writing, my Gospel Literature and my Women Writers class; and "Say What You Mean: Shaping the World," inspired by my Honors Law and Religious Traditions class, my Linguistics class and my Great Books of the Western World class. In fall 2025 I took Jewish History, Irish Literature, Theories of Religion and two Honors classes: Enchanting Fictions and The Histories and Futures of Reading. These are pretty disparate class topics, so it was a fun challenge to bring them together. I took my time with them and eventually started noticing that attention and intentionality were common values in my classes. I ended up landing on "Attention, Intention and Connection," focusing on the tension between what we have historically given our attention to, the ways that intention is often missing from contemporary culture and the ways that humankind finds and has found connection in the past.
Question: Have these themes led to any moments of self-discovery about your intellectual curiosities and academic trajectory?
Answer: Coming up with themes for every semester has been a way to flex my creative thinking muscles, and it's also shown me how much I prioritize connection as a learner. I think I do my best as a student when I'm able to make these big, over-arching connections between concepts and classes. As an English major, a lot of what I do in my various classes can feel too abstract to apply in real life. But when I challenge myself to always look for the common ground between my classes, I also end up finding real-world connections that are topical to today. Whether I'm thinking about "nonchalance" in my Renaissance class, or the social impacts of climate change in my Cultures of Extraction class, I find that I'm often focused on how my student life relates to the real world.
Question: If you were to choose one Honors course that had the greatest impact on your undergraduate experience, what would that course be, and why?
Answer: Picking only one Honors class is a tough call, because I've taken a lot of cool classes. However, I think that taking How to Think in an Age of Political Polarization my freshman year was foundational to the way I have approached learning ever since. The class was an interesting mix of learning about the ways that polarization occurs, and discussion about actual currently polarized topics. This class was more than an attempt to look past the polarized views we're so often presented with. It required a critical approach to both sides of an argument as well as my own thought process, and it showed me how to leave black-and-white thinking at the door. The lessons from that class have been integral to learning and to life in general. (If I was to retrospectively name this semester, I would have called it "Growing Pains.")
Question: Does your Honors senior thesis embody any of these themes or reflections? If so, how?
Answer: My Honors thesis is a creative novella about a young man's struggle with loneliness and self-isolation. He goes on a journey for self-discovery, but finds instead that understanding and connecting with others is just as important as understanding himself. Can you tell I like connection? The themes of connection, loneliness, identity and hope have all been on my mind as a student during my college career, so they seep into whatever I do, even when I don't set out to include them intentionally!
Question: What advice would you give to students just beginning their Honors experiences?
Answer: Welcome to some of the most interesting and important years of your life! The Honors College provides such a unique experience, so take advantage of that. Try to take at least one class that challenges and fascinates you, even if it's unrelated to your major. Let the world surprise you!
Her coursework and experiences helped Davis discern her post-graduation plans: attending the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law next fall. She will continue pursuing her passion for storytelling, literature and making connections — as well as making an impact.
“I have a passion for the power that language has to make change,” she says. “My goal is to take what I’ve learned and the skills that I've developed and put them to use helping others through a legal career.”