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At Stern College for Women, we share a passion for discussing language. We read literature in widely differing genres and historical periods and draw on a variety of critical and theoretical approaches to these and other texts.

We explore the power and beauty of words and how and what they can mean. Our courses feature texts of the Western literary tradition from the medieval to the postmodern periods. We engage with students in large classes, small seminars, and on a one-to-one basis.

Students learn to analyze and interpret different modes of expression, including poetry, fiction and nonfiction prose, drama, and film. They develop and refine skills in various types of writing and explore important questions about the relationships of art, society, and language.

The department offers majors in literature, creative writing, and media studies (with tracks in journalism or advertising) and minors in English and Writing. We also coordinate the interdisciplinary minors for Women's Studies and American studies.

Our students graduate as careful readers and thinkers and especially strong writers, well-prepared to become leaders in fields such as law, education, journalism, advertising, publishing, public relations, technical and professional writing, social work, and the arts.

For further information, please contact Dr. Matt Miller, chair, mmiller2@yu.edu, and read .

Mission Statement

The Stern College for Women’s English Department holds that the study of language, literature, and media is fundamentally important to an individual's personal development and successful functioning within society. The Department understands "acts of interpretation"—the study of texts and their contexts—to be aesthetic, philosophical, historical, political, and ethical. Consequently, our programs complement a Stern College student's knowledge of religious modes of interpretation. Through close collaboration with faculty, students develop individual projects and reflect critically on their learning.

The Department envisions the study of literature as an end in itself and as a means of developing essential analytic and imaginative training highly valued in fields such as communications and the new media, business, education, publishing, law, and medicine. A broad exposure to the literary productions of diverse time periods and cultures helps our students take their place in the global community of educated men and women of the twenty-first century. In addition to the majors and minors that we offer, our department is also responsible for the required composition course that every student takes in her first year on campus at Stern.

Program Student Learning Goals

1. Students will be able to analyze a variety of texts and genres.
2. Students will be able to critically evaluate competing critical/theoretical arguments pertaining to given work(s).
3. Students will be able to communicate their critical thinking about literature and other media to diverse audiences both orally and in writing.
4. Students will able to take ownership over their learning experiences both in their course work and beyond.

Program Information

Chair
Dr. Matt Miller
mmiller2@yu.edu

Associate Chair
Dr. Seamus O'Malley
seamus.omalley@yu.edu