Courses in English Language and Literature

Courses in Expository Writing. Courses in writing develop a student’s sense of the various possible forms of expression. Writing practice, lectures, and class discussion are supplemented in these courses by regular meetings with the instructor. Sections of ENGLISH 225 include a great variety of writing projects, while sections of ENGLISH 325 and 425 tend to be somewhat more specialized.

The Creative Writing Program. Students interested in the department’s offerings in creative writing should begin with ENGLISH 223, an introduction to the reading and writing of modern poetry and prose fiction and to the workshop method of critiquing student writing. ENGLISH 223 is a prerequisite to ENGLISH 323 (Advanced Creative Writing in Fiction) and 324 (Advanced Creative Writing in Poetry), but admission into ENGLISH 323 and 324 is based on a portfolio submission. There is a “permission of instructor” restriction on these courses. At the advanced level students may elect (with the instructor’s permission) the advanced fiction workshop (ENGLISH 423) or the advanced poetry workshop (ENGLISH 424).

Repeating Courses for Credit. Some of the courses listed below are general titles under which varied topics may be offered. Such courses may be repeated for credit with departmental permission. Most of the courses available for re-election are signaled below. Students must obtain the proper approval form from the English Office, 3187 Angell Hall and return it for approval within the first two weeks of class.

Concentration in English: course categories

Courses meeting Concentration Requirements. The concentration requirements referred to in this section are for undergraduate English concentrators.

• Pre-1600
• Pre-1830
• American Literature
• Poetry
• New Traditions — English concentrators will take at least one upper-division course that focuses on work by North America and/or British writers/artists of color, world Anglophone writer/artists of a range of identity categories (involving gender, sexuality, disability, and class) who reflect upon – and are in dialogue about – the differentials of social power and their representation.
• Upper-Level Writing Requirement

Please select a semester and year from the pull down menus at the link below: https://webapps.lsa.umich.edu/english/undergraduate/courses/conReqs.asp

Areas of Specialization. We have designed these “Areas of Specialization” to help concentrators identify the variety of fields currently taught within the English Department, and to assist concentrators in arranging their upper-division courses with greater coherence. Concentrators are strongly encouraged to select three upper-division courses within one of the Areas available from the link below (or one designed by the student and an advisor). Please select a semester, year, and Area of Specialization from the options on the link below:
https://webapps.lsa.umich.edu/english/undergraduate/courses/specAreas.asp

English Undergraduate Waitlist Policy for literature courses (not writing)

If you want to try to get into a course that is closed, place your name on the waitlist and attend the first day of class to see if you can get into the course. Our students are generally taken off the waitlist in chronological order, unless the faculty teaching the course decides that they will take senior-level students ahead of the chronologically listed students. Permissions will be given electronically within 24 hours of approval - please remember to register for the course. From May to August the department monitors the waitlists and issues overrides as space becomes available.

NOTE: It is department policy that students must attend both the first and the second class meetings. Failure to do so may result in the student being dropped from the course.