About the Individual Specialization
The Individually Created Specialization (IS) is for students who wish to design their own specialization pathway through the major.
Examples of the Individual Specialization
Sarah Robinson’s proposal for a program in Irish and British Literature pulls together multiple courses in English under the direction of faculty member Katherine O’Callaghan.
Irish and British Literature Specialization
“Individualized” Option -English Major
Sarah Robinson, Class of 2024
The Irish and British Literature Specialization follows British and Irish history and culture throughout the ages. The specialization takes a broad view of British and Irish history and literature starting from the Anglo-Saxons and Geoffrey of Monmouth, all the way to contemporary writers such as Claire Keegan, Doireann Ní Ghríofa, and Mike McCormack. For me, the specialization included an emphasis on writing about my own experience as a first generation Irish-American and reflecting on the texts I’ve read in English 350H Expository Writing. I capped off the specialization with attending the Oxford Summer Seminar and studying British literature in England.
Courses that count for specialization:
- English 468 James Joyce
- English 365 Irish Literature
- English 350H Expository Writing (portfolio of writing on Irish-American experience)
- English 300 Legends of Arthur
- English 221 Shakespeare
Additional classes tailored to specialization:
- English 200 Intro to Literary Studies: Ghosts of Literature with Prof. O’Callaghan
- English 201 Early British Literature
Potential future classes:
- British Detective Fiction -Oxford Summer Seminar
- English 363 Modern British Drama
- English 469 Victorian Monstrosity
- Independent Study on Celtic History
Kaila Howard's proposal for a program in 19th Century British Literature pulls together multiple courses in English under the direction of faculty member Suzanne Daly.
19th Century British Literature Specialization
Individualized Option - English Major
Kaila Howard, Class of 2024
The Nineteenth-Century British Literature Specialization explores various texts from the 1800s, with an emphasis on the Victorian period. During my studies of nineteenth-century British literature, I have focused particularly on issues of gender and sexuality, and how they are addressed—or not addressed—in the period's literature. Aside from taking classes offered by the university in this area of study, I completed an independent study during which I examined the writing of authors such as Wilde, Le Fanu, and Stoker, applying queer and feminist theory to their works.
Courses counting toward specialization:
- English 201 - Later British Literature & Culture
- English 358 - The Romantic Poets
- English 359 - Victorian Imagination
- English 469 - Victorian Monstrosity
- English 496 - Independent Study: Queer Victorian Literature
- History 339 - British Empire Since 1783
Requirements (4-5 courses)
Students who wish to pursue the individual option may do so with the guidance and approval of an English department faculty advisor in the proposed area of study.
Contact
Students interested in this option should first reach out to Jennifer Minnen (@email), Chief Undergraduate Advisor, or Adam Zucker (@email), the Undergraduate Program Director.
- American Studies
- Creative Writing
- Digital Humanities
- Environmental Humanities
- Literature as History
- Professional Writing and Technical Communication
- Social Justice: Race, Class, Gender, Ability*
- Teaching the English Language Arts
- Writing, Rhetoric, and Literacy Studies
- Individually Created Specialization