I consider a good professor one who changes the way you think after each lecture. Many found his lectures to be boring and off-topic, but if you're actually paying attention they're absolutely brilliant and insightful. I took Eng 111A during winter quarter 2014 and it taught me so much about Jewish history and the Old Testament. Even though I'm pretty sure he's not religious, or at least taught the class in a very secular way (rightfully so), I gained so much insight into my Christian faith through studying Hebrew Scriptures and all the intricacies and ambiguities within them. He's slightly intimidating, but he rewards you if you show up to lecture and work hard. I can tell he cares about his students a lot if you put in the work to do well.

The class had a lot of reading (all from the Bible), a final paper (8-10 pages), I believe a midterm (on terms and ID's), and a final (an in-class test on ID's and terms, and an online essay portion.) It was pretty challenging, but I was so glad to learn so much and learn from such a brilliant professor! My one regret is never going to office hours because I wish I would have gotten to know him more. Overall, I put it a lot of work, did about 90% of the readings, and worked hard and in advance on the final paper and I got an A - so it's definitely doable!

I had the pleasure of learning from Professor Maniquis twice in the '13-'14 school year. I took his English 111A class (Hebrew Bible) and his English 125 class (Violence in Lit.). His class is challenging in the best way. He requires a lot of reading, but is not too harsh when it comes to testing. The midterm and final are always incredibly fair; all of the information has been stressed and reviewed in class. The concepts I learned have been invaluable to my education at UCLA and I cannot stress how knowledgeable and kind Maniquis is. If you're interested in a quality education, be sure to sign up for one of his classes before you graduate.

I think Maniquis is fantastic. If you like real, old school literature professors, the kind you might encounter at Berkeley or at an Ivy League, take his class. — Blake, the Bible, whatever. I am sure he is great on all of it. You might see some complaints above about how he is "disorganized." I get it but I am not sure those people understand his style. Maniquis improvises when he lectures because he is genuinely inspired by the material and goes where the energy takes him rather than mechanically following a cut and dried power point plan. I could cite so many examples but here is just one: his lecture on Rhyme of the Ancient mariner. In the lecture he covered the trends in Biblical study at the time, what was happening politically in England, the poem that Coleridge wrote and abandoned before moving on to the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner, Coleridge's Empiricism and enlightenment influences and then he synthesized all of it to present a completely contextualized picture of the the poem. Such deep (rather than "close") readings are SO important. Young professors are drifting more and more away from the beating heart of literature (not all of them, thank God)in favor of tedious, and let's face it, PRETENTIOUS theory. Maniquis is the real deal and sure, he can be long winded but taking his class was an experience that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. His tests are perfectly fair and his grading is good spirited - he isn't going to hand out fake "A's" but he wants people to succeed and gives the best grade he can. If you are a good student and really love literature, take this guy's class. Not just to get something from it (you will) but to support what he is doing as an academic.

I had the privilege of taking two courses with Professor Maniquis, English 111A and English 125. Maniquis is a very learned man and by far the best Professor I have experienced at UCLA. His lectures aren't structured like your typical class. Instead of being monotone and tedious, his lectures are extremely stimulating and he invites class discussion. He is a professor who doesn't just give you a fish, but instead he teaches you how to fish. Because of his courses, I learn and see the world through an enlightened set of eyes. I really can't say enough great things about Maniquis as a professor. Do yourself a favor and TAKE AT LEAST ONE COURSE WITH HIM! You will not regret it.

Boring.

Difficult to pay attention to.

Smart.

Only worth it if you are already interested in the subject.