Literature Major (B.A.)
English courses emphasize the close reading of texts, the study of particular authors and genres, questions of critical theory and method, and the relationship of literary works to their historical periods and other disciplines. The department seeks not only to foster analytical reading and lucid writing but also to stimulate thought about the nature of human experience. In order to be servant leaders, students must be articulate, they must be able to think critically and analytically, and they must have a grounding in humane thought and letters to understand better the historical and philosophical contexts of today’s world.
Apart from such global rewards, a degree in English literature offers intensive training in skills essential to the contemporary job market. Graduates of Seton Hall University’s English program have gone on to graduate programs and to successful careers in writing and editing, publishing, teaching, law, business, and media.
In addition to the literature major and the creative writing major, the department also offers a literature minor, a writing minor, and a creative writing minor, each 18 credits and available to students of any major. At the graduate level, the Department of English offers a Master of Arts (M.A.) designed for present or prospective teachers of English on the secondary or college level, for students contemplating the Ph.D., for those interested in creative writing, and for those already involved in careers in publishing, business, writing or media. English majors who qualify for the Dual Degree B.A./M.A. program in English can complete the M.A. degree in one year beyond their B.A. See description below.
English Departmental Honors
Literature and creative writing majors may qualify for departmental honors by fulfilling the following criteria:
- maintaining a 3.67 GPA in the major.
- taking an additional six credits in advanced electives (3000-level or higher for literature, 2000-level or higher for creative writing), for a total of 42 credits, to complete the English major with honors.
- receiving "pass with honors" on the English major assessment portfolio.
- including a longer (15-20 page) senior thesis (from ENGL 5011 Senior Seminar for Literature or ENGL 5012 Senior Sem - Creative Writing) in their assessment portfolio (in addition to the paper from an earlier class, see below).
English Major Portfolio Assessment
All English majors should begin keeping an assessment portfolio as soon as they declare their major. The assessment portfolio is to be submitted on Sharepoint in their final semester. Portfolios are reviewed by a rotating committee of Department of English faculty. The grading system is pass/fail and appears on the student’s transcript. The assessment portfolio should include:
- two research papers, one from a 2000-level class taken soon after declaring the English major, ideally ENGL 2204 Introduction to Literary Studies; and one from ENGL 5011 Senior Seminar for Literature or ENGL 5012 Senior Sem - Creative Writing; and
- a three-page self-assessment that also includes an assessment of the English major (criteria can be found in Sharepoint).
Transfer students who cannot meet these requirements should consult with the department chair and director of the undergraduate major.
Major Requirements
To declare an English major, students must have a 2.5 minimum GPA in ENGL 1201 Core English I and ENGL 1202 Core English II, or gain permission of the chair of the department. Core English I and II are prerequisites for all advanced English courses.
Note: ENGL 2103 American Literature I and ENGL 2104 American Literature II can be used toward the humanities requirement of the College of Arts and Sciences Core Curriculum as well as the requirements of the English major.
Link to College Core requirement.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory Requirements | ||
| ENGL 2103 & ENGL 2104 | American Literature I and American Literature II | 6 |
| ENGL 2111 & ENGL 2112 | British Literature I and British Literature II | 6 |
| ENGL 2204 | Introduction to Literary Studies | 3 |
| ENGL 2205 | Literary Genres and Precedents | 3 |
| Advanced Requirements | ||
| ENGL 5011 | Senior Seminar for Literature | 3 |
| Select one course in each of five categories: | 15 | |
| Total Hours | 36 | |
British (pre-1800)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 2212 | Renaissance Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3211 | Medieval Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3311 | Chaucer | 3 |
| ENGL 3312 | Shakespeare | 3 |
| ENGL 3417 | The Drama in Great Britain I | 3 |
| ENGL 3523 | Race-Gender-Empire Brit Atlant | 3 |
British (post-1800)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 3216 | Victorian Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3304 | Irish Short Story | 3 |
| ENGL 3314 | Irish Lit:Celtic Revival- Pres | 3 |
| ENGL 3318 | VA Woolf and the Bloomsbury Gr | 3 |
| ENGL 3381 | Faith Doubt 19th Cent Br Lit | 3 |
| ENGL 3411 | The British Novel I | 3 |
| ENGL 3416 | The British Novel II | 3 |
| ENGL 3418 | British Novel III | 3 |
| ENGL 3524 | British Gothic Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3215 | Romantic Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3217 | Modern British Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3201 | City in British Literature | 3 |
American
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 3210 | Literature of the Americas | 3 |
| ENGL 3319 | Representation Body Early Amer | 3 |
| ENGL 3320 | American Renaissance | 3 |
| ENGL 3321 | American Realism | 3 |
| ENGL 3322 | American Modernism | 3 |
| ENGL 3419 | The Social Novel in America | 3 |
| ENGL 3420 | Modern American Poetry | 3 |
| ENGL 3425 | The City - American Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3613 | Early African-Amer Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3614 | Modern African-American Lit | 3 |
| ENGL 3615 | Major Authors in Afr-Amer Lit | 3 |
| ENGL 3617 | Lit of Harlem Renaissance | 3 |
| ENGL 4408 | Spcl Topic American Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3517 | The American Novel I | 3 |
| ENGL 3518 | American Novel II | 3 |
| ENGL 2615 | Major Figures in African-American Literature | 3 |
Thematic/Comparative
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 2618 | Africana Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3113 | Women and Literature I | 3 |
| ENGL 3114 | Women and Literature II | 3 |
| ENGL 3115 | Literature of Adolescence | 3 |
| ENGL 3116 | Children's Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3201 | City in British Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3219 | Apocalyptic-Dystopian Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 3220 | Graphic Narratives | 3 |
| ENGL 3370 | Illness and Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3371 | Fantasy-Faith British Lit | 3 |
| ENGL 3402 | Contemporary Russian Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3426 | Literature and Nature | 3 |
| ENGL 3432 | Postcolonial Literature | 3 |
| ENGL 3414 | Contemporary Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 3430 | Satire | 3 |
| ENGL 3431 | Immigr Post-Col Women Writers | 3 |
| ENGL 3516 | Contemporary Poetry | 3 |
| ENGL 3611 | Greek-Latin Roots of English | 3 |
| ENGL 3612 | Classical Mythology | 3 |
| ENGL 3616 | Contemporary African Lit. | 3 |
| ENGL 4412 | Sp Top Them-Comp Lit Studies I | 3 |
| ENGL 4421 | Irish Lit Past and Present | 3 |
Writing
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ENGL 2509 | Introduction to Fiction Wrtng | 3 |
| ENGL 2510 | Introduction to Poetry Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 2511 | Introduction to Creative Writing I | 3 |
| ENGL 2512 | Creative Writing-Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 2513 | Creative Writing-Poetry | 3 |
| ENGL 2514 | Writing Workshop: Research and Analysis | 3 |
| ENGL 2515 | Writing Workshop: Creative Non-Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 2516 | Business Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 2519 | Writing Across the Disciplines | 3 |
| ENGL 3511 | Advanced Composition | 3 |
| ENGL 3513 | Writing for Professions | 3 |
| ENGL 3514 | Scientific and Technical Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 3515 | Composition Theory and Practice | 3 |
| ENGL 3521 | Craft of Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 3522 | Craft of Poetry | 3 |
| ENGL 3621 | Advanced Fiction Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 3622 | Advanced Poetry Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 3623 | Spiritual Writing - Nonfiction | 3 |
| ENGL 4414 | Special Topics in Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 4415 | Special Topics in Writing II | 3 |
| ENGL 4420 | Travel Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 4425 | Business Fiction | 3 |
| ENGL 3620 | History of the English Lang. | 3 |
| ENGL 3520 | Advanced Business Writing | 3 |
| ENGL 3624 | Spiritual Wtg Research-Analys | 3 |
Note: It is recommended that double majors in English and education take the following courses for nine of the 15 credits in upper-level electives:
- for British pre-1800: ENGL 3312 Shakespeare
- for Thematic/Comparative: ENGL 3115 Literature of Adolescence or ENGL 3116 Children's Literature
- for Writing: ENGL 3620 History of the English Lang.
Successful completion of a Department of English version of a Core "Engaging the World" class will count as a literature elective as well as toward the University Core.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| First Semester | Hours | |
| CORE 1001 | University Life | 1 |
| CORE 1101 | Journey of Transformation | 3 |
| ENGL 1201 | Core English I | 3 |
| MATH 1102 or MATH 1203 |
Mathematical Perspective or Stats Models for Soc Science |
3 |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Language or A&S Requirement | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ENGL 1202 | Core English II | 3 |
| Language or A&S Requirement | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Second Year | ||
| First Semester | ||
| CORE 2101 | Christianity and Cult in Dial. | 3 |
| ENGL 2204 | Introduction to Literary Studies | 3 |
| ENGL 2205 | Literary Genres and Precedents | 3 |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ENGL 2111 | British Literature I | 3 |
| ENGL 2103 | American Literature I | 3 |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Third Year | ||
| First Semester | ||
| ENGL 2112 | British Literature II | 3 |
| ENGL 2104 | American Literature II | 3 |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| CORE 3XXX: Engaging the World * | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ENGL Advanced Elective | 3 | |
| ENGL Advanced Elective | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Fourth Year | ||
| First Semester | ||
| ENGL Advanced Elective | 3 | |
| ENGL Advanced Elective | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ENGL 5011 | Senior Seminar for Literature | 3 |
| ENGL Advanced Elective | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| AS Core | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Total Hours | 121 | |
- *
English electives that count for Core III:
- ENGL 3211 Medieval Literature
- ENGL 3311 Chaucer
- ENGL 3314 Irish Lit:Celtic Revival- Pres
- ENGL 3319 Representation Body Early Amer
- ENGL 3370 Illness and Literature
- ENGL 3371 Fantasy-Faith British Lit
- ENGL 3381 Faith Doubt 19th Cent Br Lit
- ENGL 3382 English Catholic Women Writers of the 17th and 18th Centuries
- ENGL 3623 Spiritual Writing - Nonfiction
- ENGL 3624 Spiritual Wtg Research-Analys
- ENGL 4420 Travel Writing
- ENGL 4421 Irish Lit Past and Present
NOTES:
- American Literature I and II fulfill six credits of the A&S Core Curriculum humanities requirement.
- A&S Core requirements may also be used to pursue a second major or minor.
- Students who are planning to graduate with English Honors must take two additional advanced electives.
- Student planning to pursue the BA/MA should not take advanced electives until after meeting with the department chairperson or director of graduate studies.
- 10 proficiencies must be fulfilled by graduation, one of which must be oral communication.
- COST 1500 Foundations in Oral Rhetoric/ COST 1600 Speaking and Listening in a Digital and Global Age is infused with the oral communication proficiency; proficiency may be obtained in other courses.
- It is recommended that education/English double majors take ENGL 3312 Shakespeare(runs every fall) as their British pre-1800 elective, ENGL 3115 Literature of Adolescenceruns every two years in fall) OR ENGL 3116 Children's Literature(runs every two years in spring) as their thematic/comparative elective, and ENGL 3620 History of the English Lang. as their writing elective.
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