Department of English

Program Structure

A general overview

In translating the aims of the Department into a comprehensive program of study, we have developed the following general structure:

First year English

These courses are taken by all First Year cadets and are designed to refine basic writing and reading skills as well as to introduce cadets to the variety and range of English literature that form an important part of their general cultural heritage. Every attempt is made to keep section size to 20-25 cadets to permit individual attention in writing instruction and maintain a group dynamic that allows for constructive class discussion.

Second year English

This course is taken by all Second Year cadets in Arts and is designed to explore in literature significant aspects of 20th- Century thought, problems, and concerns as a broad foundation in contemporary social and cultural issues for students entering various Humanities, Social Science, and Administration degree programs.

Third and fourth year courses

Senior courses are designed for cadets pursuing an Honours or a General Humanities degree in English, as well as for those taking English courses as electives for other degree programs.

These courses fall into three main groupings.

British Literary Heritage

These courses deal with the works of major English writers from 1550-1900, including such figures as Spenser, Shakespeare, Milton, Swift, Wordsworth, Dickens, and Tennyson. Collectively, these authors and their works represent the intellectual foundation for the literatures of the contemporary world and transmit the major aspects of European social and cultural values from the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and the 19th Century to the present.

National and Ethnic Literatures of the Contemporary World

These courses focus on the literatures of various national and ethnic groups in the contemporary world. They are designed to offer insights into the complex spectrum of social and cultural values in the modern world. Among the courses in this group are those dealing with Canadian Literature, American Literature, Modern British Literature, Commonwealth Literature, Modern European Novel in Translation, and Multicultural Literature of North America and of Emerging Nations.

Special Focus Courses

These courses focus on a particular genre or are designed for a specific group of cadets. Two examples of genre-focused courses are: The Literature of War and Forms of Drama. Special-groups courses include the Arts Options for Engineering and Science programs.

Mail comments to: Dr. Lukits (Steven.Lukits@rmc.ca)