BSU Catalog Home | Graduate English Program | All-University Courses and Descriptions

Graduate Course Offerings
English (ENGL)

5101 ADVANCED WRITING (3 credits) A nonfiction writing course for exploring a wide variety of prose processes, audiences, and formats. Includes revision and editing, style, and the authorial voice. May include exploration of opportunities for publishing.

5115 WRITING FICTION I (3 credits) An introduction to the study of the form and style of fiction, with practice, study, and writing in a workshop format.

5116 WRITING FICTION II (3 credits) A workshop course designed to offer the student further practice, analysis, and theoretical study in the writing of original fiction. May be repeated one time.

5125 WRITING POETRY I (3 credits) An introduction to the study of form and style of poetry, with practice, study, and writing in a workshop format.

5126 WRITING POETRY II (3 credits) A workshop course designed to offer the student further practice, analysis, and theoretical study in the composition of poetry. May be repeated one time.   

5135 SCRIPTWRITING/PLAYWRITING I (3 credits) Introduction to the study of the form and style of scriptwriting and playwriting, with practice, study, and writing in a workshop format.

5145 WRITING CREATIVE NONFICTION I (3 credits) Introduction to the study of the form and style of creative nonfiction, with practice in a workshop format.

5146 WRITING CREATIVE NONFICTION II (3 credits) Workshop offering further practice, analysis, and theoretical study in the composition of creative nonfiction. May be repeated one time.

5155 PROFESSIONAL WRITING (3 credits) Written communication in professional settings. Gathering information, analyzing audiences, and assessing conventional formats of professional writing. Drafting, testing, and revising documents. Development of a portfolio project.

5166 FREELANCE WRITING (3 credits) A practicum in writing articles for commercial magazines. Includes identifying topics, researching markets, editing, copy editing; writing queries and proposals; and studying standard practice and intellectual property rights.

5169 WEB CONTENT WRITING (3 credits) Extensive practice in creating written content for the Web, in various genres and for various purposes and audiences. Addresses the unique rhetorical and formal challenges of developing Web content: writing hypertext, using links and link text, using text elements, micro-content, navigation, copy editing. Prerequisites: ENGL 5177 or ENGL 5179.

5170 WEB DESIGN FOR CONTENT WRITERS (3 credits) A project-based, hands-on advanced course in creating Web sites. Emphasis on page and site design, information architecture, and hypertext. Prerequisite: ENGL 5169 or ENGL 5179 or consent of instructor.

5177 WEBLOGS AND WIKIS (3 credits) This course, which is theory-grounded and project-based, gives students the opportunity to explore two new and related forms of online publishing, study, and written expression. Students design and pursue a ten-week project in creating a weblog or a wiki. Computer-intensive.

5179 ELEMENTS OF ELECTRONIC RHETORIC (3 credits) Introduction to the principles of applied rhetoric integrated with continued writing experience. Also introduces fundamentals of hypertext. Students investigate email, Web page and site design, online discussion, wikis, and weblogs, and create and analyze online texts and exchanges. Computer-intensive.

5420 SHAKESPEARE AND HIS AGE (3 credits) A study of Shakespeare's works in the context of his times and of the work of his major contemporaries.

5429 SHAKESPEARE FOR TEACHERS (3 credits) A study of Shakespeare’s plays and poems in contexts appropriate for high school and community college teachers.

5530 TEACHING WRITING WITH TECHNOLOGY (3 credits) Focuses on the theory and practice of teaching secondary and university-level writing with computer technology, including using computer-mediated communication (asynchronous and synchronous, email, Web discussion boards, and MOOs), Web-supplemented teaching, and student writing for Web publication. Project-based and taught in a computer classroom. Students will have opportunities to create materials for teaching writing using computers.

5540 LITERATURE FOR YOUNG ADULTS (3 credits) A study of a variety of literature appropriate for adolescents, including criteria for evaluating literary merit; criteria for evaluating classroom usefulness; and effective ways to manage book challenges and censorship issues.

5580 THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE (3 credits) A linguistically-based study of the structure, grammar, and historical development of the English language.

5600 AUTHOR TOPICS (3 credits) In-depth study of the work of one or more authors (e.g., Chaucer, Emily Dickinson), including application of critical theory. May be retaken multiple times with different topic subtitles.

5607 FILM TOPICS (3 credits) In-depth study of film (e.g., Women in Film, International Film), including application of critical theory. May be retaken multiple times with different topic subtitles.

5609 PERIOD TOPICS (3 credits) In-depth study of the literature of a specific period (e.g., Medieval Literature, Modern Literature), including application of critical theory. May be retaken multiple times with different topic subtitles.

5708 ADVANCED GENRE TOPICS (3 credits) In-depth study of a literary genre (e.g., The American Novel, Dramatic Literature), including application of multiple critical theories. May be retaken multiple times with different topic subtitles.

5709 ADVANCED PERIOD TOPICS (3 credits) In-depth study of the literature of a specific period (e.g., Medieval Literature, Modern Literature), including application of multiple critical theories. May be retaken multiple times with different topic subtitles.

5861 INTERNSHIP IN LITERARY PUBLISHING I (3 credits) Introduction to the practices of literary publishing. Students serve on the editorial board for a literary anthology, gain experience in submitting their own work for publication, and gain an understanding of standard practice and issues in literary markets, and careers in literary publishing.

5862 INTERNSHIP IN LITERARY PUBLISHING II (3 credits) Students who have taken ENGL 5861 continue their studies in the practices of literary publishing. They serve as managing editors for the literary anthologies edited in the class, and present to the class and lead discussions on submitting work for publication, standard practice and issues in literary publishing, and careers in literary publishing. Prerequisite: ENGL 5861.

6260 SHAKESPEARE (3 credits) A study of selected works of Shakespeare, with emphasis on a particular genre, such as tragedy.

6270 SEMINAR IN LITERATURE (3 credits) Specialized study in American, English, or comparative literature.

6277 PROBLEMS OF LITERARY CRITICISM (3 credits) A descriptive course in criticism which attempts to get at the basic problem of methodology and which make applications of the various critical literary problems. Considers aspects of the philosophic inquiry in criticism as well as methods of analysis and their limitations.

6500 SEMINAR IN COMPOSITION PEDAGOGY (1 credit) A study of the dynamics of the composition classroom, with special emphasis on responding to student papers, establishing classroom cultures, and application of theories in ENGL 6700.

6680 INTERDISCIPLINARY SEMINAR (3 credits) An interdisciplinary study of specifically chosen literature and cultural relationships of England and America.

6700 SEMINAR IN RHETORICAL THEORY (3 credits) A study of trends in composition theory with special emphasis on academic writing. This course is designed primarily to prepare students to teach university level composition courses.