English Course Descriptions

Please note: Semesters and years given below are subject to change.

ENG 107 Introduction to Writing 4 hours

Prerequisite: Placement recommendation. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12

Concentration on the concepts of focus, organization, and development of expository writing. Introduction to research skills and writing, and the use of technology in composition. One additional weekly period of tutoring is required. Students must receive a final grade of at least C or retake the course.

ENG 108 Academic Writing 4 hours

Prerequisite: Placement recommendation. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Summer 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Summer 12

Concentration on developing students’ abilities to produce analytical academic writing. Special attention to developing research skills and strategies. Students will be engaged in reading and discussing texts and writing within complex rhetorical situations. Students will work on a variety of types of written assignments ranging from short writing activities to fully-developed essays. Individual tutorial sessions will supplement class work. Students will learn to use technology as an aid to writing. Students must receive a final grade of at least C or retake the course.

ENG 160 Introduction to Literature 3 hours

General Education requirement. Fee: yes. Fall 10; Winter 11, Summer 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Summer 12. Study and discussion of a variety of literary forms, including poetry, fiction, and drama, with emphasis on critical analysis.

ENG 203 Literature: The Short Story 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Winter 12

Study and discussion of the themes and techniques of the short story.

ENG 205 Children’s Literature 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12

Interpretive and critical study of literature for children and adolescents. Historical and categorical survey of children’s books, stressing significance in classroom and home.

ENG 206 Introduction to Poetry 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Summer 10

Introduction to the skills required to read poetry, and to a variety of poets and poetic forms.

ENG 207 Introduction to Mass Media 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Fall 11, Fall 12

Exploration and critical analysis of the nature and effects of mass media as a cultural phenomenon that has revolutionized our world. The course will focus on the key technological developments that have changed the way we communicate and understand our world from the telegraph to the Internet.

ENG 209 Fundamentals of Speech 3 hours

Fall 10

This course is designed to acquaint the student with the basic communication skills in public speaking, and to improve his or her ability to communicate effectively.

ENG 222 Introduction to African-American Literature 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Prerequisites: Must have completed any LS requirement. Fall 10, Fall 12

Study and discussion of works by important writers of the African-American literary tradition. Interrelation of cultural‚ social‚ and historical influences.

ENG 241 History of the Drama 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 12

Study of major playwrights of the western world; emphasis on human self-expression through drama.

ENG 260 Approaches to Literary Studies 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108, ENG 160. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12

Introduction to the discipline of literary study for students majoring and minoring in English and language arts. The course emphasizes writing about literature and critical strategies and information resources. This is a writing intensive course which should be taken before English 314 and at least two semesters before English 496.

ENG 264 Introduction to Creative Writing 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Winter 12

Introduction to the principles and practices of writing poetry and fiction. Students will develop their skills as writers of imaginative literature by becoming conscious of craft, becoming effective critics of each other’s works, and improving their abilities to judge quality writing.

ENG 275 Introduction to Classical Literature and Mythology 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Winter 11.

A survey of canonical mythological works of Classical Greece and Rome. The course covers a variety of genres: epic and lyric poetry, comedic and tragic theatre with the intention of giving students a firm grounding in the stories that undergird so much of western culture from literature and philosophy to the sciences and psychology.

ENG 290 Introduction to Film 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Term varies.

History and highlights of the film as an art form. Interrelation of social, historical, and aesthetic forms.

ENG 301 British Writers I 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Fall 10

Survey of British writers from medieval times to the Romantic period, including such authors as Chaucer, Donne, Milton, Shakespeare, Pope, Bronte, Austen, and the Romantic poets.

ENG 302 British Writers II 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Fall 11

Survey of British writers from the Romantic period to the present, including such authors as Eliot, Dickens,

Browning, Hardy, Joyce, Pinter, Lawrence, Lessing, and Woolf.

ENG 303 Contemporary Studies: The Movies 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fall 11

A study of major American films. Course includes such classic films as Citizen Kane, Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, and current films.

ENG 306 From Novel to Film 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature or film course and ENG 108. Term varies

Examination of novels and their film realizations, including such novels as Tess of the D’Urbervilles, A Passage to India, A Clockwork Orange, and The Color Purple.

ENG 308 Business and Professional Writing 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108 and several courses in the student’s major field. Fee: yes. Fall 10

Underlying principles and techniques for effective communications in business and professional settings. Emphasis on audience analysis, purpose, and organization of various types of letters, reports, and memoranda.

ENG 310 American Literature I 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 11

Survey of American writers of the early period, including such authors as Bradstreet, Dickinson, Douglass,

Emerson, Hawthorne, Melville, Thoreau, and Whitman.

ENG 311 American Literature II 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 12

Survey of American writers of the later period, including such authors as Ellison, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, Frost, Hurston, Morrison, Stevens, and Wharton.

ENG 312 Advanced Written and Oral Communications 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108 and at least two courses in student’s major. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Summer 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Summer 12

Focus on writing and speaking situations in the student’s major field. Special attention is given to increasing sophistication in style, organization, development, and research strategies. Credits from this general education requirement are not counted toward the English major.

ENG 313 Journalism 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Winter 12

Fundamentals of news gathering, writing, editing, and layout.

ENG 314 Literary Theory and Criticism 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108, ENG 260, and at least two literature courses. Fee: yes. Winter 10, Winter 11

Study of the major trends in contemporary literary theory. Course also provides for practical experience with current methods and assumptions guiding the analysis and interpretation of literary texts.

ENG 316 Grant Writing 3 hours

Winter 12

Instruction in principles and practices of grant proposal writing.

ENG 317 The English Language: History, Structure, and Grammar 3 hours

Required for secondary teacher certification. Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Fall 11

Study of the development of the English language and an introduction to structural principles and current linguistic theories. Topics include phonetics, language origin and history, word structure, syntax, dialects, language in social interaction, grammar and usage for teachers.

ENG 318 Professional Communications Design 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108 and several courses in the student’s major field. Winter 12

Workshop-based, computer-enhanced examination of the theoretical principles and practical techniques for producing a variety of communications projects typically required by contemporary organizations.

ENG 319 Writing Creative Nonfiction 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fall 11

Instruction in the techniques of writing varieties of nonfiction beyond the traditional academic essay.

ENG 320 Selected Writers 2 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 10, Winter 11, Winter 12

In-depth study of one author. May be taken more than once for credit with different authors.

ENG 321 Modern Poetry 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Term varies.

Study of major modern English language poets, such as Yeats, Frost, Stevens, Moore, Eliot, Hughes, Bishop, Hayden, Lowell, Levine, Merwin, Plath, and Dove.

ENG 322 Studies in African-American Literature 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 10, Winter 11, Winter 12

In-depth study of authors‚ periods‚ genres‚ or topics as chosen by the instructor. Students will do presentations and papers on specific individual writers‚ periods‚ genres‚ and/or themes‚ techniques‚ or works.

ENG 324 Selected Topics 3 hours

Prerequisites: At least three literature courses or permission of instructor and ENG 108. Term varies.

In-depth study of major authors, periods, or topics as chosen by the instructor. May be taken more than once for credit with different subjects.

ENG 325 Writing Features and Articles 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108, ENG 313. Term varies.

Workshop study of feature writing and the business of feature writing that extends basic principles of journalism to features and articles.

ENG 328 Intercultural Communications 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Fall 11

Study of intercultural communications that examines the relationships of language and culture, the development of dominant value systems, normative behavior of groups and individuals within groups, and the common barriers to intercultural understanding: ethnocentricity, stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination.

ENG 331 Contemporary Drama 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 11.

Studies in drama from the 1950s to the present.

ENG 333 Detroit in Literature 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Summer 10

Examination of representations of Detroit in fiction, poetry, and other artistic media produced between 1940 and the present.

ENG 347 Methods of Teaching English 3 hours

Prerequisites: Admission to teacher certification; permission of department and instructor. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12

Introduction to the theories, goals, and techniques of teaching English at the secondary level. Unit planning, learning assessment, skill building in composition and literature, simulations in lesson presentation. Appropriate field-based experiences.

ENG 348 Teaching Writing and Speaking 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108. Elementary focus in Fall, Secondary focus in Winter. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12

An introduction to Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) theories and practices of teaching written and oral literacies at the elementary and secondary levels.

ENG 350 World Literature 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Fall 11

Survey of works of world literature in translation. This may include works of Asian, African, Caribbean, European, and South American writers.

ENG 351 Shakespeare 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 10, Winter 12

Study and discussion of selected plays from major periods of Shakespeare’s development.

ENG 352 The Novel 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Term varies.

Study of the development of and major themes in the genre of the novel, including such novels as Madame Bovary, David Copperfield, Crime and Punishment, and Portrait of a Lady.

ENG 353 Contemporary Literature of Africa 3 hours

Prequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Winter 11

Study and discussion of contemporary African literature. This may include works of Chinua Achebe, Ngugi wa Thiongo, Ama Ata Aidoo, J.M. Coetzee, Nadine Gordimer, and Nuruddin Farah.

ENG 361 Shakespeare on Film 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Fall 11

Study of text and contemporary film interpretations of such works as Hamlet (Branagh, Zeffirelli, Almereyda), Romeo and Juliet (Zeffirelli and Luhrmann), Branagh’s versions of Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, Love’s Labours’ Lost, Trevor Nunn’s Twelfth Night.

ENG 362 Advanced Creative Writing: Poetry 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108, ENG 264. Winter 11

Advanced instruction in the writing of poetry. Writing workshop with student conferences. Students take part in public presentation/publication of their work.

ENG 363 Advanced Creative Writing: Fiction 3 hours

Prerequisite: ENG 108, ENG 264. Fall 11

Advanced instruction in the techniques of short story and longer fiction writing. Writing workshop with student conferences. Students take part in public presentation/publication of their work.

ENG 370 Literature by Women 3 hours

Prerequisites: One literature course and ENG 108. Fall 10

Study of both the establishment of and resistance to traditions in literature by women. The course seeks to grapple with definitions of feminism and what might constitute feminist literature.

ENG 388 Cooperative Field Experience 1-4 hours

Prerequisite: Department approval. Fall 10, Winter 11, Summer 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Summer 12

Supervised work experience in an activity related to English or language arts. May be taken more than once for credit.

ENG 413 Editing and Layout 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108, ENG 313. Term varies.

Workshop study of the art of editing as the ability to separate facts from fictions, clarify and enliven stories, create compelling presentations, coach, challenge, and encourage writers, and utilize Associated Press style and ethics.

ENG 415 Writing Online 3 hours

Prerequisites: ENG 108, ENG 313. Term varies.

Workshop study of online writing that extends the journalistic principles developed in ENG 313 to the New Media. In particular, participants will extend their understanding of convergence media as they master the online principles of non-linearity, hypertextuality, and story layering that differentiate online media from print.

ENG 491 Independent Study 3 hours

Prerequisites: At least three literature courses or permission of instructor and ENG 108. Fall 10, Winter 11, Summer 11,

Fall 11, Winter 12, Summer 12, Fall 12

Independent in-depth study of particular authors, periods, genres, or issues. May be taken more than once for credit with different studies.

ENG 496 Senior Seminar 3 hours

Prerequisites: English or Language Arts majors only‚ three literature courses at the 300 level‚ ENG 260, ENG 312‚ ENG 314‚ 24-33 hours in the major. Fee: yes. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Fall 12

In-depth critical reading, research, and analysis of a specific theme or the works of a single author. An extensive written research project and an oral presentation are required. May be taken more than once for credit with different subjects.

ENG 496C Senior Seminar for Professional Communications Concentration

Prerequisites: Professional Communications Concentration Students only, ENG 260, ENG 312, ENG 317, ENG 388,

15 credits of writing courses. Fall 10, Winter 11, Fall 11, Winter 12, Fall 12

A practicum capstone project in which a student addresses a specific communication need for a real-world client through the application of previous knowledge from the communications program and the integration of new, intensive research. Participants will produce the solution to the communications need, a reflection and review of the research and development process, a portfolio of “best works” from previous courses, and a public presentation of the results.