Theory and Aesthetics Minor
Description:
The Departments of Comparative Literature and Philosophy at Penn State offer a doctoral minor in Literary Theory, Criticism, and Aesthetics. This minor responds to the continuing growth of interest in literary theory and criticism and to the increasing number of teaching positions for holders of doctorates in literature with a secondary specialization in literary theory and criticism, as well as to the need for holders of doctorates in philosophy to teach in fields to which their discipline may lend theoretical support.
The minor strengthens the training of students in literature and in related fields by providing a coherent philosophical and theoretical basis for their advanced work. The program widens the scope of issues in the study of philosophy and comparative literature, and it provides interdisciplinary support for students in other liberal arts doctoral programs, such as English, foreign languages and literatures, history, speech communication, and the social sciences. In addition, the program can provide a basis for graduate programs outside the College of the Liberal Arts, including those in music and in the visual arts.
Students in the program will develop an individualized course of study in consultation with their advisers for the minor (one adviser from Comparative Literature and one from Philosophy; see list of advisers below). A minimum of 15 credits in addition to those required for the major should be chosen from the list of courses below. Six required credits (3 in comparative literature and 3 in philosophy) will serve as the basis for a historical study of literary theory and criticism and philosophical aesthetics. Students who take this minor must include one of the designated advisers of the minor on their doctoral committees.
Courses Included in the Minor:
Students must take six credits (3 in each discipline) from asterisked (*)courses.
PHILOSOPHYPHIL 409* Aesthetics PHIL 502 European Philosophy (upon advising) PHIL 516* Seminar in Aesthetics |
COMPARATIVE LITERATURECLIT 502* Comparative Criticism I: The Greeks to 1800 |
ENGLISHENGL 581 Modern British and American Criticism |
SPEECH COMMUNICATIONSPCOM 503 Seminar in criticism |
FRENCHFR 571 French Literary Criticism from Saint-Beuve to the Present |
HISTORYHIST 523 History and Theory |
ART HISTORYART H 410 Taste and Criticism in Art |
SPANISHSPAN 587 Stylistic and Literary Criticism |
GERMANGER 510 Literary Theory and its Applications |
THEATRE ARTSTHEA 503 Theatre Criticism and Theory |
Doctoral students interested in the minor should contact one of the following designated advisers for further information: |
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Philosophy |
865-6397 |
Aesthetics; ancient Greek literature and philosophy; contemporary Continental thought |
Thomas O. Beebee |
863-4935 |
History of criticism; Translation theory; German literary and cultural theory |
Philosophy |
865-1618 |
Literary Theory; Translation Theory; Semiotics; Poststructuralism; Pragmatism |
Nergis Erturk |
865-0067 |
Theories of modernity; postcolonial theory; poststructuralism |
Philosophy |
863-0568 |
Philosophy of literature; Theory of the visual arts; Phenomenological aesthetics |
Philosophy |
865-1676 |
Poetry and poetics, especially the role of form in creating meaning in poetry; Romanticism |
Comparative Literature, Spanish, & Womens Studies |
865-0032 |
Gender theory; postcolonial theory; media theory |
Comparative Literature and French |
863-7499 |
French Criticism and Theory, especially of the 20th Century |
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