ObjectivesFor students who have knowledge of a language other than English and are interested in studying literature within cultural, socioeconomic, historical, and political context, Comparative Literature offers stimulating coursework and a useful B.A. As a major Comparative Literature provides a flexible, multicultural and interdisciplinary general education by allowing students to take courses in four different departments.
Comparative Literature gives students the intellectual tools to analyze literature, the arts and culture from a variety of psychological and philosophical perspectives and it prepares them for careers in areas such as law, business, publishing, or teaching.
Entry requirements* Two courses from the Comparative Literature 1 or 2 series or comparable lower division courses in other departments.
* Completion of the College Writing requirement.
* Literary proficiency in at least one language other than English, to be demonstrated by successful completion of either (1) two years of the college language sequence or its equivalent or (2) an upper division literature course in the original language.
Course descriptionRequirements for a Major in Comparative Literature:
* Four upper division courses in Comparative Literature (including CL 100)
* Four upper division courses in one literature area (such as Spanish, English, Chinese, Korean, Armenian, Classics, or Russian, etc.)
* Three upper division courses in a second literature (again ranging from English, Spanish, Hebrew, or Arabic to Japanese, Polish or Greek)
* One upper division elective course. These may come from a wide range of areas, including but not limited to Art History, History, Philosophy, Film, or Political Science; some students use a third language area.