Our general English major has two objectives: provide our students with a common core of literary experience and expertise, and offer them opportunity to shape a course of study suited to their personal interests. By offering flexible requirements, we encourage students to devise a path through coursework that has an intelligent rationale. If students have a special interest in writing, for example, they can take the minimum number of literature courses (five) and complete the major by taking offerings in fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry writing; if students' interests are in literary studies, they can focus on offerings in that arena; or they can match up courses from different arenas in the department (say, literature and writing courses focused on poetry). All the undergraduate courses we offer in the English department are open to English majors so students can sample a range of courses in literature, linguistics, creative or nonfiction writing, and English teaching, according to how particular interests may change and grow.
The guiding principle of the general English major, then, is that it is open and liberal by design. It allows students to sample a variety of courses in order to study the operation of language from many perspectives.
Major Requirements
- Students must complete a minimum of 40 credits of with a minimum grade of C-.
- The required minimum overall GPA is 2.0.
- ENGL 401, 415s, "Literature and..." courses, 444s, ENGL 620 and ENGL 788 may not be used to satisfy major requirements.
- A total of six courses must be numbered 600 and above.
- One major-required course may be used to satisfy one Discovery category requirement.
- Only one online course may count toward major requirements.
- Special Topics in Literature courses (e.g. ENGL 693, 787, 797) may be used to satisfy Pre-1800 or Post-1800 and/or Race Requirement areas if the designated topic is appropriate.
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Capstone must be completed with a minimum grade of C. May not be double-counted toward major requirements. Submit a Capstone Declaration form indicating the English course to be taken at the time of registration.
Course List Code | Title | Credits |
ENGL 419 | How to Read Anything (Minimum grade of C) | 4 |
Course List
Code |
Title |
Credits |
Course List Code | Title | Credits |
| Introduction to Linguistics | |
| Introduction to Creative Nonfiction | |
| Professional and Technical Writing | |
| Persuasive Writing | |
| Introduction to the Digital Humanities | |
| Major Writers in English | |
| British Literature I Age of Heroes: Beowulf to Dr. Faustus | |
| British Literature II Age of Revolutions: Shakespeare to Austen | |
| British Literature III: Revolts, Renewals, Migrations | |
| American Literature I Conquest and Nation: First Contact to the Civil War | |
| American Literature II Money, Migration, and Modernity: Huck Finn to Beloved | |
| Black Creative Expression | |
| Bible as Literature | |
| Dystopian and Post-Apocalyptic Fiction | |
| Nature Writers | |
| Introduction to Fiction Writing | |
| Introduction to Poetry Writing | |
| Introduction to Film Studies | |
| 21st Century Journalism: How the News Works | |
| In the Groove: African American Music as Literature | |
| Introduction to the Literature and Culture of Race | |
| Science Fiction | |
| Introduction to Latinx Literature and Culture | |
| Sex and Sensibility: The Rise of Chick Lit | |
| Reading the Postcolonial Experience | |
| Introduction to Women in Literature | |
| Introduction to Women in Literature | |
| Literary Topics | |
Course List
Code |
Title |
Credits |
Course List Code | Title | Credits |
| British Literature I Age of Heroes: Beowulf to Dr. Faustus | |
| British Literature II Age of Revolutions: Shakespeare to Austen |
| Literary Topics (if topic is appropriate) | |
| Shakespeare | |
| Special Topics in Literature (if topic is appropriate) | |
| Early American Literature: Colonialism, Revolution, Nation | |
| Medieval Romance | |
| Old English | |
| Chaucer | |
| Advanced Shakespeare | |
| Advanced Shakespeare | |
| Milton | |
| Literature of the Restoration and Early 18th Century | |
| Literature of the Later 18th Century | |
| Drama of Shakespeare's Contemporaries: Will and Company | |
| English Novel of the Eighteenth Century | |
| English Major Seminar (if topic is appropriate) | |
| English Major Seminar (if topic is appropriate) | |
Course List
Code |
Title |
Credits |
Course List Code | Title | Credits |
| British Literature III: Revolts, Renewals, Migrations | |
| American Literature II Money, Migration, and Modernity: Huck Finn to Beloved |
| Literary Topics (if topic is appropriate) | |
| Ethnicity in America: The African American Experience in the 20th Century | |
| Literature and the Environment | |
| I Hear America Singing: Studying American Literature and Culture | |
| Contemporary African Literature | |
| African American Literature | |
| Special Topics in Literature (if topic is appropriate) | |
| Asian American Studies | |
| American Indian Literature | |
| American Literature, 1865-1915: The Birth of the American Empire | |
| Contemporary American Literature | |
| Major American Authors | |
| Literary Modernisms: Return, Revolt, Recycle | |
| Modern & Contemporary British Literature: New Departures | |
| Modern Irish Literature: A Changing Landscape | |
| The English Novel in the World | |
| Modern and Contemporary Drama | |
| English Novel of the 19th Century | |
| English Major Seminar (if topic is appropriate) | |
| English Major Seminar (if topic is appropriate) | |
| Special Studies in Literature (Race & Racial Theories) (if topic is appropriate) | |
Course List
Code |
Title |
Credits |
Course List Code | Title | Credits |
| On Race in Culture and Society | |
| On Race and Culture in Society | |
| Black Creative Expression | |
| In the Groove: African American Music as Literature | |
| Introduction to the Literature and Culture of Race | |
| Introduction to Latinx Literature and Culture | |
| Introduction to Women in Literature | |
| Ethnicity in America: The African American Experience in the 20th Century | |
| I Hear America Singing: Studying American Literature and Culture | |
| African American Literature | |
| Special Topics in Literature (subtopic R) | |
| Special Topics in Literature | |
| Asian American Studies | |
| American Indian Literature | |
| American Literature, 1865-1915: The Birth of the American Empire | |
| Major American Authors | |
| Advanced Shakespeare | |
| Modern & Contemporary British Literature: New Departures | |
| Race and Gender in Film and Popular Culture | |
| English Major Seminar | |
| Special Studies in Literature (Race & Racial Theories) | |
Course List
Code |
Title |
Credits |
Please see your advisor if you have questions about other courses that might fulfill these requirements.
If you're interested in majoring in English please contact Carla Cannizzaro, academic/career counselor, Department of English, 230F Hamilton Smith Hall, (603) 862-1313.
Undergraduate students in the English Department at the University of New Hampshire have many options as they advance to degree. They can choose to complete a general English major or opt to follow one of several specialized tracks: English Literature, Journalism, English Teaching, and Linguistics. I. All undergraduate English majors acquire the same core skills. These include:
- Proficiency in analytical writing, critical thinking, and public-speaking.
- Knowledge of important literary genres and subgenres
- Fluency in literary terminology,
- A broad understanding of British-and-American literature, from the medieval period in England and the moment of first contact in America to the present day.
- Demonstrated proficiency in writing an analytical essay that offers a sophisticated close-reading or explication of a literary text. This essay will have a clear thesis and proceed in a logical fashion, with interpretive claims supported by evidence from the text.
- Demonstrated proficiency in literary research and in writing an extended thesis-driven research paper in which sources are correctly and responsibly cited.
- Demonstrated understanding of how to read across the color line in the US and /or how to analyze literary works written in English from outside the UK and the US--from India, Africa, and the Caribbean, for example.