Specializations in the Major
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The English Department encourages
upper-division students with particular literary/critical interests
to pursue them formally by selecting an area of Specialization.
A Specialization consists of a minimum of four English department
courses constellated around a specific area of study. For instance,
a student interested in the interrelation between literature and
digital technology might elect to pursue the Literature
& Culture of Information Specialization. A student interested
in Renaissance and Eighteenth Century literature could study that
subject within the Early Modern
Studies Specialization. Or a student interested in how different
aspects of American cultures interact in their regional, hemispheric,
and global contexts could choose the American
Cultures Specialization. The Literature and Environment Specialization explores links between culture, science, and politics that are especially pressing in our current era. Current devolopments in psychoanalysis, psychology, philosophy, congnitive science, and neurobiology confirm the profound importance of language and literature in our understanding of the mind, the world, and their creative interactions. The Literature and the Mind Specialization explores how and why symbolic activity allows us to experiment with, rather than suffer from, reality. The fundamental idea informing the
Specializations is that students should be enabled to explore particular
areas of interest through a disciplined itinerary of courses. In
addition, each specialization will encourage the sense of a collaborative
community of research by offering certain extra-curricular events—e.g.,
conferences or colloquia involving undergraduates, field trips to
scholarly or other resources, etc.
Additionally, students are encouraged
to develop their own particular Specialization in consultation with
a faculty advisor. Working together, the student and faculty advisor
would tailor a Specialization from already established course offerings.
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