English, BA
Immerse yourself in the stories that helped shape our world.
As an English major at Saint Mary’s, you’ll read, analyze, and discuss the great written works of the English language. With our outstanding faculty as your guide, you’ll gain a foundational understanding of literary criticism and theory. You’ll also have the opportunity to hone your own creative writing within a supportive workshop setting. As the culmination of your study, you will produce an original work of literary scholarship, employing the skills you have refined throughout your four years here.
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Curriculum
Upon successful completion of the English Program, students will be able to...
- Engage in informed, active reading, bringing to bear a broad base of literary, historical and cultural knowledge.
- Read critically a wide range of literary texts, with an awareness of the theoretical assumptions behind various interpretive strategies, and the ability to choose appropriate methods of inquiry and to formulate clear questions.
- Apply a variety of reading strategies, combining critical detachment with the intellectual, imaginative, and emotional engagement necessary for appreciation.
- Write clear, well-reasoned prose for a variety of situations (academic, professional, social) for a variety of audiences and support their arguments with appropriate, thoughtfully analyzed evidence.
- Converse articulately about texts and interpretations, understanding that interpretation is often a dialogic, collaborative process.
- Evaluate critically how texts engage notions of diversity and difference.
Saint Mary's Testimonials
The faculty at Saint Mary's definitely changed my life. There was a lot of support that I don't think I would have found in a larger college setting. They grew to know me and what I was capable of. I felt like there was a definite kinship that developed where, however much effort I gave in my classes, my teachers were also supporting my goals.
Amanda Benson '06