English

Through the study of language and literature we analyze the world, the human condition, and our own experience.

In this era when technical abilities can quickly become obsolete, the study of literature and language teaches the expressive and analytical skills necessary for a wide range of career opportunities, not only in teaching but also in publishing, editing, technical writing, the legal professions, and the business world. As faculty in the Department of English, we teach students to read critically, acquaint them with a diverse range of texts and contexts, instruct them to write with analytical skill and rhetorical proficiency, and increase their engagement with the ways language and literature reflect and explore human knowledge and values. We also seek to support the University’s mission by engaging students in the development of our individual and collective intellect, imagination, and sense of social justice.

English Department courses fulfill the requirements of the core curricula of the University and College of Arts and Sciences and constitute a Bachelor of Arts degree in English; they provide majors in other disciplines with further experience in and appreciation for literature and writing; they offer majors and minors in English; they promote engagement with the literary heritage of Western and non-Western traditions; and they develop students’ mastery of the conventions and nuances of written prose.

All undergraduate degree programs in the University require six (6) semester hours in English: ENGL 101 and ENGL 102-ENGL 106 (ENGL 103H for Honors Program members). Students in the College of Arts and Sciences must also take a 200-level literature course.

English majors may not use lower division courses to fulfill any part of the twenty-seven upper division credits required. Before graduation all English majors must register for and pass the Senior Project (ENGL 497 or ENGL 499.)

English majors earning a secondary teaching credential must fill one (3 credit) elective with an upper division multicultural course. These students must also take ENGL 395.

Because we believe that effective writing is essential for professional, personal, and intellectual development, the English Department offers a Writing Concentration and directs the operation of a Writing Center open to the Gonzaga community.