Department of English Language and Literature

 

Tony Barnstone

Jonathan Burton,  Chair

Michelle Chihara

Joe Donnelly

Douglas Manuel

Sean P.T. Morris

dAvid iAn pAddy

Andrea Rehn

 

At a college named after one of the most important of nineteenth-century American poets, a man known for his commitment to literary art as an agent of social and political justice, we believe that the study of language and literature is at the core of the liberal arts, those aspects of education that make us humane and free. English courses contribute broadly both to personal enrichment in the liberal arts tradition and to professional development in a variety of fields. Above all, we seek to instill a lifelong habit of reflection, the “delight in the life of the mind” so central to the college’s expressed mission. The study of literature enables us to understand ourselves and other people-as individuals, as participants in our own and other historical cultural traditions, and as human beings. We believe that the literary practice we have described here has real consequences in the life of the individual and the life of the community, and in our collective commitment to cultivating the attitudes and values appropriate for leading and serving in a global society. Many graduating English majors choose to teach-either at the elementary, junior high, or high school level, or, after suitable graduate work, at a college or university. The emphasis on textual analysis, critical thinking, and writing, however, makes English a strong undergraduate major for almost any career. Among the professions our graduates have entered are journalism, law, politics, medicine, library science, public service, business, public relations, social media marketing, technical writing and TV writing.

 

Programs

 

English Minor

English, B.A.

English, Creative Writing Emphasis, B.A.

 

Courses

 

 

ENGL 102 - Introduction to Journalism

ENGL 103 - Better Living through Media Literacy

ENGL 104 - New Media & Narrative

ENGL 107 - Introduction to Professional Writing

ENGL 111 - History of the English Language

ENGL 121 - Robin Hood Through the Ages

ENGL 122 - Lord of the Rings: JRR Tolkien

ENGL 130- Asian Literature

ENGL 131 - What are Humans?

ENGL 132 - Celtic Literature

ENGL 133 - Science Fiction

ENGL 141 - The Graphic Novel

ENGL 190 - Selected Topics

ENGL 202 - Writing Short Fiction

ENGL 203 - Writing Poetry

ENGL 204 - Playwriting Workshop

ENGL 205 - Writing Workshop: Ecopoetry

ENGL 206 - Writing Dramatic Monologues and Documentary Poetry

ENGL 207 - Writing Workshop: The Flesh and Bones of Poetry

ENGL 220 - Major British Writers to 1785

ENGL 221 - Major British & American Writers from 1660

ENGL 222 - Literature of the Bible

ENGL 270 - Transcultural Literature

ENGL 290 - Selected Topics

ENGL 295 - Independent Study

ENGL 302 - Advanced Fiction Writing

ENGL 303 - Advanced Poetry Writing

ENGL 305 - Screenwriting

ENGL 308 - Screenwriting: The Television Pilot

ENGL 310 - Linguistics

ENGL 312: Creative Nonfiction

ENGL 314 - New Media & Narrative

ENGL 319 - Early Modern Drama

ENGL 320 - Literature of Medieval Europe

ENGL 321 - British Literature 700-1500

ENGL 323 - Dante

ENGL 324 - Chaucer

ENGL 325 - Literature of the English Renaissance

ENGL 326 - Topics in Shakespeare

ENGL 328 - Shakespeare

ENGL 329 - Milton

ENGL 330 - British Literature 1640-1789

ENGL 331 - Rise of the Novel

ENGL 332 - 19th-Century English Novel

ENGL 333 - Jane Austen in Context

ENGL 334 - Romantic Poetry

ENGL 335 - Victorian Poetry

ENGL 336 - The European Novel

ENGL 337 - Gothic Fiction

ENGL 352 - The Modern British Novel

ENGL 353 - James Joyce

ENGL 354 - Late Twentieth-Century British Fiction

ENGL 355 - Social Justice Drama

ENGL 356 - Twenty-First-Century British Fiction

ENGL 357 - Contemporary Black British Literature

ENGL 358 - Postcolonial Novel

ENGL 361 - American Romanticism

ENGL 362 - American Realism & Naturalism

ENGL 363 - Modern American Novel

ENGL 364 - Modern American and International Poetry

ENGL 366 - Whitman and Melville

ENGL 370 - Contemporary American Fiction

ENGL 371 - Contemporary American Poetry

ENGL 373 - African-American Literary Tradition

ENGL 374 - Asian-American Literature

ENGL 375 - Chicano/Chicana Literature

ENGL 377 - Autobiography & the American Culture

ENGL 390 - Selected Topics

ENGL 395 - Independent Study

ENGL 400 - Critical Procedures in Language & Literature

ENGL 410 - Senior Seminar in English

ENGL 420 - Preceptorship: Teaching Literature

ENGL 490 - Selected Topics

ENGL 495 - Independent Study

 

English, B.A.

 

Students should plan their course of study, in consultation with their faculty advisor, as soon as they have decided upon the major.

 

ENGL 120 or ENGL 220 (or an equivalent) is a prerequisite to all literature courses with a number of 300 or above, unless otherwise noted.

 

Note: INTD 100 - College Writing Seminar is not a departmental course. Neither it nor a course that met the freshman writing requirement at another institution may be counted toward the English major or minor.