English Literature (B.A.)

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Student Learning Outcomes for English Literature:

Students will be able to:

Produce a variety of texts using creative, rhetorical, and analytical strategies.
Communicate clearly, accurately, and precisely in multiple modes.
Identify appropriate primary and secondary research materials, apply them to support original arguments, and correctly cite their sources.
Explore and analyze the relationships among literature, language, culture, and history.
Integrate and synthesize reading, writing, and other communication skills in purposeful life work and professional settings.

The English Literature major requires:

The British Literature and Culture Survey Sequence

The American Literature and Culture Survey Sequence

One 200-Level Focus Course

One 300-Level Literature Course

One 400-Level Authors Seminar

One Additional 300- or 400-Level Literature Course

EN 480-489 - Independent Study in English may be substituted where appropriate for English Major requirements
EN 490 - Directed Senior Research I and
EN 491 - Directed Senior Research Project II
EN 490 and EN 491 are only available at the invitation of the English Program

An English Department Capstone Course

One Writing Course

Electives (8 credits):

Two English Department courses, EN165 or higher (includes EN302, The English Language; EN470–EN474, Internship in English; IC201, Ecology and Short Fiction; and IC205, The Science and the Stories)

One English Department course, EN165 or higher (as above); and a Second Semester of an Ancient or Modern Language. **

* If a student wishes to take EN301, English Grammar and Linguistics (a 2-credit course), or to do a 2-credit Internship, then this situation must be discussed with the Academic Advisor as soon as possible.

** The Language course must be the second course that the student has taken at the College level. For example, if the student has taken SP112 to fulfill Core requirements, then this upper-level course will not also fulfill the English Major requirement.

First Year Suggested Courses:

FYS 100 - First-Year Seminar
EN 100 - PLE Writing and Language
EN 200 - WCH British Literature and Culture I: 550 – 1660
EN 201 - WCH British Literature and Culture II: 1660 – Present Day
EN 202 - HUM American Literature and Culture I: Beginnings – 1865
EN 203 - HUM American Literature and Culture II: 1866 – Present Day
Power of Language: Other Core course (4 credits)
Another Core course (4 credits)
EN 185 - Introduction to Professional Writing

Note:

First Year students in English Literature should take British Literature I and/or American Literature I in the Fall semester; and they should take British Literature II and/or American Literature II in the Spring semester of that first year. If this is not possible, then Literature students should try their best to do the American and British Survey courses “in order”—i.e., I and then II, for each Survey Sequence—as this will enable them to see more clearly the development of and changes in literary and cultural traditions.

Literature students should also take their EN100/EN150 course in the Fall of their Freshman Year, because this course is a prerequisite to taking the second courses of the American and British Survey Sequences, both of which have GWR designations.

All English Literature Majors satisfy Core requirements for WCH, HUM, and GWR by taking the four, 200-Level American and British Survey courses. Professional Writing and Secondary Education English Majors can fulfill the GWR course by taking the second course of either the American or the British Survey Sequence. It is preferable if English Majors take English Department courses to fulfil their WCH, HUM, and GWR Core requirements.

With the exception of EN165 and EN185, no 100-Level EN courses can be counted toward the English Major, although EN101–EN104 satisfy Core requirements.

If a student chooses to take an Ancient or Modern Language course for the Elective Options requirement, that course will count only if it is the second course that the student has taken at the College level. For example, if the student takes SP112 to fulfil Core requirements, then this upper-level course will not also fulfil the English requirement.

When considering the Core program’s two Signature Learning Experience (SLE) requirements, students should be aware that English Literature automatically provides two SLEs as part of its program: the 400-Level Authors Seminars count as Supervised Research; and the Capstone requirement (either EN495 or EN496) serves as a Capstone SLE.

At the invitation of the English Department, EN490 and EN491 (Individual Learning Experiences: 4 credits total) may be substituted for one of the 300- or 400-Level Literature courses.

EN480–EN489 (Independent Study, variable topics and credits) may be substituted where appropriate for English Major requirements.

Professional Writing courses are included in the Literature Concentration because they can serve as career preparation for Literature students; and Creative Writing courses are included as options because they can enrich students’ knowledge of literature and expand the range of their writing skills. If Literature Concentration students are unsure which Professional and/or Creative Writing courses may be good to pursue in relation to their post-graduation plans, then they should ask their Academic Advisor for assistance.