As a course on the theories of literary study, English 303 will introduce you to terminology and techniques you can use to make your own reading experiences productive. But it will also examine the grounds upon which those terms and techniques have been established in the first place. The survey will proceed historically, aiming to recognize the broad continuities as well as the disputes among critics regarding the nature of “literature,” “language,” “interpretation,” and other related concepts whose meaning we often take for granted. In other words, this course is devoted to probing the assumptions and delineating the history behind the most basic practices of literary study, as they have been established by a rich field of discourse stretching from the fifth century BCE to the present.

ENG 449A will consider the changing nature of British Literature from the Middle Ages up to the Enlightenment, with special attention to literary theory. We trace the development of English language and the ways it affects cultural and political aspects of societies. We also consider modern iterations of literary philosophy. We analyze how a diverse range of texts function within the periods that produce them and explore how the analysis and interpretation of British Literature reflect cultural struggle and historical patterns of human thought and its affects.

ENG 426B focuses on world mythology. We learn about world myths and sacred systems of belief, including tales of heroes, creation, and destruction, among many topics. We also consider modern iterations of myth. We analyze how a diverse range of myths function within the cultures that produce them and explore how the analysis and interpretation of global myths reflect cultural struggle and historical patterns of human thought and its affects.

ENG 231/232 are Second-Year Seminar (SYS) courses that explore issues relevant to contemporary global society through the reading of original literature from antiquity to the present day. Students study these issues within their larger contexts, which include aspects of literature, history, politics, economics, philosophy, and scientific discovery. The SYS reinforces the University Undergraduate Learning Outcomes (UULOs) introduced in the First-Year Seminar (FYS).

ENG 101 is the university’s first-semester course of the first-year composition sequence required of all undergraduates. This evidence-based, writing intensive course is designed to improve critical thinking, reading, and writing proficiencies through guidance in writing the thesis-driven essay. Students develop strategies for turning their experience, observations, and analyses into evidence suitable for academic writing skills."