English Literature

Are you an enthusiastic reader and writer who wants to immerse yourself in literature ranging from Old English to new writing being published today? Do you want to explore the radical potential of novels, plays, and poems to change lives? Would you like to analyze literary concepts and forms deeply, creatively connect ideas across a wide range of cultures, periods, genres, and media, and develop your critical thinking and analytical skills to an advanced level? Would you like to study with world-class researchers and teachers and develop your unique research project? If so, the BA in Humanities in English is for you. You will study texts ranging from the Old English, medieval, and early modern periods to the nineteenth and through to the twenty-first century – writing which extends across national boundaries and regions, from British to Irish to American to World Literature, and covering multiple genres. You will explore literary production, value, and impact—how fiction, poetry, and drama are inspired, shaped, released, and received in particular historical and cultural contexts—learning how the meanings of literary texts change and renew across time and space.