This new position is quite exciting because my first task is to completely overhaul the English Major. Most English Majors reflect an Arnoldean vision of education where English literature replaces religion as the discipline that shapes the moral imagination of the student. As such, the value of studying literature is assumed to be self-evident, a worthwhile course of study in and of itself guaranteeing the moral identity of a secular society. While literature continues to shape the imaginations (moral or otherwise) of those who study it, the value of such study is hardly self-evident in today’s world. The current “crisis in the humanities”—and high value placed on STEM subjects at the expense of the humanities—bears witness to the difficulty academics in English have had in communicating the value of literary study to those outside the academy.
The new English Major that I’m crafting for Holy Cross College is designed to make the value and applicability of studying literature explicit to students, future employers and the world beyond the classroom. This major is an attempt at re-imagining the study of literature for the twenty-first century world in a way that maintains the value of literature and the practices of literary criticism, while addressing the post-graduation realities students face. Rather than transforming the English major into a “writing for business” major, this program takes the practices of the English classroom and posture of the literary critic and presents them as a foundational way of being in the world.
Once the new plan is finalized, I look forward to sharing it with you!
Read Holy Cross’ Announcement: New Chair of English Department
grace & peace,
Holy Cross College, Notre Dame Indiana
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