Liberal Arts and Sciences: Comparative Literature

NOTE: This document was generated from the 1995-1997 UIUC Programs of Study. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, but be advised that requirements may have changed since this book was published. Errors may have also been introduced in the conversion to a WWW document. Thus for items of importance, it might be wise to seek confirmation from either the paper version or a live human being.

Comparative Literature Courses. 15 hours.

Literature Courses. 24 hours.

Supporting Course Work. 9 hours (chosen in consultation with an adviser).

A student who elects comparative literature as a major must complete 48 semester hours in the courses indicated below, including at least 12 hours in courses numbered 300 or above. Besides knowing English, the student must have sufficient linguistic skill in at least one foreign language to participate in 200- and 300- level literature courses offered by the various foreign language and literature departments.

As soon as a student contemplates choosing comparative literature as a major, he or she should consult the faculty adviser, who will assist the student in selecting appropriate courses that will be especially helpful as preparation for the advanced comparative literature training beginning with the junior year. Courses in classical civilization and in literature (particularly courses dealing with works from several countries) are especially recommended at relatively early stages of study. An ample selection of such courses at the 100- and 200-levels exists in the various literature departments.

REQUIREMENTS

The distribution of course work allows for considerable flexibility. It must include:

1. At least 15 hours in comparative literature courses, including C LIT 201 and C LIT 202. The remaining hours should be selected from different types of courses (e.g., C LIT 141, C LIT 142, C LIT 189, C LIT 190, C LIT 341, C LIT 351, C LIT 361, C LIT 371).

2. At least 15 hours in one literature in the original language (ancient or modern, including Far Eastern and African), 12 of which are at the 200 level or above, studied in depth and in its historical development. (Normally this is the primary literature of the student's educational background.)

3. At least 9 hours at the 200 level or above in a second literature in the original language. With the assistance of the adviser, these courses should be carefully chosen so as to correlate meaningfully with the student's primary literature. A student may center his or her interest on a cultural period such as medieval, Renaissance, neo-classical and enlightenment, or modern (nineteenth and twentieth centuries), or on genres, relations, or critical theory. see footnote 1

4. At least 12 hours of credit in literature courses used to satisfy the three requirements above must be at the 300 level or approved for advanced hours in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

5. At least 9 hours in any single national literature or several, including comparative literature; or in other humanistic fields, such as history, philosophy, speech, art, music, psychology, sociology, theatre, anthropology, and Asian studies. Because some of the courses in these subjects are more suitable than others to balance a student's individual major in comparative literature, the student must follow the guidelines set by his or her adviser.

6. Western civilization: C LIT 141 and C LIT 142 (6 hours) or either HIST 110 or HIST 111 and HIST 112 and HIST 112 or HIST 113 (6-8 hours). These sequences may be used to satisfy the requirements, respectively, of (1) or (5) above. Beginning students in comparative literature are strongly urged to take the C LIT 141-142 sequence.

Departmental Distinction. To be eligible for distinction, a student must have at least a 4.25 cumulative grade-point average and a 4.75 grade-point average in departmental courses, complete a senior thesis (C LIT 293), and receive the approval of the departmental honors committee. The departmental honors committee will determine the level of distinction to be awarded.

Footnotes: 1. If one of the literatures studied is English, a student who continues in a graduate program in comparative literature will be required to acquire a reading knowledge of a second foreign language (i.e., one foreign language for the B.A., two foreign languages for the M.A., three foreign languages for the Ph.D.).

Go to Liberal Arts and Sciences Programs Index
Go to Programs of Study Table of Contents
GO to College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Home Page
Go to University of Illinois Home Page