As always, you're too kind. The thing about papers is, they're so horribly fixed, and they offer the illusion of perfectibility. No matter what, there is always something in a paper that could have been expressed better, or more thoroughly; that reveals a lacuna in your reasoning that really ought to be addressed; that needs a footnote you have no source for even though you sort of thought you had one. And it requires so much sitting still and being organized and eeeeeeeeekkk. It's like, all the disadvantages of fiction writing, and without the emotional payoff; and you know my dreadful record when it comes to finishing stories.

But oral presentations are relatively easy and fun! For those you need only to do the reading, which is normally a pleasure, have an idea you want to present, and be able to talk from your notes. It eliminates both the awful sitting down and writing part and the ability to look over your own work and despair because it's still not any good. It's so much easier that I wonder at it being such a big thing in universities these days. Is it because no one can write, do you think, and having oral presentations means that you aren't faced with any dilemmas about awarding low marks to students who can't manage a paper?

I wish I could sit in on your classes, no matter what you decide. I remember almost nothing about Mesopotamia and Egypt, and I never knew anything at all about the Maya or Shang China. I bet it's going to be really fun, whatever you wind up doing.