english vs comp lit

[LeahFaye]

I have been working on applying to English PhD programs for months now, and I've just gotten an email back that indicates that I should be looking at Comp Lit or Classical Studies programs instead. I was a Classical Studies and Philosophy double major in undergrad so I know what is involved in that and that I do not want to do it, but I am now concerned that an English program will not be able to accomidate me. I am under the impression that I want to focus on English departments because I want to spend my time working on Shakespeare and rhetoric and literary theory- I want to get back into writing tutoring and learn about the different ways to teach people to love what they read. I also want to take Greek literature apart and apply the analytic styles I will learn to a subject I love, but not from a perspective of cultural comparison or historical contextualization; from a focused literary perspective. Will an English department be able to accommodate these goals? I have looked for any description of various English programs that would provoke the doubt my e-mail-sender expressed but haven't found anything, which makes me think I'm not seeing something crucial. The websites indicate that people focus on everything from feminist literature to specific historical periods, and I was assuming that my classics background might steer me towards a particular historical period of literature, but still with literature as the central goal. Furthermore, when I try to look at characterists of individual programs all that I get is vague generalizations and then faculty bios- is there a way to analyse the personality of a school's department which is separate from the personality of the faculty? Someone reassure me?

[anoveldave]

I don't know how much help my comment will be, but I had a similar brush with the referrals away from my intended department. For the past year, I've done thinking on my academic goals. I concluded that I belonged in comp lit, because I had a number of languages through which I wanted to study literature. The thing is all of these languages can be easily grouped into "Asian languages." However, my research interests include Asian American literature as well. Contacting schools, some departments have asked whether I might not want to look at the East Asian studies dept. instead of comp lit. In a recent meeting with a professor from undergrad, she suggested that I should in fact keep the option open, of looking into East Asian studies programs. I have, but my current and more or less final list of prospective programs are comp lit PhD programs. To link my experience to yours, I should state that I've decided to look at comp lit programs because that's the department in which I want to work. I wouldn't mind being concurrently housed in East Asian studies, but I want to also be in a literature department. I feel that English and comp lit programs are inclusive and possibly, depending on the institution, supportive of interdepartmental movement, generally. In addition to how choice of department might affect a future career, I think it's important to be cognizant of the training that would be available. I'd rather pursue theory in comp lit than say political readings of history in East Asia. In your case, your focus on literature seems to indicate that you should be looking at literature programs. It's just a matter of whether English lit programs will suffice or if you might want to give comp lit programs a chance.

Looking back at your last question, I suppose you should just make sure there's faculty to guide you in Shakespeare and Greek lit., much like you would research faculty for any PhD program. And a sidenote on the exclusively literature approach, it might be difficult to isolate the literature without considering cultural or historical context. Moreover, it might be beneficial to be able to approach literature from the different angles of literature as art, literature as cultural history, etc., with regard to future employment and in line with the ever-changing tide of academic discourse.

[george_lit]

It's probably a bit late for this to help, but it sounds like they told you that you should apply to Comp Lit or Classical Studies because English departments do not teach Greek literature. The fact that you want to study Shakespeare (English dept) and Greek lit (Classics dept) means you want a Comp Lit program. When you apply to Comp Lit, you generally apply within a specific department, for example "English and Comp LIt" or "Classics and Comp Lit" -- depending on whether you want Shakespeare or Greek lit to be your primary focus (and I do think you generally have to choose one literature as your primary focus).