Overview
Faculty
Stephanie Bahr (on leave 2020-21)
Naomi Guttman, chair
Tina Hall
Suzanne Keen (Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty)
Doran Larson
Hoa Ngo
Vincent Odamtten
Onno Oerlemans
Steve Schillinger
Jane Springer
Pavitra Sundar
Suzanne Taylor
Katherine Terrell
Margaret Thickstun
Anne Valente
Benjamin Widiss
Steve Yao
The Department of Literature and Creative Writing offers two concentrations, one in the study of literature, and one in the art of creative writing.
Each concentration consists of 10 courses: four exploratory courses chosen from among the categories listed below; one course in creative practice; four focus courses specific to the concentration; and one senior seminar specific to the concentration. Both concentrations incorporate a language requirement and a social, structural, and institutional hierarchies (SSIH) requirement. Courses taken for the concentration should reflect historical and geographical breadth. The department also welcomes comparatist and interdisciplinary work.
Exploratory Courses: The following categories name key approaches in literary and cultural studies. Students must take at least one course in each of these categories, for a total of four exploratory courses.
History (organized around literary or other histories)
Theory (highlighting theory and theoretical approaches)
Genre (addressing concepts of genre or genres)
Intermedia (juxtaposing different artistic media)
These categories reflect, but do not exhaust, various ways of conceiving the relationships between texts and thus approaches to literary study. Many departmental courses could appear under several of these categories; in practice, each course’s professor has specified one or two categories as predominant in its design and execution. Some courses are not tagged, for they model other approaches to studying cultural texts (e.g. the study of a single theme, author, or literary genealogy or influence); such courses may still count toward the concentration, in the focus section. A course with two of the above category designations may satisfy either category, but not both, in any individual student’s program of study.
Creative Practice: To hone students’ sense of the constraints, challenges, and possibilities inherent in composing original (written) work, the department requires that all concentrators take Introductory Poetry and Fiction Workshop (CRWR-215) or its equivalent (Literature concentrators, see below).
Focus Courses: Honoring the spirit of Hamilton College’s open curriculum, the department invites literature concentrators to design their own individually focused area of study in consultation with their advisers. Looking beyond course titles and tags, concentrators forge unexpected connections between courses and identify thematic, methodological, or other threads that define a coherent focus. The focus section for creative writers emphasizes craft and genre-specific coursework at the intermediate level.
Social, Structural, and Institutional Hierarchies: Scrutinizing social, structural, and institutional hierarchies (SSIH) via textual and historical analysis is a longstanding practice in literary studies. Many of our courses, but particularly those labelled SSIH, raise questions about social stratification stemming from constructs like gender, race, class, sexuality, and disability. They probe how texts both reflect and challenge such structural inequalities. They ask how canon formation, literacy rates, publishing and distribution practices, and legal and popular debates around censorship, for instance, have shaped the reach and readership of particular texts. They also study literary and cultural movements that interrogate contemporary and historical norms that ascribe value to certain texts and authors, and not to others. SSIH courses with a second tag (History, Theory etc.) may fulfill this requirement, in addition to counting in the exploratory or focus section. These courses must be completed within the department.
Language Study: Students of literature are, among other things, students of language. The department requires that concentrators take at least two semesters of language study, focusing on the history of English, the classical languages of Greek and Latin, or modern languages. Here are three paths to complete this requirement:
Completion of two courses at the college level in a single language other than the student’s native language (courses taught in a foreign-language department in which class readings and discussions are in English do not count); OR
Completion of Introduction to Old English (LIT-221) and The Making of English (LIT-293) or equivalent courses taken elsewhere and approved for transfer credit; OR
Completion of either LIT-221 or LIT-293 (or equivalent) and a course focused on linguistics or a classical language (such as Latin, Greek, Sanskrit, Classical Chinese, etc); OR
Completion of two courses in linguistics.
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LITERATURE
Here is a checklist outlining the requirements for a concentration in literature:
1. Four exploratory courses, one each from the following categories: History, Theory, Genre, and Intermedia.
2. One creative practice course, such as CRWR-215 or a course in another creative practice chosen in consultation with, and approved by, the concentration advisor. Normally, students may not elect more than one workshop in a given semester.
3. Four focus courses that constitute an individually focused area of study, developed in consultation with, and approved by, the concentration advisor. A provisional plan must be submitted by the end of the sophomore year and revised, as necessary.
4. Two SSIH courses. These courses may be in either the exploratory or focus section (or both), and they must be taken within the department.
5. Two additional language courses. These courses will not count toward the ten-course concentration requirement.
6. Only one 100-level course may count toward the concentration, in either the exploratory or focus section. A 100-level course is not required for the concentration.
7. At least three courses must be at the 300-level or above. These courses may be in either the exploratory or focus section (or both), and may include the senior seminar.
8. Senior Program:
a. A 300-level course tagged Methods must be taken before taking the senior seminar or embarking on the honors thesis. This course must be taken within the department.
b. A 400-level seminar taken during the senior year within the department. Students may elect to take 400-level seminars in their junior year. While such seminars may count toward the concentration, they will not fulfill the senior program requirement.
9. Credit/No Credit: Concentrators may count one 100- or 200-level literature course taken credit/no credit toward the concentration. Creative writing workshops taken credit/no credit cannot be counted toward the concentration. (This does not include courses or workshops taken in Spring 2020.)
Honors in Literature: Candidates for honors in literature must attain a GPA of at least 3.7 in the courses counting for the concentration and complete an independent honors project that earns a grade of at least A-. The senior seminar remains a separate requirement. Students with honors-level GPAs as of spring junior year will be invited to participate as seniors in a year-long advanced research methods course in support of the independent project. Honors candidates must submit project proposals to the department for approval in October; students whose projects are accepted will be assigned individual thesis advisors. Normally, only honors students will write independent projects. The department encourages students thinking of pursuing honors or graduate studies in literature to take Literary Theory and Literary Study (LIT-315).
Literature Minor: A minor in literature consists of five courses. At least one of these courses must be at the 300-level or above. Only one 100-level course may count toward the minor. All courses must be taken within the department. No courses taken C/NC may be counted toward the minor. Students concentrating in creative writing may not minor in literature.
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CREATIVE WRITING
Here is a checklist outlining the requirements for a concentration in creative writing:
1. Four exploratory courses, one each from the following categories: History, Theory, Genre, and Intermedia.
2. One creative practice course: Introductory Poetry and Fiction Workshop (CRWR-215).
3. Four focus courses:Intermediate Poetry Workshop (CRWR-304), Intermediate Fiction Workshop (CRWR-305), Poetry and Poetics (LIT-204), and a creative writing or literature course of the student’s choice. Workshops must be taken at Hamilton. Normally, students may not elect more than one workshop in a given semester. A provisional plan must be submitted by the end of the sophomore year and revised, as necessary.
4. One SSIH course. This course may be in either the exploratory or focus section, and it must be taken within the department.
5. Two additional language courses. These courses will not count toward the ten-course concentration requirement.
6. Only one 100-level course may count toward the concentration, in either the exploratory or focus section. A 100-level course is not required for the concentration.
7. At least three courses must be at the 300-level or above. These courses may be in either the exploratory or focus section (or both), and may include the senior seminar.
8. Senior Program: Concentrators must take the Senior Seminar in Creative Writing (CRWR-419).
9. Credit/No Credit: Concentrators may count one 100- or 200-level literature course taken credit/no credit toward the concentration. Creative writing workshops taken credit/no credit cannot be counted toward the concentration. (This does not include courses or workshops taken in Spring 2020.)
Honors in Creative Writing: Students who by the end of the junior year have completed the three workshops (CRWR-215, CRWR-304, and CRWR-305) with distinction (3.7 or above) and have performed with distinction in their concentration courses overall (3.7 or above) will be invited to pursue an honors project and will design, under the supervision of a creative writing professor, a year-long project to be started in the fall of their senior year. The department will recommend for honors students who receive an A- or better on work submitted for honors and who maintain a cumulative average of 3.7 or better in courses taken for the concentration overall and in the workshops calculated separately.
Creative Writing Minor: A minor in creative writing consists of five courses, all taken within the department: three literature courses; CRWR-215; and either CRWR-304 or CRWR-305. Only one 100-level course may count toward the minor. No courses taken C/NC may be counted toward the minor. Students concentrating in literature may not minor in creative writing.