Plan of Study – English Language and Literature

Note: A Semester Hour (s.h.) is a unit of academic credit representing an hour of class (such as lecture class) or three hours of laboratory work each week for an academic semester. Most courses are two, three or four semester hours.

English Language and Literature: Minor

Minor Courses (Minimum of 22 semester hours required.)

EDU 4421 Seminar for English Minors (1 s.h.)

Methods and materials relevant for candidates who will be taking the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification in secondary English. Of special interest to those with a minor in English and a major in a non-English language arts field.

ENG 2080 Approaches to Grammar (3 s.h.)

A linguistics course providing an historical sketch of the development of the English language, examining the interplay between theory of language and approaches to the study of grammar. By analyzing English phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics, the course shows the changing nature of language and emphasizes how that change is influenced by politics and culture. The effects of dialect and register on communication in English are explored. Applications to teaching grammar in elementary and secondary settings are examined.

ENG 2230 World Literature (3 s.h.)

An introduction to representative literary works, both Western and non-Western, reflecting the distinctive ideals, values, and attitudes of various eras and civilizations.

ENG 2620 Language and Culture (3 s.h.)

A study of how and why people communicate in the ways they do. Habitual talking, listening, and writing behaviors of individuals and groups, as well as the influences of home, community, and culture on the language structures and language uses of individuals. Culture, as it influences linguistic preference, is considered, along with methods of semiotic and discursal analysis.

ENG 2700 Critical Writing and Literary Analysis (3 s.h.)

An introduction to critical writing and literary theory and criticism. Addresses the major frameworks of literary criticism that have emerged in Western critical theory. Prerequisite: WRT 1020. Recommended during second year in major and minor.

ENG 3110/3120 Option (Choose from: ENG 3110 or ENG 3120.)

ENG 3110 American Literature I: Beginnings to the Civil War (3 s.h.)

A study of American literature from the pre-colonial era to the Civil War, with an overview of relevant forms, genres, and historical contexts. Explores the diverse elements of the American experience during this time period.

ENG 3120 American Literature II: The Post-Civil War to the Present (3 s.h.)

A study of American literature from the Post-Civil War to the present, with an overview of relevant forms, genres, and historical contexts. Explores the changing values and concerns of American society as reflected in its literature from the mid-nineteenth century to twenty-first century.

ENG 3630/3640 Option (Choose from: ENG 3630 or ENG 3640.)

ENG 3630 British Literature I: Medieval to Renaissance (3 s.h.)

A study of British literature from the early Middle Ages to the late Renaissance. Provides an overview of relevant forms, genres, and historical contexts, including representative works of Old and Middle English as well as Renaissance epic, lyric, and drama. Considers the influences of classical literature, the Reformation, and the English civil war.

ENG 3640 British Literature II: Restoration to the Present (3 s.h.)

A study of British literature from 1667 to the present. An overview of relevant forms, genres, and historical contexts. Explores the Regency, Romantic, Victorian, Modernist, post-Modernist, and contemporary periods.

ENG 4450/4460 Option (Choose from: ENG 4450 or ENG 4460.)

ENG 4450 African American Literature (3 s.h.)

A study of African American literature including both oral and written traditions. Emphasis is placed on canonical writers and texts in historical context.

ENG 4460 Ethnic American Literature (3 s.h.)

Focus on literature from various minority populations in America. Course content includes, but is not limited to, African American, Asian American, Arab American, Latino American, and Native American authors. Emphasis placed on the unique facets of each type of literature, as well as themes and experiences common to all ethnic groups in America.