The New Major in English

1. Effective Fall 2014 The New Major in English

2. Why a New Major? • A major that reflects the interests and talents of our students and faculty • A major that reflects the state of our field. • A major that allows for more flexibility • A major that balances flexibility with structure: allowing students a sense of progression through identified areas of methodological and theoretical competency before moving into advanced coursework.

3. The “Old” Major • Did not include the Core Literature requirements. • All distribution requirements were completed at the 4000 (or “Advanced”) level. • All distribution requirements were classified in “Areas” that emphasized nation (British or American) and period (pre- or post-1800). • Students could not fulfill Distribution requirements with Creative Writing or Rhetoric, Writing and Technology (RWT) courses.

4. The “New” Major • Includes Core Literature courses within the major requirements (2000 / 3000 level courses) • Distributes requirements at both the 3000 (intermediate/foundational) and 4000 (advanced) levels. • Embraces a “progression” model: students must complete at least 2 courses at 3000 level to progress to 4000-level.

5. The “New” Major (continued) • Places “Distribution” requirements at the 3000 / “Foundational Coursework” level. • Moves away from nation / period as a model for distribution.

6. The “New” Major (continued) • Instead, students take one course from each of FOUR 3000-level areas: Form and Genre, History and Context, Rhetoric and Argumentation, Culture and Critique. • Students also take one “free choice” at 3000-level, which allows students to identify and pursue a particular area of interest early on.

8. Introductory Coursework In the past, 200-level courses were focused on GENRE. Our revised courses at the 2000-level offer topical “ways in” to Literary Studies. These courses are designed to showcase how the study of literature offers a distinctive—even privileged—way of knowing and experiencing the world around us. These courses seek to reveal the powerful role literature and literary study plays in the creation of the whole person.

9. Introductory Coursework • English 2250: “Conflict, Social Justice and Literature” • English 2350: “Faith, Doubt and Literature” • English 2450: “Nature, Ecology and Literature” • English 2550: “Gender, Identity and Literature” • English 2650: “Technology, Media and Literature” • English 2750: “Film, Culture and Literature”

10. “Foundational” Coursework Our revised 3000-level catalog breaks our courses into fourcategories that represent the discipline of English as it has been practiced but also as it has shifted in recent decades. Creating these distribution areas keeps our current emphasis on history, cultural studies, global and national literatures, and creative writing, but asks students to engage with methodological and theoretical approaches at the 300 level.

11. Foundational Coursework • Form and Genre (3000-3240) • History and Context (3250-3490) • Culture and Critique (3500-3740) • Rhetoric and Argumentation (3750-3900)

12. Foundational Coursework • Form and Genre These courses focus on texts as linguistic structures. They address genres (including the novel, drama, poetry), subgenres (such as satire, documentary, noir), literary and cinematic conventions (realism, stream of consciousness, first-person narration), forms (the sonnet, the heroic couplet), formal features (patterns of rhythm and rhyme), and matters of technique (in creative-writing courses). The emphasis is on the function of form in shaping textual meaning.

13. Foundational Coursework • History and Context These courses explore the difference that historical context makes to the reading of texts, attending to broad literary periods and emphasizing chronological breadth. Historical contexts include literary history (the chronological succession of authors and of periods); periodization (the division of one period of literary history from another and the major characteristics of these periods); political, social, and cultural developments; and the changing ways in which texts are produced and received by readers and audiences.

14. Foundational Coursework • Culture and Critique These courses explore how considering the embodied writer and reader changes the way we read texts, paying special attention to how texts offer critiques of their cultures. Points at issue include gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, class, disability, religion, place, space, and their intersections. In this category are also included courses that consider our relations with the natural world and the humanly created world. Courses in this group explore particular theoretical and conceptual perspectives, for example, feminist, spiritual, materialist.

15. Foundational Coursework • Rhetoric and Argumentation These courses introduce students to the practices of rhetoric and writing through sustained engagement in both. Beyond simply analyzing arguments or interpreting texts, students in these courses will invent arguments and produce texts. They will also perform various textual modes, including alphabetic, audio, and video. What distinguishes these courses is their regular attention to students’ own creativity and work.

16. Advanced Seminars • Students then complete FIVE 4000-level “Advanced Seminars” – open choice. • These seminars expect students to utilize and build upon skills practiced at the 3000-level. • Because the 4000-level requires only a NUMBER of courses (5) but not TYPE, students are free to pursue particular areas of interest within the major.

17. Senior Seminar • Students also take ENGL 4940—”Senior Seminar” during the Fall / Spring of their senior year. • Capped at 12, these seminars are smaller and more intensive versions of the 4000-level Advanced Seminars on offer each semester. • Students must complete ENGL 4940 (or the RWT capstone project) to graduate with a BA in English

18. 2000-level CORE course COUNTS towards major 3000-level CORE course COUNTS towards major A total of FIVE 3000-level courses required—one in each category and one CHOICE A total of FIVE 4000-level courses required: students choose based upon interest and availability All majors take ENGL 4940: Senior Seminar TOTAL HOURS: 36

19. Major Concentrations All of our concentrations within the English Major fit well into this new structure: • Rhetoric, Writing and Technology (RWT) • Creative Writing (CW) • Departmental Honors concentration (RIE)

21. The Minor in English • Follows the structure and spirit of new major • Fosters a sense of progression through “Foundational Coursework” and “Advanced Seminars” • EIGHTEEN HOURS total, which includes CORE courses

22. The Minor in English • One course (3 hours) at the 2000 OR 3000 level (CORE) • Three courses (9 hours) at the 3000 level (Foundations) • Two courses (6 hours) at the 4000 level (Advanced) • EIGHTEEN HOURS total, which includes CORE courses

24. Your Choice: Old or New? • Current Freshmen / Sophomores are in a good position to migrate to the new major. • Juniors are likely too far along in coursework to switch. • Mentoring will be CRUCIAL to this process, to see how your already-completed coursework fits into this new structure.

26. Drop-In Mentoring: Feb. 25th – 28th • Drop by Adorjan 129 between 2:30-4pm Tuesday February 24 through Friday Feb. 28th for a “What-If” mentoring session. • Faculty mentors will be on hand to discuss how your completed and in-process coursework fits into the new major. • Mentors will also be able to talk with you about how any concentrations will fit into the new Major structure

27. Faculty Mentoring Sessions • Make an appointment with your faculty mentor to discuss whether it makes sense for you to switch. • Faculty mentors will have the Fall 2014 course listings on hand to talk you through how to proceed if you choose the new major. • Feel free to stop by to see the Undergraduate Director (Dr. Ellen Crowell) either in office hours (Tuesdays 2-4pm) or by appointment.

28. How do I “Declare” the New Major? • All current SLU students will, by default, remain on the OLD MAJOR of MINOR unless they declare otherwise. • On March 3rd, all declared majors and minors will receive a link to a Google form asking whether you choose to pursue the New or stick with the Old. • To pursue the new Major / Minor, you must complete this form by April 1st (start of FA14 registration.

29. Effective Fall 2014 The New Major in English