Our student advisory council will be making visits to classes in the coming weeks to talk about the English major and minor at Villanova. Here are some of the flyers they'll be showing:
FALL 2025
UPPER-LEVEL ENGLISH COURSES
2003 Intro to Creative Writing TR 8:30-9:45,
Tsering Wangmo
Designed
for students who wish to experiment with composing several kinds of
creative writing: short fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry.
2005 Writing the Short Story TR 4:00-5:15, Alan
Drew
In
this writing workshop course, we will explore setting, point of view,
characterization, plot and other craft elements that make short stories
run. We will read influential authors and give feedback to one
another to foster our growth as writers.
2006 Writing of Poetry MW 10:00-11:15, Tsering Wangmo
Instruction
in poetry writing, including how to craft imagery, figurative language, sound,
line, and rhythm, as well as traditional and contemporary forms. Students read
widely and write lyric, narrative and experimental poems that are shared in a
supportive workshop setting.
2018 Nature Writing Workshop TR 2:30-3:45, Cathy
Staples
The
natural world will be a source for the creative non-fiction, poetry, and
fiction pieces students will write in this class. Through readings, field
trips, writing exercises, and workshops students will learn to sharpen their
language and see more deeply.
2020 Digital Journalism MWF 11:45-12:35, Lara
Rutherford-Morrison
Introduces
students to the fundamentals of journalism, with an emphasis on digital media.
Class will focus on the ins and outs of digital journalism as a practice, with
students gaining hands-on experience within a variety of media platforms.
2023
Journalism TR 8:30-9:45, Kathryn Szumanski
Introduces
students to key techniques of news gathering and news writing. We will also
explore the principles and rules that guide the writing of news pieces,
editorials, and features.
2043
Pop Culture & Resistance MW 4:45-6:00, Karyn Hollis
An
analysis of notable works of art, music, literature, video and social media
created by people of various international, ethnic and minoritized groups to
publicize situations of importance to their communities.
2061
Editing & Publishing TR 10:00-11:15, Adrienne Perry
Literary
publishing in a diverse, compelling field involving both art and commerce. This
hands- on class explores the economic, social, and artistic forces that shape
contemporary literature.
Grapple
with what it means to "make culture" while honing editorial skills.
2250,
Ways of Reading TR 1:00-2:15,
Joseph Drury
An
exploration of how we engage, understand, explicate, and enjoy texts of all
sorts.
2306
Harry Potter: Quests/Questions MWF 10:40-11:30, Evan Radcliffe
In
this course we will use the tools of literary analysis to discuss all seven
Harry Potter novels. Central topics will include how the series evolves;
Rowling’s use of novelistic form, character and characterization, and literary
models; and the books’ representations of gender, class, and other social
issues.
2360
Adaptation: Film as Lit MW 4:45-6:00, Adrienne Perry
The
relationship between movies and literature dates back to film's earliest days.
Comparing films and texts allows for an explanation of storytelling and the
fascinating choices auteurs make. Plot, tone, and symbolism are considered
alongside questions of power and representation.
2790
Comics as Literature MW 8:00-9:15, Robert Berry
This course will focus on American comics. In that history, and particularly in the past fifty years, we will see the struggle of cartoonists to take their craft out of the limitations of the marketplace and make it a respected form for self-expression, reportage, memoir, non-fiction, adaptation and more. We will read and discuss some of the critical work done in the field and learn how comics operate differently than film, theater or text.
2790
Genres of White Supremacy TR 11:30-12:45, Crystal Lucky
"Genres
of White Supremacy" centers literature by Indigenous, Black, and white
American writers to consider some of the most pressing concerns of our
contemporary moment. Alongside visual images, historically grounded modules on
the construction of race, and a critical dialogic component, the course
supports all students in their exploration of racial and social hierarchies
through the powerful expressions of key nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first
century writers, including Leslie Marman Silko, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison,
and Herman Melville.
3170
Medieval Romance TR 1:00-2:15,
Brooke Hunter
Medieval
romances - texts about chivalry and love - have shaped everything from racial
identity to flirting. This course considers how romances depict sexuality and
gender; construct notions of religious otherness; and shape ideas about peoples
and political power.
3250
Shakespeare MW
3:20-4:35, Lauren Shohet
This
course studies the plays and/or poems of Shakespeare. It may be focused on a particular
genre of Shakespeare's work, a period in his career, or a topic. The course
seeks to develop students' appreciation of Shakespeare's artistry and
relevance.
3508
Austen: Then & Now TR 2:30-3:45, Joseph Drury
Jane
Austen's novels have never been more popular than they are today. To understand
why, we will read several, exploring their historical context and reception, as
well as influential modern critical interpretations and the most interesting
recent movie adaptations.
3621
Contemporary British Novel & Brexit TR 4:00-5:15, Megan Quigley
This
course examines the intriguing relationship between literature and
institutions, including governments, schools and prisons. Reading
nineteenth-century literature in relation to our contemporary moment, we focus
especially on universities, interrogating students' experiences of universities
and institutional narratives about universities.
3660
Contemporary Literature & Film of India TR 4:00-5:15, Tsering Wangmo
India produces some of the most
innovative and engrossing literature in the world, while also releasing more
films than any other nation. Through both forms, we'll explore debates in
contemporary India concerning border tensions, caste, gender, fantasy, and
imperial histories.
3661
Black British Literature & Film MW 1:55-3:10, Chiji Akoma
This
course explores British fiction written after the second World War until today.
What stories do novelists tell about the meaning of "Britishness"
after the British empire? We investigate themes of nostalgia, xenophobia,
feminism, and class warfare in stylistically varied novels.
4510 Early American Poetry MW
1:55-3:10, Travis Foster
We
will immerse ourselves in four transformative poets -- Anne Bradstreet, Phillis
Wheatly Peters, Walt Whitman, and Emily Dickinson -- while also considering how
their lives and work have inspired contemporary culture from prestige
television to Taylor Swift.
4649
Intro to Asian American Literature MW 1:55-3:10, Yumi Lee
Examines literature,
film, art, and other cultural productions by Asian Americans and explores Asian
American histories from the early 20th century to the present.
4706
Intro to Latinx Lit TR 2:30-3:45, Michael Dowdy
We
will explore the vibrant field of Latinx literature, including fiction,
creative nonfiction, and poetry by Puerto Rico, Chicano (Mexican American),
Dominican American, Cuban American, and Central and South American descent
writers and artists. Knowledge of Spanish is not required.
5000 The Indigenous Atlantic MW 3:20-4:35, Kimberly
Takahata
This course asks: how does centering Indigenous peoples change how we conceive of the Atlantic World and literary history? Reading novels, poems, reports, legal acts, letters, and a newspaper issue from early colonization to the present day, we will explore why literatures in all their forms matter to how we understand colonialism, sovereignty, identity, and art.
