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Literary Studies
Fast Facts:
- Approximately half of Bethel literary studies majors earn teaching certificates; 99 percent of those landed their first teaching job in the first hiring season following graduation.
- Although 1 in 20 graduates who go on to graduate study would be a rate of high achievement across all higher education, 10 percent (1 in 10) of Bethel graduates in literary studies since 1995 have opted for some form of graduate education in a variety of fields (e.g., doctoral degrees, law degrees, various master’s degrees).
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Language is the primary means of human expression. To study it is to explore questions about why we use language the way we do and how we could be using it more effectively and more ethically. That is why the Bethel College literary studies department strives to be about more than just reading good books. We recognize literature as important not only for its aesthetic value but for its ability to inspire change, to make arguments, to perpetuate truth and to subvert cultural myths about gender, race or class.
Bethel’s literary studies department will afford you opportunities you would not find at many other academic institutions of similar size. You can take an interterm travel course studying theater in Chicago. You will be exposed to a broad range of classical and multicultural literature texts. You will be able to engage foundational texts of structuralist, feminist and postcolonial theory – texts not encountered by many literary studies students as undergraduates. You will have more in-depth writing opportunities than you would at many other schools. You will leave with a culminating, individually designed research project in addition to extensive writing assignments in coursework. Their writing portfolios have been key to many of our students’ admission to graduate school.
If you combine your literary studies major with English teacher licensure, you will go into the classroom with a strong body of knowledge and skills. Your confidence and development of in-depth knowledge of subject matter will support and inspire your teaching.
The major also includes courses in critical theory and linguistics. It is interdisciplinary in the truest sense of the word. Literary studies at Bethel crosses into disciplines such as philosophy, sociology, psychology, intellectual and cultural history, political science and art. Whatever career path you choose, you will need to write, read, speak and listen. Few disciplines prepare you for life after college as well as literary studies.
BClines
BClines is Bethel College's online student-run creative journal with features in photography, poetry, short stories, drawings, photos and prints. BClines accepts entries from Bethel College students, faculty, staff, and alumni.