English Curriculum
1. Core Curriculum Requirements:
See pages 38-40 of the Undergraduate Catalog or go to /academics/core.asp for the Core Curriculum requirements. All students complete these requirements as part of their overall Canisius education. (21 credits)
2. Major course requirements: (12 courses)
A. Major Courses (8 courses)
ENG 300 Introduction to English Studies (3 credits)B. Major Electives (4 courses)
Shakespeare: one 300 level course (3 credits)
British Literature Distribution — one 300/400 level course from three of the following four historical periods: (9 credits)
I. Medieval through Early Seventeenth Century
II. Restoration through Eighteenth Century
III. Nineteenth Century
IV. Twentieth Century
American Literature Distribution — one 300/400 level course from each of the following major historical periods: (6 credits)
I. Pre-Civil War American Literature,
II. Post-Civil War American Literature
Writing: one 300/400 level course. (3 credits)
Four 300/400 level courses (12 credits)3. Free electives:
Free electives are courses in addition to the Core Curriculum and major requirements sufficient to reach a minimum of 120 credit hours for graduation. Students may graduate with more but not less than 120 credit hours.
PLEASE NOTE: Students entering the English major as sophomores in fall 2010 may be subject to new curricular requirements in addition to or replacing those listed here. Please consult the English Department chair or your English advisor for clarification.
ENG 490 Senior Seminars
Advanced study in a literary theme, genre, period, author or other topic. Seminars involve a major paper as a culminating experience in the English major. Prior to its inclusion in the major as a required course, the seminar will be offered as a free elective, strongly recommended for seniors.
Other Programs
Dual Majors: Dual majors involving English are available in a large number of areas, including biology,communication, history, modern languages, philosophy, psychology and sociology. Interested students should consult the chairs of both departments. With the permission of both chairs, inter-disciplinary courses may be used for credit toward the major requirements in both departments.
Course clusters combining English and pre-law or business are also available. In addition, three minors are offered. They are:
English Minor: For non-majors only. A six-course sequence that includes many of the basic requirements for English majors.
ENG 300 Introduction to English Studies
British Literature Distribution: one 300/400 level course from any period
American Literature Distribution: one 300/400 level course from either period
Shakespeare: ENG 322 or ENG 323
Writing: one 300/400 level course
English elective: one 300/400 level course
Total (6 courses)
Writing Minor: For both majors and non-majors. A five-course program that includes rhetorical theory and practice, writing in various contexts, workshops with practicing writers and an internship in writing.
Students may choose among:
ENG 385 Persuasive Writing
ENG 388 Literary Publishing
ENG 389 Business Communication
ENG 394 Creative Writing
ENG 401 Texts, Contexts, and Subtexts (Required)
ENG 402 Creativity and Composition Theory
ENG 496 Advanced Creative Writing: Literary Non-Fiction
ENG 498 Internship
Total (5 courses)
Creative Writing Minor: For both majors and non-majors. A five-course program that provides interested students the opportunity to learn and practice the fundamentals of writing stories, poems, essays and plays. For more information on Creative Writing at Canisius, please visit the Creative Writing website. Students may choose among:
ENG 312 American Women’s Poetry: Reading and Writing
ENG 342 Reading and Writing Young Adult Fiction
ENG 388 Literary Publishing
ENG 394 Introduction to Creative Writing (Required)
ENG 411 Playwriting
ENG 494 Advanced Creative Writing: Fiction
ENG 495 Advanced Creative Writing: Poetry
ENG 496 Advanced Creative Writing: Literary Non- Fiction
ENG 498 Internship
Total (5 courses)
Theater Arts Minor: For both majors and non-majors. A five-course sequence that includes course work in acting and production as well as in dramatic literature and playwriting. Students may choose among:
ENG 147 Acting I or ENG 148 Acting II
ENG 202 (formerly 345) Drama
ENG 346 Introduction to Theatre
ENG 350 The Theater Experience or
ENG 351 Theater Arts Elective
ENG 411 Playwriting
ENG 498 Internship
Total (5 courses)
COURSES: 2009-2011
All courses are 3 credit hours unless otherwise noted.
LAR 100 Literacy and Reading 3 credits
A course that helps students develop literacy skills—critical thinking, reading and writing--crucial for successful learning in content area courses. Emphasizes study skills techniques, reading comprehension, sentence fluency and well-organized essays.
ENG 100 Introduction to College Writing 3 credits
Designed to help improve proficiency in English composition. Involves frequent writing, practicing strategies for gathering ideas, drafting, revising and editing, and reading/studying prose models.
ENG 101 Writing about Literature 3 credits
Introduces students to the study of literature as a creative expression of ideas. Students will sample literary work from the major genres (poetry, fiction, drama, literary nonfiction). They will develop a literary vocabulary, hone their critical and analytical skills and practice the writing process, including completion of a research assignment.
ENG 147 Acting I (Field 3) 3 credits
Introduction to the art of acting. Through lecture and practice in acting assignments in class, students gain understanding of the actor’s role in theater.
ENG 148 Acting II (Field 3) 3 credits
Continuation of Acting I.
ENG 201 Poetry (Field 3) 3 credits
Introductory survey of poetry for majors and non-majors.
ENG 202 Drama (Field 3) 3 credits
Introductory survey of drama for majors and non-majors.
ENG 206 Art of the Essay (Field 3) 3 credits
Survey of the essay as a literary form. Open to majors and non-majors.
ENG 211 Science Fiction (Field 3) 3 credits
Survey of science fiction for majors and non-majors.
ENG 212 Classic English and American Novel (Field 3) 3 credits
Novels chosen to represent main developments in form and theme. Open to majors and non-majors.
ENG 213 Word and Image (Field 3) 3 credits
Focuses on the formal and thematic elements of literary texts, films and texts composed of both words and images. Open to majors and non-majors.
ENG 221 Hallowed Houses (American Lit II) (Field 3) 3 credits
American literature that emphasizes “place” as embodied in houses-haunted or otherwise esteemed. Open to majors and non-majors. American Lit II credit for majors.
ENG 222 Vampires in Literature and Culture (Field 3) 3 credits
The image of the vampire in English and American literature and culture, covered in a range of literary and other aesthetic genres and historical periods. Open to majors and non-majors.
ENG 223 Images of Women in Literature and Film (Field 3) 3 credits
Representations of women as major characters in literature and film. Open to majors and non-majors.
ENG 224 The Journey in Literature (Field 3) 3 credits
Explores the concept of the journey in international literature from a number of cultural and intellectual perspectives. Open to majors and non-majors. (ICD for 2009-2010).
ENG 300 Introduction to English Studies 3 credits
Introduction to the essentials of literary analysis and interpretation. Focusing on the rigorous analysis of poetry, prose narrative and drama chosen from different historical periods, the course will stress writing with critical awareness about literature. Required of all English majors.
ENG 303 Medieval Literature 3 credits
A survey of the major voices of medieval British literature centering on Chaucer.
ENG 305 Seventeenth Century Literature 3 credits
A survey of the poetry and prose of major British authors from the Renaissance to the Restoration.
ENG 306 Eighteenth Century Literature 3 credits
A survey of the poetry and prose of major British authors in the “long” eighteenth century.
ENG 307 English Gothic Novel 3 credits
Characterized by opposing forces: knowledge and mystery, good and evil, the beautiful and the sublime,light and dark, these novels often dramatize psychological, social and sexual conflict.
ENG 308 Nineteenth Century British Literature 3 credits
A survey of the major works and authors of the Romantic and Victorian periods.
ENG 309 Modern and Contemporary British Literature 3 credits
A survey of representative figures and genres in British literature of the twentieth-century and beyond.
ENG 310 Angry Artists of the Twentieth Century 3 credits
Britain’s rock culture traced back to its roots in the “Angry Young Men” writers, “Social Realism” cinema and 1960s transatlantic “British Invasion” in rock music.
ENG 311 Women Writers 3 credits
Works by women writers from all periods and backgrounds. (WST)
ENG 312 American Women Poets: Reading and Writing (Field 3) 3 credits
Practice in reading and writing poetry, as well as critical interpretation. Emphasis on women poets from 1950s to present. (WST)
ENG 313 Literature and Psychology (Field 3) 3 credits
Focuses on the convergence of the disciplines of literature and psychology, especially the ways in which psychology has drawn on literary genres, techniques and motifs. (WST)
ENG 314 Chaucer 3 credits
Studies the major works of the author sometimes called the “father of English poetry.” Includes selections from The Canterbury Tales, as well as other works.
ENG 315 American Literature I 3 credits
The first half of a two-semester American literature survey. The course begins with the Puritans and ends with the 19th century American Realists.
ENG 317 Heroes and Heroines in American Literature 3 credits
A study of uniquely American heroic types, including the Alger hero, the western hero and the picaresque hero. Representative texts studied in detail, in historical and cultural context.
ENG 318 Modern American Novel 3 credits
A study of representative modern and contemporary American novels.
ENG 319 Special Topics in American Literature 3 credits
The study of a particular theme, mode or period, such as the hero, the American Renaissance, or the Roaring Twenties. Topics vary semester to semester.
ENG 320 Contemporary Catholic Fiction (Field 3) 3 credits
Study of novels and short stories by Catholic American writers from 1950 to the present: writers such as Flannery O’Connor, Walker Percy, Mary Gordon and Andre Dubus.
ENG 321 Child and Adolescent Hero in American Literature 3 credits
Examines child and adolescent heroes in American literature from post-Civil War period to the present. Texts explore major themes in American literature, from Mark Twain on.
ENG 322 Shakespeare I 3 credits
Introductory survey for majors. Plays drawn from the categories of comedy, tragedy and history.
ENG 323 Shakespeare II 3 credits
Works selected with emphasis on specific themes, structures, or styles. Shakespeare I is not a prerequisite.
ENG 324 Reading and Writing in Early America 3 credits
This course explores pre-Civil War writers and the audiences of their texts in terms of the social and cultural significance of literacy and literary production. (WST)
ENG 330 The Bible as Literature (Field 3) 3 credits
A study of the Bible as literary text and cultural source, integrating film, painting and sculpture as representations of biblical images for interpretation.
ENG 331 Studies in Irish Literature 3 credits
An historical survey focused mainly on 20th century Irish writers. An aim of the course is to define Irish literature and identify its distinguishing features.
ENG 332 Literature of Anglo-Saxon England 3 credits
Covers the period from roughly 800 to 1100, with Beowulf dominating the course. Other works include “The Wanderer,” “The Dream of the Rood” and excerpts from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and prose pieces.
ENG 333 James Joyce’s Ulysses 3 credits
Semester-long seminar in the study of the novel.
ENG 342 Reading and Writing Young Adult Fiction 3 credits
Combines study and practice of the genre. Students study young adult novels to learn approaches and techniques, in a workshop setting, then work on YA stories of their own.
ENG 343 Comedy and Humor (Field 3) 3 credits
A course for enjoying and thinking critically about a great variety of texts, ranging from single-sentence jokes to stage plays and novels.
ENG 344 Children’s Fantasy Literature 3 credits
The main purpose of this course is to give upper-level college students a mature literary experience in the studyof children’s writers, among whom are Lewis Carroll, Frances Hodgson Burnett, C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and Russell Hoban.
ENG 346 Introduction to Theater (Field 3) 3 credits
The collaborative efforts of theater, play and audience to create the theater experience. Exploration of the development of modern theater from its ritualistic roots to modern times.
ENG 347 English Novel I 3 credits
Survey of major English novels from Defoe to Austen, including works of Sterne, Goldsmith and others.
ENG 348 English Novel II 3 credits
Major British novels from the nineteenth century.
ENG 350 The Theater Experience 3 credits
Up close and personal experience in theater production through attendance at professional plays in the city, and hands-on experience in reading and producing short works in the classroom. Intro to Theater (Eng 346) recommended as pre-requisite but not required.
ENG 351 Theater Arts Elective 3 credits
Aspects of theatrical production, performance and direction. Topics vary by semester.
ENG 361 The Literature of Service (Field 3) 3 credits
Develops connections between literary works and various forms of community service. Requires that students perform community service as part of the course. (SL)
ENG 364 Short Fiction (Field 3) 3 credits
Detailed investigation of various modes of short fiction to develop student’s ability to read, comprehend and appreciate short fiction through an understanding of its techniques.
ENG 368 Native American Literature (Field 3) 3 credits
A survey of contemporary Native American literature, covering major and lesser-known authors. The course traces the origins of traditions, both thematic and structural. (WST)
ENG 369 Contemporary Fiction (Field 3) 3 credits
Study of recently published novels and short stories, exploring the formal and thematic range of new fiction and focusing on the contemporary issues it reflects. (WST)
ENG 370 Beauties and Beasts 3 credits
Multiple versions of the beautiful and the ugly in nineteenth-century British literature, stemming from the fairy tale, and rooted in changing views of good and evil, sexuality, the growth of science and industry and other massive cultural shifts.
ENG 371 Modern Irish Drama 3 credits
Traces the course of Irish drama from its roots in the eighteenth century to the present time.
ENG 372 Charles Dickens 3 credits
An in-depth examination of the major works, life and times of one of the most important British novelists of the nineteenth century.
ENG 374 Interdisciplinary Studies 3 credits
Selected works chosen by the instructor to examine the connections between English or American literature and other disciplines.
ENG 375 Studies in Literary Criticism 3 credits
Selected works studied in the context of critical theory, aesthetics, or the history of literary criticism.
ENG 376 Film as Literature (Field 3) 3 credits
An exploration of the relationship between two distinct aesthetic forms: film and literature. The course relies heavily on the original written text and then explores the film director’s interpretation of the literary work.
ENG 378 The City in American Literature 3 credits
The city as the focus for literary representation in the American tradition.
ENG 382 African American Literature (Field 3) 3 credits
A survey of major writers and historical trends in African American literature from the time of slavery to the present.
ENG 385 Persuasive Writing 3 credits
Analysis and construction of arguments. Readings on issues in law, politics and education.
ENG 388 Literary Publishing 3 credits
A practicum combining the study of the history of the literary magazine in America with the practical work of editing The Quadrangle, the Canisius College literary magazine.
ENG 389 Business Communication 3 credits
Practice in writing letters, memos, reports, with models and strategies offered for each form.
ENG 394 Creative Writing (Field 3) 3 credits
Workshop in the fundamentals of poetry and fiction writing, focusing on the close study and discussion of both student manuscripts and professional texts.
ENG 396 English Honors Seminar 3 credits
Any student may take one or more of the seminars. Seminar topics vary each semester.
ENG 401 Texts, Contexts and Subtexts 3 credits
The dynamic of rhetorical situations. Observations/practical writing in rhetorical theory, writing process theory, writing and thinking, socio-cognitive theory. Writing is both creative and analytical. (WST)
ENG 402 Creativity and Composition Theory 3 credits
A writing theory course that addresses a variety of composing patterns and strategies found in the invention, development and revision of writing for different purposes and audiences.
ENG 411 Playwriting 3 credits
The playwriting process. Brief review of dramatic technique and theory, followed by working through the process from germinal idea to finished playscript.
ENG 494 Advanced Creative Writing: Fiction 3 credits
Workshop for experienced writers in fiction. Prerequisite: ENG 394 or permission of instructor.
ENG 495 Advanced Creative Writing: Poetry 3 credits
Workshop for experienced writers in poetry. Prerequisite: ENG 394 or permission of instructor.
ENG 496 Advanced Creative Writing: Literary Non-Fiction 3 credits
Workshop for experienced writers in literary non-fiction, the artful telling of true stories. Prerequisite: ENG 394 or permission of instructor.
ENG 497 English Honors Thesis 3 credits
ENG 498 Internship 3 credits
ENG 499 Independent Study 3 credits
Independent studies allow in-depth study of a specific topic and are most often reserved for seniors who cannot otherwise fulfill a graduation requirement. Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor, department chair and associate dean.