Department of English

Linda Urschel, Del Doughty, Jack Heller, Todd Martin

The English Department invites all students to enter the dialogue about human life through the major’s distinctive integration of writing, reading, creative expression, and critical thinking.  In every English class, the student is continually challenged to write clearly and effectively, to read carefully and critically, and to care deeply, reflecting the Christ-centered focus of the University. The English Department serves the goals of the entire institution and all students, regardless of major.

Students who choose to become English majors should expect to commit themselves to substantial reading, to ongoing dialogue with other thinkers, and to excellence in writing. All English majors prepare not just for specific careers but for all of life by listening to, learning from, and sometimes arguing with the thinkers and writers who continue to shape our world.

Students with interests in language, literature, artistic expression, and critical thinking should consider majoring in English.  The department provides a major in English leading to a bachelor of arts degree for general preparation and as a foundation for graduate study and to the bachelor of science degree in English education for students preparing for teacher licensing.

Many students in English prepare for a career teaching English at the secondary level. Others primarily look toward graduate school in hopes of becoming professors. Others are preparing to be creative writers, journalists, technical writers or public relations specialists.  Others find English to be excellent foundation for law school, seminary and ministry, overseas missions, theatre, business, parenting, and any vocation that requires people to think deeply and to communicate clearly. Business leaders have shown that English majors are successful employees in the world marketplace.

English majors are expected to do substantial study of American, British, and European literature and significant writing in a variety of settings.  Students work closely with faculty on writing projects, including publication of Ictus, the department-sponsored literary magazine and the campus newspaper, The Huntingtonian.  English majors are also encouraged to participate in campus dramatic productions, poetry readings, writing workshops, and professional conferences.

Students who choose English as a major in the bachelor of arts degree will complete EN 151, 311, 321, 431, 481, 485, and three courses from 381, 385, 411, 441, and 482.  An additional fifteen hours will be selected from EN 331xx, 361, 391, 455 (or from 381, 385, 411, 441 or 482, if not included above); CO 211, 241, 331, 341, 342 or 395; TH 331dl; not more than one course from HS 322, 332, 411, or 432; or not more than one course from PL 311, 321, or 420. Students may choose to concentrate in literature or writing within the English major by selecting all appropriate courses from the minors listed below.  Students majoring in English in the bachelor of arts degree must complete 12 hours in the same language to fulfill the language requirement.

Students who choose English education as a major for language arts teacher licensing will complete EN 151, 311, 321, 361, 391, 411, 431, 455, 481, 482 and 485; and three elective hours in English; CO 211; CO 215 and ED 273.  Refer to the Department of Education for education courses required for teacher licensing.

The University minor in literature requires EN 151, 311, 321, 411, 431, 481, and six hours from EN 331, 381, 441, and 482.

The University minor in writing requires EN 361, 391, and 455; CO 211, 241, and 342; and 6 hours from EN 311, 321, 331, 381, 385, 411, 431, 441, 481, 482, CO 331.

Courses in Composition

EN 111 English Usage and Composition                      (3)

Attention is given to grammar, usage, and principles of good writing. Students are selected for this course on the basis of SAT verbal scores, high school English grades, and performance on a standardized test of English expression. This course is mandatory for those selected as prerequisite for EN 121.

Fall

EN 121 Academic Writing and Research                       (3)

Instruction in the fundamentals of good writing, the development of ideas and the mastery of research paper skills. To register for EN 121, the student must demonstrate minimal competency on a standardized test of English expression. Students must enroll in English (EN 111 or EN 121) every semester until they have earned credit for EN 121.

Fall, Spring

EN 361 Creative Writing                                      (3)

This course is designed to provide opportunities for different kinds of writing such as criticism, the personal essay, fiction and poetry. Through the writing of a short story and the discussion of the principles of plot construction, the student should develop some understanding of what makes a story good and how a story is constructed. The course will cover the various personal, social and communication purposes of language as well as a review of the principles of English usage. Prerequisite: EN 121

Spring

EN 391 Advanced Composition                          (3)

With an emphasis on current composition theories and on the practice of good expository writing skills, this course will examine the assumptions and choices that govern content and style in both the formal and informal essay. In addition, the importance of the various personal, social and communication purposes of language will be stressed. Practice in a variety of essay forms will be required. Prerequisite: EN 121

Spring Even Years

EN 455 History and Structure of the English Language                        (3)

A study of the origins, development and grammar of English. Emphasis will be placed on the historical development of the language and current theories of grammar instruction. The course will cover basic and advanced grammatical principles as well as phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and usage. Prerequisite: EN 121

Spring Odd Years

Courses in Literature

EN 151 Introduction to Literature                        (3)

A study of selected writing of the major authors of world literature. This course will include information on form, genre and literary history as reflected in national, regional and minority group literature. Emphasis will be placed on the development of interpretive skills as demonstrated through class discussion and writing. Prerequisite: EN 121

Fall, Spring

EN 311 American Literature I                              (3)

A study of American literature from its beginnings to the late nineteenth century. Emphasis will be placed on the major figures of Poe, Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville and Whitman, and on the Puritan, Neoclassic and Romantic periods. Prerequisite: EN 121

Fall

EN 321 American Literature II                             (3)

A study of American literature from the 1890’s to the present day. Emphasis will be placed on the major figures of Twain, James, Frost, Eliot, Hemingway, and Faulkner and on the rise of realism in modern American literature. Prerequisite: EN 121

Spring

EN 331 Selected Topics in English                     (3)

EN 331cc Christian Classics

EN 331el Ethnic Literature

EN 331fl Folklore

EN 331fs Film Studies

EN 331lb Literature of the Bible

EN 331ll Literature of Love

EN 331pl Playwriting

EN 331wl Women’s Literature

Thematic literature or topical studies will be offered as needed and based on student interest on the following topics. Christian Classics will focus on works by such authors as Augustine, Spenser, Milton, Donne, Hawthorne, Swift, T.S. Eliot, C.S. Lewis, and Tolkien.  Ethnic Literature includes literature written in English by African-American, Native American, and other minority authors. Folklore studies the stories that have evolved over generations through oral tradition and common wisdom. Film Studies focuses on the relationship of film to literature. Literature of the Bible studies literary forms and contributions of the Bible to Western thought. Literature of Love surveys how love has been defined in literature from ancient to contemporary times. Playwriting surveys dramatic writing and includes the writing of a full-length play or film script (identical with TH 331pl). Women’s Literature focuses on contributions of significant women writers. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321. May be repeated for credit in different topics.

Offered on Sufficient Demand

EN 381 Early English Literature                          (3)

A study of English literature from its origins through the end of the Elizabethan era, including Beowulf, Chaucer, the Mystery Cycles, Thomas More, the Renaissance sonneteers, the Renaissance epic, and the Elizabethan drama. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Fall Even Years

EN 385 Seventeenth and Eighteenth-Century English Literature          (3)

A survey of the major literary works in England from the Jacobean period to the French revolution. Attention will be given to non-Shakespearean drama, Milton, the Metaphysical poets, Pope, Swift, Dr. Johnson, and the rise of the novel.  Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Spring Odd Years

EN 411 Nineteenth-Century British Literature      (3)

A survey of English Romantic and Victorian literature as exemplified in the writings of Blake, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, Shelley, Keats, Scott, Lamb, George Eliot, Dickens, Tennyson, Browning, Hopkins, and others. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Fall Odd Years

EN 431 Shakespeare                                           (3)

A study of the major plays of Shakespeare and a number of minor plays. Additional reading of Shakespeare criticism. Identical with TH 431. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Spring

EN 441 Modern Age in British Literature                       (3)

A survey of the major literary works in England from the death of Queen Victoria to the present. The rise of literary modernism as evidenced in Conrad, Hardy, Eliot, Yeats, Joyce, Woolf, and others will be emphasized. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Spring Even Years

EN 481 World Masterpieces I                              (3)

A survey of the world’s most significant literary works from the earliest written records to the end of the 17^th Century.  Featured texts include the epics of Homer, Valmiki, Virgil, and Dante; the philosophical thought of Plato, Chuang Chou, and Augustine; religious texts such as the Bible, the Bhagavad-Gita, and the Koran; and prose narratives such as Petronius’ Satyricon, The Thousand and One Nights, and Cervantes’ Don Quixote. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Fall Even Years

EN 482 World Masterpieces II                             (3)

A survey of the world’s most significant literary works from the Enlightenment to the Contemporary period, including the works of Voltaire, Goethe, Flaubert, Dostoevsky, Kafka, and Garcia Marquez. Prerequisite: EN 151 or 311 or 321

Spring Odd Years

EN 485 English Seminar                                    (3)

A study of the principles of literary criticism and theory from Plato to the present and an integration of American, British, and European literature, including readings in literary terminology and exercises in literary analysis. This is designed as the capstone course for all English majors to include a final thesis as a prerequisite to graduation. Prerequisite: Senior English major or permission

Fall

EN 490 Independent Study                               (1-4)

The study of a problem, a research paper or a project related to the English major. Prerequisite: Consent

Fall, Spring

Return to the Department of English >>>