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BA English and English Literature

2K views 6 replies 7 participants last post by  Luli 
#1 ·
I am just pondering about what I might consider taking in university in a few year's time.

And i'd like to ask anyone with a Bachelor's degree in english and english literature about their experience in it, and a small description of the whole course; what you guys did, what skills were used, and how you found it. If possible, can you also tell me your current occupation?

Thank you for your help :)
 
#2 ·
I deleted my post for reasons I care not to explain.
 
#3 ·
I'm only at A level, but I can sketch a hazy picture of the differences between A level English Literature and GCSE English.

The main thing I noticed we had to study alot more was how the literature was recieved - contemoprary and modern (when it was writte, and currently) reception, context, critical reception/genre. How society and such has an effect on writing - how different, and changing periods change the creative mood, and how that mood it recieved. How literature is an expression of the times.

I suppose GCSE English essays were on the core ideas of metaphore, author's intention, tone, genre - a little. Then there was the non-fiction/english language side.

Essay titles might be:

English: Evaluate the changing mental state of Lady Macbeth and how this is portrayed to the audience.

English Literature: Gothic texts are said to intertwine the supernatural with the everyday, discuss.
 
#4 ·
In most courses, you will be expected to write papers with a thesis on some subject you've read. The thesis statement is the premise of an argument, and it's normally advised to put this in your first paragraph with all following paragraphs giving evidence in support of the thesis. A typical paper is 8-12 pages long, although it varies depending on the subject you've been assigned to read.

Most papers also require the use of outside sources, most of which can be found in the school library. For instance, if you've been assigned Beowulf, expect to read not just Beowulf but likely also scholarly articles regarding the story. These articles will put forth arguments themselves, and you can choose which ones support your thesis and quote them in your papers accordingly. Your professors will tell you how many different outside sources they want you to incorporate for a given project.

Depending on the college you're going to, you may also be required to take one or several professional/technical writing courses (writing tailored to a typical business setting rather than the literary type of writing), creative writing (poetry and/or short story), and an internship (mine was at a nonprofit art center). The bulk of your work as an English major, though, is always the thesis-driven paper regardless of the college you'll attend.

I got my B.A. in English in 2007. I spent a year in graduate school hoping to obtain a Master's in Teaching at the Community College, but I found out in my second semester that the major hasn't had much success for students who failed to go on and get a Ph.D (something I didn't plan on doing), so I started looking for work in the summer of 2008. I hate to get your hopes down, but I've been able to secure only two jobs since then with just a B.A. (neither worked out); both were in the clerical sector and involved little to no writing. So, I'm an unemployed person who's going back to get a B.S.E. this summer because a B.A. alone in English is not very attractive to most employers; at least a B.S.E. gives you the necessary teaching credentials to work as a teacher. A B.A. in English prepares you for little, and you'll learn much more about the clerical field anyway by simply getting an Associate's in a clerical program.
 
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#5 ·
My BA in English Lit helped my formal writing and researching skills, along with my ability to generally write well under pressure---all skills that will help me get through law school! :D

It also let me answer niggling questions like: 1) What books do I want to invest my time into reading? 2) Can I write fiction/poetry? 3) Do comic books count as literature? 4) What do I really need to know to appreciate Shakespeare? 5) What about psychology? Sociology? Anthropology? Poly-sci? Fine art? Other languages? Linguistics? etc... (It gave me lots of elective courses to play around with.)

Most of all, it helped guide me towards what it now my personal philosophy on life by exposing me to the writers I needed to read... and their bibliographies.
 
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#6 ·
I was an English Lit major for the first year and a half of my college career. I literally could not think of any job I wanted to do that would be helped by a BA in English Lit, and so I switched over to German, working towards becoming a translator.

The structure of courses at my college (a lib. arts college) was that we'd read stories and such, then write papers on them afterwards, usually trying to say something new and interesting about the stories, analyzing them in new ways, etc. Actively contributing to the pool of thought. Most papers were 4-6 pages max, though semester papers were 12 pages minimum.

My BA in English Lit helped my formal writing and researching skills, along with my ability to generally write well under pressure---all skills that will help me get through law school! :D

It also let me answer niggling questions like: 1) What books do I want to invest my time into reading? 2) Can I write fiction/poetry? 3) Do comic books count as literature? 4) What do I really need to know to appreciate Shakespeare? 5) What about psychology? Sociology? Anthropology? Poly-sci? Fine art? Other languages? Linguistics? etc... (It gave me lots of elective courses to play around with.)

Most of all, it helped guide me towards what it now my personal philosophy on life by exposing me to the writers I needed to read... and their bibliographies.
Right. As it is, an English literary degree will only get you into a few academic fields as far as I know. More ideally they're meant to enrich your knowledge and understanding of the language and culture, but as far as job skills go they have very few (aside from academic research). Expect to be a professor, literary critic, academic researcher, etc... though as stated, a single BA won't get your far, and you'll want a PhD. BAs today are the equivalent of high school degrees a couple decades ago. Mandatory, but not worth much at all if you want good jobs.
 
#7 ·
hi. i did a degree in comparative english and european literature.

it was a wonderful course, with four core subjects a year. from memory the first year covered the epic tradition (homer, virgil, dante, milton), earlyl poetry, introduction to modern literature and the first stage of comparative french literature.
the second year built on these foundations and included an option of european theatre or european novel. it also covered an option topic of choice.
the final year included studying all of shakespeare,marlowe and webster, as well as finalising all the core subjects studied previously.

obviously it honed reading and writing skills. as an isfp it trained me in planning and executing ideas. i was naturally able to understand human themes in the writing and was drawn to literature of this sort.

the skills i learned were vital in my early career as a lawyer but more than this i appreciate that i had the opportunity to read and study the literature and ideas that have shaped european culture over the last 2000 years. that has made me a better person. that was reason enough to study literature.
 
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