Professor Joseph Urgo, Chair
309 Bishop Hall

Professors Barbera, Fisher, Fisher-Wirth, J.R. Hall, Kartiganer, Kullman, McClelland, Schirmer, and Urgo
Associate Professors Barker, Dean, Galef, Kamps, Robinson, N. Schroeder, R. Schroeder, and Watson
Assistant Professors McKee, Raber, Smith, Trefzer, and Young-Minor
Writer-in-Residence Hannah, Professor Director of Writing Williams, and the John and Renee Grisham Southern Writer-in-Residence Wilkinson

MASTER OF ARTS

Admission Requirements
Admission is competitive and based upon undergraduate transcripts, GRE general and subject test scores, three recommendations, and a writing sample.

Course Requirements
Students must complete 24 hours of course work with a B average and also complete an additional 6 hours of thesis credit. Students must take 6 hours of course work in English or American literature before 1800 and 6 hours of English or American literature after 1800. Up to 6 hours may be taken in related disciplines and/or directed reading. It is possible to receive an M.A. with an emphasis in creative writing (fiction or poetry) by completing 6 hours of creative-writing courses and submitting a substantial work of creative writing (a novel, a group of short stories, or a book-length manuscript of poems) for a thesis. Teaching assistants are required to complete ENGL 617 (Teaching College English).

Foreign Language Requirement
Students must present evidence of proficiency in one of the following foreign languages before the thesis defense: Greek, Latin, French, German, Spanish, and Italian. Evidence of proficiency ordinarily consists of a grade of B or above in 3 hours of course work in the literature of the appropriate foreign language (in the original). Students seeking to satisfy the foreign language requirement in a language other than those listed above must petition the Graduate Studies Committee for permission to do so.

Thesis Defense
An oral defense (lasting approximately one hour) is the final stage before the student is recommended for the degree; students who are advanced to candidacy in the Ph.D. program are not required to write a thesis.

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DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Admission Requirements
Admission is competitive and based upon undergraduate transcripts, GRE general and subject test scores, recommendations, and a writing sample. The applicant must have received a bachelor's or master's degree in English or its equivalent from a compatible institution and must satisfy the Graduate School's requirements for admission to doctoral study.

Ph.D. Committee
Each student, working in collaboration with the director of graduate studies, puts together a Ph.D. committee, comprised of three members of the English department graduate faculty whose teaching and research interests complement the student's own plans for doctoral study. (The faculty members chosen must agree to serve on the committee.) The student and his or her Ph.D. committee are expected to design an individual program of study which contributes significantly to the student's familiarity with the broad scope of literary history; and with areas such as linguistics, rhetoric, theory, methodology, criticism, canonicity, and the reciprocities between literature and culture. The responsibilities of the Ph.D. committee include supervising foreign language study; setting, administering, and evaluating the Advanced Candidacy Examination and admitting the student to advanced candidacy; evaluating the dissertation prospectus; supervising and approving dissertation work; conducting and evaluating the oral dissertation defense; and recommending the conferral of both the M.A. and the Ph.D. degrees.

A fourth (extradepartmental) examiner works with the committee to evaluate the candidate's work from the prospectus stage forward. (See Dissertation Prospectus.)

Course Requirements
Students entering the program with the bachelor's degree must complete 48 hours of graduate course work (excluding dissertation hours) with no grade below B, and at least 18 hours dissertation credit. The Graduate Admissions Committee will determine the amount of course work required of students entering the program with the master's degree; this requirement will be at least 24 hours of graduate course work (excluding dissertation hours) beyond the master's degree. The student's 48 hours of graduate course work will include 6 hours of course work in English or American literature before 1800, 6 hours of course work in English or American literature after 1800, and 3 hours of course work in literary, critical, cultural, rhetorical, or composition theory. Up to 6 hours of graduate course work may be taken in related disciplines and/or independent study. All graduate course work must be completed before a candidate may submit any section of the Advanced Candidacy Examination.

Foreign Language Requirement
Each student is expected to demonstrate evidence of proficiency in one foreign language. Proficiency is defined as a genuine working knowledge of the language. The Ph.D. Committee will determine the specific manner in which the student demonstrates proficiency. Ordinarily, it would be demonstrated by a grade of B or higher in 3 hours of resident course work in the literature of the appropriate foreign language (in the original) or by a score in the 40th percentile or higher on the appropriate foreign language examination of the Educational Testing Service. Note that this requirement is a recommended departmental minimum; an individual student's Ph.D. Committee may well require alternate or further study. All foreign language requirements must be satisfied before a candidate may take the oral section of the Advanced Candidacy Examination.

Advanced Candidacy
Admission to advanced candidacy follows the successful completion of the Advanced Candidacy Examination. This examination, which is both written and oral in form, tests the candidate's knowledge of three areas of inquiry, consisting of: (A) a literary period and (B) the candidate's choice of two of the following: (1) the representative writings of a single author or a select group of authors, studied intensively and supplemented by relevant secondary materials (critical, biographical, cultural, and/or historical studies); (2) the intensive study of a single genre, supplemented by relevant theory, criticism, and literary history; and (3) a special topic, approved by the candidate's committee. (Special topics include, but are by no means limited to, issues of rhetoric, structure, technique, gender, race, power, ideology, culture, literary theory, methodology, intellectual history, and canonicity. They also may include interdisciplinary issues.) The candidate and the Ph.D. committee will draw up and agree upon an intensive reading list for each of the three areas of inquiry. All members of the committee will participate in evaluating the written and oral sections of the examination, and in all future responsibilities of the committee.

The justification for the examination format is to enhance the preparedness of graduate students for the current standards of the (research) university job market.

The written part of the examination consists of the following three assignments, each of which addresses a different reading list: (1) the choice of a take-home exam, to be completed within 24 hours and without any form of assistance, or a four-hour seated exam (the choice to be determined by the student and the committee), and (2) two original article-length (15-25 pages) publishable* research papers. The research papers are expected to address specialized topics in a thorough, critically responsible manner; they are not intended to provide a broad overview of the materials on a reading list.

The reading lists and topics of these two papers should be arrived at through consultation between the student and his or her committee. The topic should be a fresh undertaking for the student, although certainly it can be derived from course work. The topic should reflect an interest in and knowledge of the exam area it is to represent; that is, although narrow in focus, the topic should be situated convincingly within the context of its area. It should illuminate as well as be illuminated by the area of study in which the student has located it. A kind of two-way street ought to be apparent in the finished work: the focused topic providing insight into the larger area, the area expanding the implications of the topic.

Students and committees are encouraged to work closely together, especially during the formative stage of the topic. Some sort of outline or prospectus may well be a part of this stage, although full or fragmentary drafts should not be. Once the student submits a paper, the committee will respond in one of three ways: acceptance, rejection, or request for revision. In the event of the latter option, no more than two revisions will be permitted.

If the original papers are accepted, either at first or after up to two revisions, the student is permitted to continue in the program and proceed toward the oral exam. If the original papers (either one or both) are rejected, either at first or after up to two revisions, the student is not permitted to continue in the program. A failed written exam and/or a failed oral exam may be retaken one time. If the exam is failed twice, the student is not permitted to continue in the program.

The oral section of the examination may be taken only after all foreign language requirements have been satisfied and the three written sections of the examination have been completed and passed. Ordinarily 2 and 1/2 hours in length, the oral is designed to open up the intensive focus of the papers and the written exam to wider-ranging inquiry; the examiners will expect the candidate to be familiar with all of the materials from the three reading lists, whether or not these materials have been discussed in the three written sections of the examination.

M.A. Degree
Upon admission to advanced candidacy, all candidates who entered the program with bachelor's degrees only will be awarded M.A. degrees. Candidates who fail to be admitted to advanced candidacy will, upon completing and defending a master's thesis, be awarded an M.A. degree.

*The concept of the "publishable paper" should be understood as a descriptive rather than a valuative term. Such a paper should be original, demonstrating a familiarity with relevant secondary sources to support that claim. It should constitute a complete argument within the range of the 15- to 25-page paper.

Dissertation Prospectus
Soon after admission to advanced candidacy, the candidate is expected to submit a dissertation prospectus to the Ph.D. committee and an outside (extradepartmental) examiner. The prospectus is a statement of a problem the student intends to address, and a brief narrative indicating the direction of future reading and research toward the dissertation; it also should include some sort of methodological statement and a rudimentary bibliography. The Ph.D. committee and the outside examiner will conduct a formal prospectus defense, which the candidate must pass in order to proceed with dissertation work.

Dissertation
The candidate is required to complete a book-length research project that makes an original and significant contribution to the field of literary studies. After the dissertation is completed and approved, the Ph.D. committee and the outside examiner will conduct an oral dissertation defense, which the candidate must pass before conferral of the degree is recommended.

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Course Descriptions

English - ENGL

NOTE: For a course marked with an asterisk the content varies; it may be repeated for credit.

501. DESCRIPTIVE GRAMMAR. An examination of English grammar, with special attention to usage on different levels, formal and informal, standard and nonstandard, written and spoken; emphasis on phonology, morphology and descriptive theories of grammar. (Same as LING 501). (3).

502. HISTORICAL LINGUISTICS. Study of words, speech languages, and language changes from the point of view of evolution in the course of time, particularly in Indo-European languages. (3).

503, 504. OLD ENGLISH. The Old English language, with some attention to development of Modern English; translation of Old English prose and poetry, including Beowulf. (3, 3).

505. HISTORY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. The development of the language from Old English to the present with particular attention to phonology and morphology. (3).

506. SEMANTICS. Study of word meaning in human languages, especially English, history, issues, and theories of semantics. Prerequisite: ENGL 401, ENGL

501 or ENGL 592. (Same as LING 509). (3).

507. MEDIEVAL ENGLISH LITERATURE. A survey of Old and Middle English literature in translation (excluding Chaucer and medieval drama). (3).

511. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE RENAISSANCE. The literature exclusive of the drama from 1500 to 1625. (3).

513. PRE-SHAKESPEAREAN DRAMA. The cycles, the moralities, and the early comedies and tragedies. (3).

514. ELIZABETHAN DRAMA. The major playwrights other than Shakespeare. (3).

519. THE ENGLISH LYRIC. The development of the short poem from the origin to the present. The development of a genre. (3).

520. TEACHING WRITING FOR THINKING. This course examines current theories and
practices of teaching writing. The course focuses on the process theory of writing to foster thinking and learning in subject areas, collaborative learning, and error analysis and grammar instruction. (3).

521. WRITING WORKSHOP. Direction of individual writing projects. Prerequisite: consent of instructor. (May be repeated for credit once). (3).

522. RESTORATION DRAMA. Drama of the Restoration and 18th century, with some examination of critical and historical problems. (3).

524. AMERICAN DRAMA TO 1900. A historical-critical survey of American drama before 1900, with attention to themes, characterization, and dramatic techniques. (3).

531. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE 17th CENTURY. (3).

541. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE 18th CENTURY. (3).

554. ENGLISH LITERATURE FROM SENSIBILITY TO ROMANTICISM. Selected poetry, prose, and fiction of the late 18th century (pre-Romantic) and the early Romantic periods. (3).

555. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE ROMANTIC PERIOD. (3).

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557. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE VICTORIAN PERIOD. (3).

558. ENGLISH LITERATURE OF THE 20th CENTURY. (3).

559. ANGLO-AMERICAN FOLK BALLAD. English and American ballad literature. (3).

561. EARLY AMERICAN POETRY. A study of the development of American poetry from the Colonial period through the 19th century. (3).

562. MODERN AMERICAN POETRY. Survey of American poetry from Edward Arlington Robinson to the present, with emphasis on such major poets as Frost, Stevens, Pound, Eliot, and W.C. Williams. (3).

563. WRITERS OF THE AMERICAN RENAISSANCE. Intensive studies in the major works of Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne, Melville, and others. (3).

566. FAULKNER WORKSHOP. A study of the relationship between Faulkner's novels and the geography, history, and people of north Mississippi. (3).

567. AMERICAN LITERATURE OF THE COLONIAL PERIOD. American literature of the 17th and 18th centuries. (3).

568. LITERATURE OF THE OLD SOUTH. Survey of Southern writing from Jefferson through Murfree, with particular attention to Poe, Simms, humorists, Hayne, Timrod, Lanier, Cable, local color. (3).

569. SOUTHERN LITERATURE OF THE 20th CENTURY. Selected novels, short stories, plays, and essays surveying the work of Southern writers in the 20th century. (3).

573. THE AMERICAN NOVEL BEFORE 1914. A survey of the development of the American novel, including the work of Brown, Cooper, Simms, Hawthorne, Melville, Mark Twain, Howells, James, Crane, Norris, and others. (3).

574. THE AMERICAN NOVEL AFTER 1914. Continuation of 573. Authors studied include Wharton, Garland, Dreiser, Glasgow, Wolfe, Anderson, Lewis, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Dos Passos, Farrell, Faulkner, and others. (3).

575. RECENT AMERICAN LITERATURE. Selected novels, short stories and essays of the 20th century, with emphasis on the contemporary scene. (3).

576. DEVELOPMENT OF THE SHORT STORY. Consideration of stories and critical documents influential in shaping the short story, with emphasis on post-Chekhovian stories. (3).

579. THE 18th CENTURY ENGLISH NOVEL. A survey of the history and development of the English novel from its inception in the early decades of the 18th century through the end of the century. (3).

580. THE ENGLISH NOVEL: 1740-1820. A survey of the history and development of the English novel in the Romantic period. (3).

581. THE ENGLISH NOVEL: 1820-1920. Major English fiction from 1820s to the 1920s. (3).

582. THE ENGLISH NOVEL: 1920-PRESENT. Selected novels, short stories, and essays of the 20th century, with emphasis on the contemporary scene. (3).

587. THE HISTORY OF RHETORIC. A selective review of rhetorical theory and practice in the Greek, Roman, early Christian, medieval, scholastic, English Renaissance, 19th century, modern, and contemporary periods. (3).

588. WRITING THEORY. This course examines theories of rhetoric and composing as they conflict and converge to form our prevailing theories of writing. Following a brief survey of rhetorical theory, ancient to modern, the course focuses on contemporary theories of composing written discourse. (3).

589. THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF THE CRITICISM OF POETRY. A practical course in the interpretation and evaluation of poems. (3).

590. CLASSICS OF LITERARY CRITICISM. Examination of the principal documents and practical application of critical theories. (3).

591. RECENT LITERARY CRITICISM. Examination of the principal documents and practical application of critical theories.

592. MODERN ENGLISH GRAMMAR. Advanced treatment of syntactic structures, with special attention to current interpretations; emphasis on morphology and generative transformational theories of syntax. (Same as LING 592). (3).

593. AFRO-AMERICAN LITERATURE. Selected Afro-American prose, poetry, fiction, and drama, with emphasis on major figures, themes, periods, and movements. Prerequisite: 12 hours of literature or English, including AFRO 341 and 342 or ENGL 322 and 323. (May be repeated once for credit). (Same as AFRO 593). (3).

595.* SEMINAR IN LINGUISTICS. (Same as ANTH 595 and LING 595). (3).

603.* STUDIES IN EARLY ENGLISH LITERATURE. (3).

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605. MIDDLE ENGLISH. The Middle English language, with some attention to the development of modern English; the reading of representative writers other than Chaucer. (3).

606. CHAUCER. Chaucer's major works. (3).

607.* STUDIES IN MIDDLE ENGLISH LITERATURE. (3).

608. BIBLIOGRAPHICAL TOOLS AND METHODS. (3).

609.* STUDIES IN 16th CENTURY LITERATURE. Restricted to poetry or to prose. (3).

611.* STUDIES IN SHAKESPEARE. (3).

613.* STUDIES IN THE ENGLISH DRAMA. (3).

615.* FUNDAMENTALS OF LINGUISTIC SCIENCE. Analysis of methods of describing any given language and of reconstructing its history, with outside papers emphasizing students' own linguistic interests. (3).

617. TEACHING COLLEGE ENGLISH. Introductory course in writing theory, teaching practices, and research in composing. (3).

625. MODERN AMERICAN DRAMA. American drama of the 20th century. Prerequisite: consent of the instructor. (3).

631. MILTON. Milton's writings, with special attention to his poetry, his life, and his times. (3).

633.* 17th CENTURY STUDIES. (3).

641.* 18th CENTURY STUDIES. (3).

645.* STUDIES IN THE ENGLISH NOVEL. (3).

653. THE STUDY OF FILM. A seminar on various approaches to the study of film and film research. A research paper is required, as well as attendance at weekly film showings, related lectures, and seminar meetings. (3).

654. SPECIAL TOPICS IN FILM STUDY. Content varies. Prerequisite: ENGL 353 or ENGL 653. (3).

655.* STUDIES IN THE ROMANTIC PERIOD. (3).

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657.* STUDIES IN THE VICTORIAN PERIOD. (3).

658.* STUDIES IN MODERN BRITISH LITERATURE. (3).

659.* STUDIES IN CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE. Selected literature of the post-war period. (3).

661. FAULKNER. A critical analysis of selected novels and short stories. (3).

663.* STUDIES IN MAJOR AMERICAN WRITERS. (3).

666. RESEARCH IN COMPOSITION. An examination of the research being done in the field of composition. Students will design and implement research projects. (3).

667.* STUDIES IN THE AMERICAN NOVEL. (3).

668.* STUDIES IN EARLY AMERICAN LITERATURE. (3).

669.* STUDIES IN 19th CENTURY AMERICAN LITERATURE. (3).

670.* STUDIES IN MODERN AMERICAN LITERATURE. (3).

675.* STUDIES IN AMERICAN LITERARY REGIONALISM. (3).

676.* STUDIES IN SOUTHERN LITERATURE. This is an advanced graduate seminar that investigates special topics in Southern literature; content varies and may be repeated for credit. (3).

686. STUDIES IN GENRE. Special topics in the literary discourses of genre. Content varies and may be repeated for credit. (3).

688.* STUDIES IN COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC. Content varies. May be repeated for credit. (3).

690. THE MODERNIST COLLOQUIUM. A faculty-graduate student colloquium focusing on aspects of Modernism: the range of literature and thought from the romantic period in Europe and the United States to the present. Students admitted by permission of instructor based upon presentation of an acceptable prospectus and evidence of experience and knowledge in the field. (May be repeated once for credit). (3). (Z grade).

691.* STUDIES IN CRITICAL THEORY. Content varies. May be repeated for credit. (3).

692.* CULTURAL STUDIES. The critical concept of literature as a reflection of culture. Content varies. (3).

693. DIRECTED READING IN ENGLISH LITERATURE. Prerequisite: consent of instructor. (3).

694.* STUDIES IN GENDER THEORY. Content varies. May be repeated for credit. (3).

695. DIRECTED READING IN AMERICAN LITERATURE.

696. DIRECTED RESEARCH. Individual directed research in literature, language, and criticism. Credit not applicable to graduate degree programs in English. May be repeated. (1-6). Prerequisite: consent of instructor. (3).

697. THESIS. (1-12).

717. INTERNSHIP SEMINAR IN COLLEGE ENGLISH. (3). (Z grade).

797. DISSERTATION. (1-18).

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