English
Faculty: Professor Stubblefield (coordinator), and Assistant Professors Polo and Green
Cottey’s English Department offers courses which recognize the integral relationship among thinking, reading, and writing. Students are given opportunities to engage in critical discussions, travel to literary sites, present papers at conferences, and edit and publish in our literary journal. In addition to developing in students the ability to read deeply, think critically, and write effectively, the English program helps students discover who they are, what they think, and what they are capable of achieving.
Degrees and Certificates
-
Bachelor of Arts in English -
English Minor
Courses
ENG/WGS 224: Women Writers
Credits 3The content of this course varies, consisting of selected works of ethnic groups within or outside the United States. Includes consideration of the historical and cultural contexts in which the literature is produced.
ENG/WGS 333: "Her Kind": Twentieth-Century American Women Poets (Gwendolyn Brooks, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, Sylvia Plath)
Credits 3This course will explore the poetry of four important mid- twentieth-century American women poets:
Gwendolyn Brooks, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, and Sylvia Plath. We will employ close readings of their work, feminist literary theory, and interdisciplinary approaches to understand their position in literary history, their response to American culture, and their “revisioning” (to use Adrienne Rich’s term) of women’s experience. Special attention will be given to women’s leadership and social responsibility. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG/WGS 334: Poetry as Protest
Credits 3Prerequisite: ENG 103, any 200-level ENG course (except ENG 290), or permission of instructor This course will consider poetry as a means of resistance and a tool of social justice. Students will examine historical, cultural, political, and social context to analyze a wide range of poetic genres from different periods. Special emphasis on women's leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness. Topics vary. Fulfills pre- or post-1900 English requirement depending on topic and writing-intensive requirement. 3 credits
ENG/WGS 351: Good Girls and Wild Women
Credits 3This course considers the depictions of women in British and American literature written before 1900.
Special emphasis on women’s leadership and social responsibility, and on feminist theory. Fulfills pre-
1900 B.A. English requirement and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG/WGS 364: "Make it New!": Women and Literary Modernism
Credits 3This course surveys the wide range of Modernist literature that responds to the social, artistic, technological, intellectual, and economic changes that took place in the early twentieth century. Students will use literary theory and criticism, as well as other cultural artifacts, to understand the ways in which writers make sense of their rapidly changing world. Special attention will be given to women's leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG/WGS 371: Jane Austen
Credits 3This class will explore the development of Jane Austen's literary career through a focus on her six major novels and some of the juvenilia. Background information on Austen's life and times will enable students to appreciate the many themes and subtexts of these works. Fulfills pre-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG/WGS 372: Toni Morrison
Credits 3Exploration of the development of Toni Morrison’s literary career, focusing primarily on her novels and
criticism. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writingintensive requirement.
ENG/WGS 374: Edith Wharton
Credits 3Exploration of Edith Wharton’s life and work in the context of women’s leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness, and through the lens of feminist literary theory. Students will read a variety of genres and complete a wide range of assignments. Fulfills English B.A. post-1900 and writing intensive requirements.
ENG 103: Introduction to Literature
Credits 3Examines fiction, poetry and/or drama from a variety of perspectives. Covers components, devices, and vocabulary that characterize various literary genres.
ENG 200: Introduction to the English Major
Credits 3Introduces students to the discipline of English. Considers issues in the profession of English, and career options for English majors. Introduces students to academic journals, literary criticism, and literary theory.
ENG 201: English Literature 1
Credits 3Study of works by selected British writers who represent significant literary movements up to Romantic period. Includes some writin about British literature.
ENG 202: English Literature 2
Credits 3Study of works by selected British writers who represent significant literary movements from Romantic period to present. Includes some writing about British literature.
ENG 205: American Literature 1
Credits 3Study of works by selected American writers who represent significant literary movements up to the Civil War. Includes some writing about American literature.
ENG 206: American Literature 2
Credits 3Study of works by selected American writers who represent significant literary movements after the Civil War to present. Includes some writing about American literature.
ENG 211: Excursions
Credits 1 3Faculty-led excursions enable students to “experience and do English” so they may understand issues in a more sophisticated and critical way. Excursions require a minimum of 15 hours of academic commitment in and out of the classroom per credit hour. When travel is not possible, virtual experiences will be
substituted. Topics vary.
ENG 230: Studies in Ethnic Literature
Credits 3The content of this course varies, consisting of selected works of ethnic groups within or outside the United States. Includes consideration of the historical and cultural contexts in which the literature is produced.
ENG 231: African-American Literature
Credits 3This course will survey the history of African-American Literature from the eigtheenth century to the present.
We will read a wide range of literary texts, as well as cultural and political documents. In analyzing these
works, we will also consider art and music, literary and critical theory, and social responsibility.
ENG 233: World Literature
Credits 3ENG 234: World Literature
Credits 3This course will consider literature, written in or translated into English, from around the world. We will read a diverse group of authors, traditions, and genres, paying special attention to historical and cultural context. Special focus on global awareness.
ENG 290: English Grammar and Usage
Credits 3This course will provide a review of the basics of grammar and mechanics for the purpose of knowing and explaining how English grammar and language works. Students will learn the Reed-Kellogg system of diagramming to understand the deep structure of language. Grammar will be presented from both
a prescriptive and descriptive perspective. Ideal for studentsinterested in language and writing, studying a foreign language, or wanting to teach English or a foreign language.
ENG 308: Children's/Young Adult Literature
Credits 3This course introduces students to Young Adult Literature in a variety of genres. Includes discussion of various pedagogical methods for response-based teaching and issues in literary censorship.
ENG 312: History of the English Language
Credits 3This course investigates the three phases of the English language - Old, Middle, and Modern English - and the relation of language xfto history and culture.
ENG 326: The American Novel
Credits 3This course explores the American novel in terms of literary, historical, and cultural context and through
close readings of literary, theoretical, and critical texts. Topics vary. Fulfills pre- or post-1900 B.A. English
requirement depending on topic and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG 352: American Realism and Naturalism
Credits 3Course will consider American literature written between the Civil War and World War I. The class will analyze its literary, historical, cultural, social, and theoretical contexts, and special attention will be given
to gender, race, class, and sexuality. Fulfills pre-1900 B.A. English and writing- intensive requirement.
ENG 383: Animals in Literature
Credits 3This course considers the depiction of animals in literature and what that depiction suggests about the
relationship between human and non-human animals. Students will consider texts from a wide range of
disciplines with special focus on women’s leadership and social responsibility. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
ENG 410: Critical Theory
Credits 3Provides a historical and thematic survey of critical theory and an interdisciplinary theoretical framework for the analysis and understanding of literature and the world beyond the text.
ENG 490: Capstone Research Project
Credits 3Culmination of the student’s work in the major. Allows student to complete a thesis under the direction of an English faculty member. Class meetings will guide and support the thesiswriting process by creating regular writing workshops for students and allowing for various kinds of feedback during each stage of the process. Students will also develop résumés, application letters, and portfolios, and they will present their
theses to the campus community.
WGS/ENG 224: Women Writers
Credits 3The content of this course varies, consisting of selected works of ethnic groups within or outside the United States. Includes consideration of the historical and cultural contexts in which the literature is produced.
WGS/ENG 333: "Her Kind": Twentieth-Century American Women Poets (Gwendolyn Brooks, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, Sylvia Plath)
Credits 3This course will explore the poetry of four important mid- twentieth-century American women poets:
Gwendolyn Brooks, Anne Sexton, Adrienne Rich, and Sylvia Plath. We will employ close readings of their work, feminist literary theory, and interdisciplinary approaches to understand their position in literary history, their response to American culture, and their “revisioning” (to use Adrienne Rich’s term) of women’s experience. Special attention will be given to women’s leadership and social responsibility. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
WGS/ENG 334: Poetry as Protest
Credits 3Prerequisite: ENG 103, any 200-level ENG course (except ENG 290), or permission of instructor This course will consider poetry as a means of resistance and a tool of social justice. Students will examine historical, cultural, political, and social context to analyze a wide range of poetic genres from different periods. Special emphasis on women's leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness. Topics vary. Fulfills pre- or post-1900 English requirement depending on topic and writing-intensive requirement. 3 credits
WGS/ENG 351: Good Girls and Wild Women
Credits 3This course considers the depictions of women in British and American literature written before 1900.
Special emphasis on women’s leadership and social responsibility, and on feminist theory. Fulfills pre-
1900 B.A. English requirement and writing-intensive requirement.
WGS/ENG 364: "Make it New!": Women and Literary Modernism
Credits 3This course surveys the wide range of Modernist literature that responds to the social, artistic, technological, intellectual, and economic changes that took place in the early twentieth century. Students will use literary theory and criticism, as well as other cultural artifacts, to understand the ways in which writers make sense of their rapidly changing world. Special attention will be given to women's leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
WGS/ENG 371: Jane Austen
Credits 3This class will explore the development of Jane Austen's literary career through a focus on her six major novels and some of the juvenilia. Background information on Austen's life and times will enable students to appreciate the many themes and subtexts of these works. Fulfills pre-1900 B.A. English and writing-intensive requirement.
WGS/ENG 372: Toni Morrison
Credits 3Exploration of the development of Toni Morrison’s literary career, focusing primarily on her novels and
criticism. Fulfills post-1900 B.A. English and writingintensive requirement.
WGS/ENG 374: Edith Wharton
Credits 3Exploration of Edith Wharton’s life and work in the context of women’s leadership, social responsibility, and global awareness, and through the lens of feminist literary theory. Students will read a variety of genres and complete a wide range of assignments. Fulfills English B.A. post-1900 and writing intensive requirements.