Comparative Literature (BA)

Students may earn the BA in Comparative Literature by satisfying the requirements for either of two tracks.

The Literature/Media/Critical Thought Track allows students to focus their study in one of three concentrations while also taking courses in the other two. Together, these three concentrations represent the broad range of interests in the discipline: (1) literature considered comparatively and transnationally; (2) the media of other arts and modes of communication (photography, film, music, painting and digital media); (3) modes of critical thought that inform and shape theoretical reflection on the arts and society.

This track offers the opportunity to pursue a major that is broadly based in the liberal arts. Students on this track might consider extending their concentration with a double major or minor. For example, the literature concentration could be extended with a second major or minor in a national literature (French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, English, classics or an East Asian literature); the media concentration by another major or minor in cinematic arts, art history or communication; and the critical thought concentration by a second major or minor in philosophy, religion, history, sociology or anthropology.

The Foreign Language Track incorporates the study of at least one literature in a foreign language into the comparative perspective of the comparative literature major.

Students who intend to pursue a graduate degree in either comparative literature or a foreign literature are strongly advised to choose this track, as are students who already possess advanced skills in a language other than English. Majors in comparative literature with foreign language emphasis might consider a double major or a minor in a department of foreign language or in a non-literary field such as international relations or journalism.

The requirements for both tracks of the major accommodate very well semesters of study abroad. Students are helped and encouraged to plan their programs in advance to allow for that experience.