PURPOSE
The Bachelor of Arts degree in English is designed to lead students into greater appreciation for excellent writing and enhanced skill in written communication. As students read widely and probingly, they gain appreciation for the range of human experience and expression found in literature. A well-structured program sampling the masterpieces of Western and non-Western literature, especially those written in English, gives valuable preparation for anyone preparing to work with people. In addition, studies in the history of the English language and in the grammatical structure of English allow the students an expanded understanding of some of the literary and linguistic changes that have occurred. Through the process of exploring these various areas, students are challenged to develop their own writing skills, both in analyzing these writers and in capturing their own ideas and experiences in words.
SKILLS AND CAREERS
The Emmanuel English degree provides students with valuable, marketable skills such as:
- Critical thinking
- Analysis
- Writing
- Grammar and mechanics
- Communication
- Organization
- Inter- and Intrapersonal skills
These skills will prepare you to enter fields such as:
- Secondary education
- Higher education
- Professional writing
- Web content creation
- Law
- Business
- Graduate school
COURSE SAMPLING
An introduction to narrative, dramatic, and lyric world texts created within the context of the Renaissance and Enlightenment periods (~1500-1800). The course examines texts engaging tensions inherent in the rebirth of classical learning, the emphasis on reason, and interactions with the Other. In addition, students will learn about literary movements and techniques arising in response to social changes in the time period. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in EN 102.
Technical Writing focuses on the processes of developing field-specific technical information related to the student’s major and includes instruction in researching, drafting, editing, revising, and designing professional documents such as technical reports, proposals, manuals, brochures, resumes, and professional correspondence for specific audiences. Prerequisite: A grade of “C” or better in EN 102.
Students will examine several writing-intensive career possibilities and then craft forms of content that would be generated for particular media. The focus will be on experiential learning that engages students in the process of development, research, workshopping, feedback, and revision. Sample topics may include podcasting, culture journalism, media criticism, long-form journalism, devotional writing, social media, etc. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in EN 102.
A critical study of literature for the adolescent reader. Emphasis is placed on the special characteristics and needs of young people and the evaluation of materials for readers grades 4-12. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in at least one 200-level English course.
A survey of the fiction, drama, poetry, comics, and prose of multicultural American authors across a range of historical and cultural conditions, situating canonical and contemporary African American, American Indian, Chicano/a/x, Asian American, Jewish American, and Arab American authors in context. While students will attend to the complex interrelation between multicultural American literature and its social, cultural, and historical contexts, the course will place particular emphasis upon skills of close textual analysis and effective critical writing. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in at least one 200-level English course.
This course emphasizes the composition of literary prose, including fiction, creative non-fiction, and drama, through all phrases of the writing process. The class would also help produce the Montage Literary Magazine. Prerequisite: A grade of “C” or better in EN102.
This course is a writer’s workshop emphasizing style, techniques, and form in expository writing. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in at least one 200-level English course.
Drawing on the rich heritage of Christian literature, this course introduces students to notable Christian authors and works, focusing on fiction and poetry. Depending on the instructor’s expertise, these range from focused study of a particular group of Christian writers (such as the Oxford Christians) to a survey of Christian literature from the eighteenth century until now. In addition to reading widely, sharing observations, and conducting critical research, students will be introduced to the intellectual milieux and the biographical details relating to these figures, allowing them to appreciate the ways in which Christians have engaged—imaginatively and intellectually—with the most urgent questions of their time while rooted in the unchanging Gospel. Prerequisite: A grade of “C” or better in at least one 200-level English course.
A seminar in American literature will specialize in selected authors and texts from topics and time periods such as pre-colonial, colonial, Revolutionary, Civil War, Puritan, Enlightenment, American Renaissance, Harlem Renaissance, Southern literature, Jewish literature, minority literature, and modern American novels, poetry, and drama. Prerequisite: Grade of C or better in at least one 200-level English course.
This course is a study of a representative sample of Shakespeare’s comedies, tragedies, and histories, as well as his sonnets. Prerequisite: Grade of “C” or better in at least one 200-level English course.
