English Literary Studies

Feinstein School of Humanities, Arts and Education
Department of English

Do you enjoy myths and mysteries? Have you always loved reading and writing? Do you get inspired by discussing books, films, and television shows with your friends? An English Literary Studies major at RWU means developing the intellectual and critical thinking skills to analyze what you read and see defend your positions in papers, publications and discussions. At RWU, our student-centered program will teach you the strong writing, research and presentation skills you need to transform your passion into a career.

Course Offerings

Students painting. Whether you're interested in magic, nature, romance, or drama, the English Literary Studies Program at RWU has a course for you.  Our courses celebrate British and American literature, while offering opportunities to explore authors and works from other traditions, including world literatures in translation and literatures that focus on cultures, genres, periods and themes representative of both non-western and western perspectives.

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Students working on computer.Magazine

As an RWU English major, learning happens both in and outside the classroom. Our student magazine, Voices, gives you the chance to submit your work and get published. Whether its poetry, fiction, nonfiction, or just snippets of daily life, we want to hear from you. Check out the magazine              

RStudents presenting.esearch

We take your research seriously. Whether you’re analyzing the role of women in Harry Potter or exploring Marxism in Mean Girls, you will have the opportunity to make connections among pop culture, literature, and the world around you, and present your findings at national conferences. 

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Student serving lemonade.Special Events

Whether it’s a Victorian high tea in English gardens or a career night to get you excited for your future, there’s always something going on in the English department. 

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Internships

Internships in fields like marketing, communications, and publishing, help English majors apply their passions to a career path. Getting real-world experience before graduation will set you up for success.  

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Degree Requirements

This interdisciplinary major invites students to read, discuss, analyze and write about texts from Beowulf to #BLM.   Whether we are analyzing Shakespeare’s plays, Lord of the Rings, or deconstructing commercials according to symbolic content, etc., we read deeply and closely.  Our program is exceptionally interdisciplinary – including choices from theatre, the arts, creative writing, communication, history, and professional writing.  Majors may choose to focus their elective courses on a wide range of topics including, but not limited to the following:

  • African American/Africa Diaspora Studies
  • American Literature & Culture
  • British Literature & Culture
  • Children’s Literature
  • Creative Writing
  • Cultural Studies
  • Drama/Theater
  • Feminisms, Genders, & Sexualities
  • Film & Media Studies
  • Folklore/Fairy Tale
  • Genre studies (e.g., from epic to romance, and from film noir to the sitcom)
  • Historical contextualization
  • Mythology
  • Popular Culture
  • Postcolonial Studies
Introduction to Literary Form (3 credits)

Choose one from the list.  Note: Secondary Education/English Literary Studies double majors must choose CW 110 Form in Poetry

British Literature (6 credits)

Choose any two courses listed below (e.g., two different topics from ENG 280 or two different topics from ENG 350, or one topic from each). Courses, but not topics may be repeated for credit.  Note:  Secondary Education/English Literary Study double majors must choose one of each:  ENG 280 and ENG 350.

American Literature (6 credits)

Take both courses listed below.

Global Literatures (3 credits)

Elect one course from the list (any level) to satisfy this requirement.

Literary Methods - Theory Analysis (3 credits)
ENG 220 is required for the English Literary Studies major.
Electives (12 credit hours)

In addition to the other requirements for the English Literary Studies major, choose four 3-credit courses from the list to total 12 credit hours.  Variable topics courses may be repeated to count for electives if the topic varies.  Variable topics courses, but not topics, may be repeated for credit.

Note: Secondary Education/English Literary Studies double majors must choose the following courses:

Capstone Thesis I & II

Take ENG 480 in the Spring semester of your Junior year.  Take ENG 481 sequentially, in the Fall semester of your Senior year.

Experiential Learning Requirement (3 credits, may be double-dipped)

The experiential learning requirement may be met either by taking one of the courses on the list for three credits, or by participating in one of the experiences on the list via permission, sign-off and documentation with your English Literary Studies advisor and/or Department Chair.  Note:  It is possible to “double-dip” this requirement.  For example, Secondary Education/English Literary Studies double majors taking EDU 450 Student Teaching will simultaneously satisfy this requirement for both majors.  Likewise, an English Literary Studies major who takes three credits of an experiential Open Elective simultaneously satisfies both an Elective requirement and the Experiential requirement.  For example, if a student takes CW 450 as an Open Elective, they will satisfy both the elective requirement and the experiential requirement.

The minor in English Literary Studies offers the opportunity to study literature, develop critical thinking, writing, and research skills alongside the enjoyment of literature.  The minor is structured to allow students to choose courses of greatest interest and/or to create an area of specialization.  For example, if you have a strong interest in myth, you could choose more than one course in that area. 

Whether we are analyzing Shakespeare’s plays, Lord of the Rings, or deconstructing commercials according to symbolic content, etc., we read deeply and closely.  Our program is exceptionally interdisciplinary – including choices from theatre, the arts, creative writing, communication, history, and professional writing.  Students may choose to focus their elective courses on a wide range of topics including, but not limited to the following:

  • African American/Africa Diaspora Studies
  • American Literature & Culture
  • British Literature & Culture
  • Children’s Literature
  • Creative Writing
  • Cultural Studies
  • Drama/Theater
  • Feminisms, Genders, & Sexualities
  • Film & Media Studies
  • Folklore/Fairy Tale
  • Genre studies (e.g., from epic to romance, and from film noir to the sitcom)
  • Historical contextualization
  • Mythology
  • Popular Culture
  • Postcolonial Studies
Requirements

Choose six (6) courses for 18 credit hours.  At least three (3) courses from the list must contain the ENG prefix. 

Note: Elementary Education majors taking the English Literary Studies minor and pursuing the middle school extension or endorsement to their teaching licenses should choose six (6) courses with ENG prefix to meet requirements in most states

Note:  Variable topics courses may be repeated if the topic varies in the repeated course.  The course, but not the topic, may be repeated for credit. For example, a student may repeat ENG 280 and/or ENG 350 to satisfy elective requirements, if the topic varies. 

To read more about our academic offerings, or to view full course descriptions, please refer to our University Catalog.

Student Learning Outcomes

  1. Communicate ideas about literature and culture through effective analytical and critical writing and/or oral presentation
  2. Develop and apply advanced literary and cultural research skills to analysis of literary and cultural texts
  3. Apply critical theory, historical contextualization and/or other methodologies to analyze literary and cultural texts
  4. Understand and analyze the impact diverse identities (race, class, gender, religion, etc)  have had  on writers, literary representations and historical interpretations  of literatures,  periods and cultures
  5. Identify and analyze a variety of literary forms across multiple genres
Headshot of Hannah Little

Building Her Future Career

Hannah Little, RWU Class of 2020
Creative Writing

In just two years at Roger Williams University, Hannah Little has gained enough experience to build a career on.

Read full story

A statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The English Literary Studies program at Roger Williams University offers students a broad and diverse engagement with historical and contemporary texts from the Anglophone world (especially Great Britain and the US) and beyond. Our students become careful readers and excellent writers, taking these skills to a wide range of careers and graduate programs. Our major requirements emphasize flexibility and student choice so students can craft a curriculum that matches their individual literary interests. Thus, in all our courses, faculty  strive to engage with both canonical and non-canonical texts through a variety of contemporary lenses and approaches. Along with situating literature in its many historical and cultural contexts, our courses pay particular attention to the ways in which literature exposes and represents the hierarchies of power in our literary traditions, noting the importance of engaging with literatures of slavery and imperialism, as well as highlighting diverse expressions and representations of gender and sexuality throughout literary history. As we work to make the English literary tradition relevant to our students today, we believe that a program in English literary studies should help all students “see” themselves in that literary history. 

Juris Doctor/Bachelor's 3+3 Accelerated Program (J.D.)

Earn your bachelor’s and juris doctor degrees in six years through RWU’s Three-Plus-Three Law program. You’ll get a jump-start on your J.D. by integrating law courses into your undergraduate studies and completing undergraduate requirements in your first year of law school. Accepted students will take first-year courses in the School of Law along with legal electives to fulfill undergraduate fourth-year requirements. Interested students must indicate their intent to pursue a 3+3 pathway early in their undergraduate studies for curriculum planning and advising.

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