English Language and Literature, M.A.

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The faculty of English offers a flexible program leading to the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree, providing both opportunities for creative expression and professional preparation for teaching and for doctoral study and scholarly research. Coursework is offered in the full range of subjects defined by our faculty’s expertise and by our internationally renowned archival holdings of manuscripts and books in McFarlin Library. Specific clusters of study that carry the advantage of faculty depth and the potential for original research are: (1) Victorian and Modern British and Irish literature; (2) American studies, cultural and gender studies, African American literature, and women’s literature; and (3) Early Modern, Restoration, and Eighteenth-Century British Literature. The department also offers seminars in critical theory, in the pedagogy of composition, and in the creative writing of fiction and poetry. Each M.A. student works closely with the Director of Graduate Studies and the faculty to develop an area of emphasis suited to his/her particular interests and professional goals.