Southwestern University
2000-2001 Catalog

Associate Professor David Gaines, PhD, Chair

The program in English provides a grounding in English and American literature strong enough to support a life of continued reading and reflection, with the deepened understanding of human experience that this makes possible. The program for the major and minor also imparts skills of writing, research, analysis, and interpretation that are useful in a broad range of professional and business activities.

Students may major in English as part of the Bachelor of Arts program. The English minor may be taken in conjunction with any major program at Southwestern. It makes a natural companion to majors in history, religion and philosophy, sciences, and business. In addition, students certifying to teach in secondary schools may choose English as a second teaching field, and those seeking elementary certification may choose an academic specialization in English. Concentrated work in English may also be done as part of an area of concentration.

Department course offerings support the General Education Program of the University. Normally, a student will take English 10-013 and at least one introductory literature course before taking other courses in the Department. English 10-143, 10-153, 10-163, and 10-173 are all introductory courses, open to all students. English 10-153, 10-163, and 10-173 are strongly recommended to the prospective major or minor. A student may take all the introductory courses, but no more than two of these courses will count toward a major or minor or second teaching field or academic specialization.

English majors must offer a total of 30 semester hours in the Department, 18 of which must be above the introductory level. The student must take Introduction to Literary Studies (10-183), at least two survey or period courses before 1800 (10-153, 10-553, 10-603, 10-613, 10-623, or 10-723) and Shakespeare (10-703). The University requirement for a capstone experience can be fulfilled in any one of three ways: the major can complete a two-semester Honors Project (10-986); or take either Studies in Literary Criticism (10-813) or the Seminar (10-933).

It is also possible to do a 54-hour paired major in English and Women’s Studies by double-counting two courses cross-listed in English and Women’s Studies, Women’s Literature I (10-553) and Women’s Literature II (10-563). The department frequently offers other, more specialized cross-listed courses (such as Medieval Women and Contemporary Gothic) that might substitute for one of the upper-level survey courses with the approval of both the English and Women’s Studies chairs.

A minor in English may be obtained by taking 18 semester hours of English, 12 of which must be above the introductory level. The minor should take at least two survey or period courses before 1800 (10-153, 10-553, 10-603, 10-613, 10-623, or 10-723) and Shakespeare (10-703).

Students seeking secondary certification with English as a second teaching field will take a 24-hour program in English, 12 semester hours of which must be above introductory level. The student must take at least two survey or period courses before 1800 (10-153, 10-603, 10-613, 10-623, or 10-723) and Shakespeare (10-703). Students seeking elementary certification with an academic specialization in English will take a 21-hour program in English, nine semester hours of which must be above the introductory level. All students who wish to certify (those seeking secondary certification with a major in English or with English as a second teaching field, and those seeking elementary certification with an academic specialization in English) should consult the Catalog sections pertaining to certification programs.

Concentrated work in English as part of an area of concentration requires 24 semester hours of work in English, 18 hours of which must be above the introductory level, and 24 additional semester hours from other departments, 18 of which must be above the introductory level.

Tutorials and Independent Study (10-903 and 10-951, 952, 953) are open to majors and minors who wish to develop special projects: they are not offered to accommodate scheduling problems of students in their senior year.

10-013 ENGLISH COMPOSITION. A course in writing expository prose with special attention to research techniques. Required of all students. Not to be counted toward an English major or minor or second teaching field or academic specialization or included in 42 hour limitation in one subject area. (Each semester)

†10-143 MASTERPIECES OF LITERATURE. The analysis and interpretation of works selected from English and world literature. (POK-Aesthetic Experience-Lecture)

†10-153 SURVEY OF ENGLISH LITERATURE I. Beowulf to 1780. A historically organized course spanning a millennium of literary greatness, with particular emphases on social and cultural change and methods of literary analysis. May be taken independently of English 10-163. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage) (Annually)

†10-163 SURVEY OF ENGLISH LITERATURE II. 1780 to present. A historically organized course. May be taken independent of English 10-153. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage) (Annually)

†10-173 SURVEY OF AMERICAN LITERATURE. From before Columbus to the present. A historically organized course. May be taken independent of English 10-153 and English 10-163. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage) (Annually)

10-183 INTRODUCTION TO LITERARY STUDIES. An introduction to issues and methods of literary analysis. Topics and readings will vary from semester to semester. Required of all majors. (Annually)

Courses numbered 10-2xx and above (except for 10-423) are normally taken after a student has completed English 10-013 and at least one of the introductory literature courses (10-143, 10-153, 10-163, or 10-173).

†10-203 GREEK AND ROMAN MYTHOLOGY. A study of the myths and religion of Graeco-Roman tradition, with attention to the heritage of classical mythology in western literature and art. Extensive readings of ancient works in translation. Also Classics 07-203 and Religion 19-403. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage)

10-313 WRITING FOR THE THEATRE. (See Theatre 74-313.)

10-413 ADVANCED COMPOSITION. An intensive course in writing with emphasis on the critical essay.

†10-423 CREATIVE WRITING. An introductory course including the structural and aesthetic techniques essential to the writer’s art in both poetry and fiction. Prerequisite: Six semester hours of literature. (POK-Aesthetic Experience: Production)

10-443 THE TEACHING OF WRITING. A seminar emphasizing issues and strategies involved in working with student writing from various disciplines. Approval of the Writing Program Director required. (Annually)

10-513 TOPICS IN JEWISH LITERATURE. An overview of Jewish literary traditions and the socio-historical contexts that have shaped representations of Jewish cultural and religious experience. Topics and authors will vary to reflect the diversity of Jewish literary expression; offerings include Holocaust Literature, Jewish American Literature, Contemporary Jewish Women Writers, and Transatlantic Jews. (May be repeated with change in topic.)

†10-523 MOVIES AND CULTURES. A history of narrative film from its origins to the present with an emphasis upon Hollywood cinema. Historical contexts and technological evolution are emphasized. Griffith, Eisenstein, Welles, Hitchcock, and Coppola are among the directors studied. (POK-Aesthetic Experience-Lecture) (Annually)

10-533 POSTCOLONIAL LITERATURE. A study of literature produced at the intersection of cultures. Consideration of ways cultural differences and legacies of colonization are negotiated. Major figures vary from year to year but will usually include Achebe, Gordimer, Head, Ngugi, Rushdie, and Soyinka.

10-553 WOMEN’S LITERATURE I. This course will consider early expressions of women’s voices in literature, especially within their historical context. Medieval through the 18th century. Also Women’s Studies 04-553. (Alternate years)

10-563 WOMEN’S LITERATURE II. A study of significant works by women, with emphasis on 19th- and 20th-century writers from the English-speaking world. Consideration of the cultural forces that helped shape these works and lives. Major figures will vary from year to year, but will usually include (among others) Woolf, C. Brontë, Chopin, Atwood, and Walker. Also Women’s Studies 04-573.

†10-583 STUDIES IN CONTEMPORARY DRAMA. (See Theatre 74-583.) (POK-Aesthetic Experience: Lecture)

†10-593 STUDIES IN WORLD DRAMA. (See Theatre 74-593.) Also Women’s Studies 04-593. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage)

†10-603 MEDIEVAL LITERATURE. An advanced introduction to some of the best literature of the medieval period, emphasizing 14th and 15th centuries, and focusing on artistic achievement as a dimension of medieval life. Genres covered include epic, romance, Arthurian romance, sermon, lyrics, drama, and autobiography, by both men and women. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage) (Alternate years)

†10-613 RENAISSANCE LITERATURE. Major authors and issues in 16th- and 17th-century English literature, with particular attention to social and cultural change. Focus will vary but will usually include works by More, Wyatt, Sydney, Spenser, Donne, and Milton. (POK-American and Western Cultural Heritage) (Alternate years)

10-623 18TH-CENTURY BRITISH LITERATURE. Major authors and issues in the literature of the long eighteenth century (1660-1800), with particular attention to social and cultural change. Focus will vary but will usually include works by Rochester, Behn, Pope, Swift, Johnson, and Burney. (Alternate years)

10-633 ENGLISH ROMANTICISM. A study of the work of the major poets–Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Keats, and Shelley–with limited attention to prose writers such as Austen, Scott, De Quincey, and Hazlitt. (Alternate years)

10-643 VICTORIAN LITERATURE. Examination of the work of such poets, prose writers, and novelists as Tennyson, Browning, Hopkins, Arnold, Carlyle, Mill, Dickens, Hardy, and the Brontes. (Alternate years)

10-653 MODERN BRITISH LITERATURE. An advanced introduction to British literature produced in the first half of the twentieth century, with particular attention paid to the critical debates that surround the term "modernism." Focus will vary but will usually include works by Conrad, Forster, Woolf, Joyce, Hall, and Lawrence. (Alternate years)

10-663 AMERICAN LITERATURE I. A study of American writers from the Colonial period to the Civil War, with emphasis on religious and social themes. The course treats such writers as Edwards, Franklin, Fuller, Melville, Stowe, and Whitman. (Alternate years)

10-673 AMERICAN LITERATURE II. A study of American writers from the Civil War to the Great Depression, with special attention to cultural and stylistic developments. The course treats such writers as Dickinson, Twain, James, Adams, and Fitzgerald. (Alternate years)

10-683 AMERICAN LITERATURE III. Major American writers from the 1920s to the present, with particular attention to social and cultural change. Focus will vary but will usually include works by Faulkner, Steinbeck, Ellison, Salinger, and Morrison. (Alternate years)

10-693 TOPICS IN CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE. An overview of literature written in English from the 1960s to the present. Topics and authors will vary from semester to semester to reflect the diversity of contemporary literary achievement. Recent offerings include Contemporary Gothic, Contemporary British Literature, and Postmodern Revisions. (Annually. May be repeated with change in topic.)

10-703 SHAKESPEARE. An advanced introduction to the works of William Shakespeare. The selection of works will vary from semester to semester but will address the breadth of Shakespeare’s achievement. Required of all majors. Also Theatre 74-703. (Annually)

10-723 CHAUCER. Most of Chaucer’s major works, in the original Middle English, within cultural and historical contexts that open up the world of the Middle Ages. Special attention to the role of medieval women in Chaucer’s work and world.

10-733 CHILDREN’S LITERATURE. A comprehensive examination of children’s literature with particular emphasis on evaluating works for quality and presenting them to children in ways that invite interaction and enjoyment. A study of traditional genres and an examination of contemporary issues are central to the course. In addition to extensive reading, students are given opportunities to write for children and to present books using a variety of techniques, including storytelling, creative dramatics, role-playing character analysis, puppetry, discussion, and others. Opportunities to read to children and to work in the libraries of public schools are made available. Prerequisites: 45 semester hours and 2.5 grade point average. Also Education 45-733.

10-813 STUDIES IN LITERARY CRITICISM. An introduction to major critical approaches to literature, including those of both the historical tradition and modern and contemporary criticism. Fulfills the requirement for a capstone experience.

10-301, 302, 303 SELECTED TOPICS. May be repeated with change in topic.

10-903 TUTORIAL.

10-933 SEMINAR. Fulfills the requirement for a capstone experience.

10-941, 942, 943 ACADEMIC INTERNSHIP.

10-951, 952, 953 INDEPENDENT STUDY AND RESEARCH. Open to English majors and minors. May be repeated with change in content.

10-983 HONORS. By departmental invitation.