English

Bachelor of Arts

Division of Humanities

English is one of several Humanities degrees offered at YHC. Courses in the English major train students to communicate effectively. This includes learning how to construct and support logical and compelling arguments about complex texts. The foundational skill of the major is analysis. From lower level to upper level courses, students practice their analytical skills as they explore a variety of texts, from classical to contemporary.

The English major is built on the same liberal arts core and allows the students to study a breadth of literature. Within the major, student also have the flexibility to choose a concentration. For example, a student may choose to focus on British literature and can take electives in this area. Further, the major’s flexibility invites students to choose a complementary minor or even another major.

English is also offered as a minor; details are below.

When viewing requirements for your major, please select appropriate catalog year.

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What classes will you take?

A diverse set of classes in the liberal arts core
Major classes in English, including:
- ENGL 3006: Shakespeare: Shakespeare’s genius was recognized almost immediately and has been valued across centuries and across cultures. In this class, we will attempt to discover why by reading a sampling of his plays.
- ENGL 3105: The Nineteenth-Century British Novel: This course provides an introduction to the most popular and prevalent literary form in nineteenth-century Britain. With new printing technologies and means of distribution, and an expanding middle-class with greater leisure and disposable income, the production and consumption of novels increased tremendously during the period. Serious novelists used this opportunity to address important and sometimes contentious cultural, political, social, religious, ethical, and philosophical issues, using a range of narrative strategies to do so. This class studies the themes, ideas, and narrative techniques of a selection of novels in their cultural, social, and historical contexts.
- ENGL 3215: Wilderness Literature: Historian William Cronon has written that “the time has come to rethink wilderness,” which is what this course aims to do through a critical examination of literary texts representing various conceptions of unpopulated American landscapes. Wilderness as wasteland, wilderness as refuge, wilderness as frontier, wilderness as playground - these are only some of the ways that wilderness has been represented in the American popular imagination. Our explorations will include such authors as Jonathan Edwards, Henry David Thoreau, John Muir, Aldo Leopold, and Edward Abbey.

What can you do with a degree in English?

English prepares you for a range of graduate school and career options. Our graduates have gone on to graduate programs in English, education, law, and rhetoric. They also work in variety of fields such as marketing, education, and public relations. English majors have strong oral and written communication skills as well as other valuable abilities such as problem-solving, research methods, analysis, and intellectual agility. All of these skills are necessary to remain nimble in an ever changing marketplace. These skills are particularly prized in a variety of professions, including law, publishing, public relations, and marketing.