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Department of English
6129 Academic Quadrangle, 778.782.3136 Tel, 778.782.5737 Fax,
Chair
C. Gerson BA (S Fraser), MA (Dal), PhD (Br Col), FRSCan
Graduate Program Chair
C. Lesjak BA (Swarthmore), MA, PhD (Duke)
Faculty and Areas of Research
See “Department of English” on page 256 for a complete list of faculty.
R. Arab – Shakespeare, early modern English literature, drama and culture, gender and class
S. Brook – Post-war British literature, British cultural studies, feminist and gender theory, theories of affect, urban theory
P. Budra – Shakespeare, drama to 1642, Elizabethan and Jacobean poetry and prose, popular culture
C. Burnham – modernism, theory, visual culture, and popular culture
D. Chariandy – post-colonial literature and theory, Canadian studies, diasporic theory
R.M. Coe – rhetorical theory and history, contrastive rhetoric; composition theory and pedagogy; literacy; discourse analysis (including ‘public doublespeak’ and ‘plain language’), genre theory, rhetorical approaches to literary criticism, drama
D. Coley – late medieval literature and culture, Chaucer, middle English, alliterative poetry, speech act theories
C. Colligan – 19th century English literature and culture, obscenity, British Imperialism
S. Collis – American literature, Modernism, contemporary poetry and poetics
P. Cramer – media studies, discourse anaylsis, rhetoric, critical theory, argumenation, automatic text analysis
L. Davis – Romantic literature, Scottish and Irish literature 1700-1850, literature and nationalism, feminist critiques of Romanticism, 18th century folk music and print culture
J. Derksen – contemporary poetry and poetics, globalization, urbanism, critical methodologies
P. Dickinson – modern drama and performance studies, film studies, comparative Canadian literatures, queer theory and gender studies
M. Everton – colonial, early American and transatlantic print culture, history of the book, authorship
J.D. Fleming – Renaissance, hermeneutics, epistemology
C. Gerson – Canadian literature and literary history, women and literature, print culture in Canada
M.A. Gillies – 19th and 20th century British literature
T. Grieve – modernism (poetry and fiction), twentieth century literature, nineteenth century poetry; the essay; history and theory of rhetoric; composition
A. Higgins – Medieval and Renaissance drama, Shakespeare, Middle English literature
M. Hussey – Medieval literature and culture including Old English and Latin literary tradition, bilingual aesthetics, intellectual history, the relationship between material and literary artifacts
C. Kim – Asian North American literature and theory, Canadian literature, diasporic and postcolonial literatures and theory, women’s writing and feminist theory, print cultures and history of the book
C. Lesjak – Victorian literature and culture, feminist and Marxist theory, theory of the novel
M. Levy – romantic literature, women writers, domesticity and the family, law and literature, literature and the environment
M. Linley – Victorian poetry and prose; 19th century women poets, literature and visual representation
S. McCall – contemporary Canadian literature, First Nations studies, post-colonial studies
D.H. Reder – indigenous literatures in Canada, indigenous literary theories and epistemologies, and autobiography theory
P.M. St. Pierre – Commonwealth literature, Canadian literature
E.A. Schellenberg – Restoration, 18th century literature, 18th century women writers, print culture
J. Smith – 20th century US literature, US southern studies, cultural studies, post-colonial theory
D. Solomon – 18th century literature, restoration drama and print culture
T. Werth – Tudor literature and culture, romance, religious polemic
S. Zwagerman – rhetoric and writing, speech act theories, gender and discourse, American literature
In addition to requirements in the Graduate General Regulations (page 219), the department requires evidence of academic writing ability in the form of at least two substantial literary essays which are scholarly in format and approach. The papers may be undergraduate essays previously prepared, or ones specially written for this purpose. Applicants to the master of arts for teachers of English (MATE) are not required to submit a writing sample.
This program develops scholars with a critical and comprehensive awareness of English studies. While offering specialization in one of various areas of strength in the department, the program requires a breadth requirement through course work and thereby grounds students’ interests in a wide and flexible understanding of English studies. Students without a strong English background may be required to strengthen their preparation before admission. As well, all MA students complete ENGL 880 and 881, the graduate professional development seminars.
The program may be completed in one of two ways as shown below.
Option A
This option consists of six courses including ENGL 880, 881 and a pre-twentieth century literature course. In addition, students write a thesis of about 100 pages and defend it in an oral examination.
Option B
This option consists of eight courses including ENGL 880, 881, a pre-twentieth century literature course, and one other pre-nineteenth century literature course. In addition, students undertake an MA final research paper.
Full-time students typically enrol in two regular courses per term in addition to one of the required professional development seminars. The MA program is completed in three terms. For further departmental requirements, consult the departmental handbook.
The department recognizes the special needs of working people who wish to improve their qualifications. Some graduate courses are regularly offered in the evening.
Examinations
While the general regulations set the minimum CGPA necessary for continuance at 3.0, the department regards grades below B to be unsatisfactory and expects students to achieve above the minimum. If progress is unsatisfactory, withdrawal under “1.8.2 Review of Unsatisfactory Progress” on page 223 of the Graduate General Regulations may be required.
Option A students complete four courses, two professional development seminars, write a thesis of about 100 pages and defend it in an oral examination. Thesis option students submit a thesis proposal and are examined by the supervisory committee no later than one term following course work completion. Students proceed with the thesis only after approval of the supervisory committee and the graduate program committee.
Option B students (including MATE students) choose a paper or project from one of their six courses. The paper or project, which is revised and expanded for publication, is examined by two faculty who, together, assign a grade of pass with distinction/pass/fail. The paper or project is completed and submitted for evaluation no later than the end of the term following course work completion. A student who fails may be permitted a second and final attempt. For further information, see “1.1 Degrees Offered” on page 219.
Specialization in Print Culture 1700-1900
The MA program also permits interdisciplinary specialization in the politics of print culture (1700-1900), focusing on the changing role of printed texts in an emerging commercial society.
Master of Arts for Teachers of English (MATE)
This cohort program for English teachers in the secondary and elementary school and collegiate system, offers an accessible two year advanced degree in English studies which recognizes the particular needs of teachers for a review of new critical approaches in the field, and for scheduling adapted to the demands of employment.
The MATE cohort program consists of eight courses and an MA final paper or project. Two of these are required cohort courses, ENGL 831 and 834, which are taught as Shakespeare and twentieth century literature courses; and two are required professional development seminars, ENGL 880 and 881, which are taught as MATE cohort courses, focusing on recent critical approaches to literary study and on advanced research methods, respectively.
For information, see Examinations above.
In addition to the MA programs described here, which accommodate and encourage interdisciplinary study, the University offers degree programs to exceptionally able applicants whose proposed studies cannot be carried out in any existing program. Students interested in pursuing an MA may wish to submit a proposal for special arrangements through the Office of the Dean of Graduate Studies. See “1.3.4 Admission to a Doctoral Program” on page 220.
Joint Master’s in English and French Literatures
This program allows students who have already been trained in both literatures to continue studies beyond the undergraduate level. See “Joint Master in English and French Literatures” on page 258.
Applicants will have a well planned project that integrates with the department’s areas of expertise. Cross disciplinary proposals and innovative studies are encouraged. Students are expected to contribute at all stages of the program.
The department’s major areas include English literature, language, and print culture. Library resources include the contemporary literature collection, the largest single collection of post-war experimental and avant-garde poetry in Canada; the Wordsworth collection, including one of the largest collections of Lake District writings; William Blake drawings, illuminations and engravings in facsimile. The library also has on-line scholarly databases and resources in all major areas of study and subscribes to a wide range of leading academic journals.
The program is normally completed within four years.
Admission Requirements
Students must have an MA or equivalent with high standing from a recognized university and a solid grounding in English studies. To fill any academic gaps, extra undergraduate or graduate courses may be required. Before accepting a student into the program, the department will consider the proposed research in relation to faculty resources in the field.
To apply, transcripts of all previous post-secondary studies, three academic reference letters, two academic writing samples, and a one to two page doctoral project description are required. See “1.3 Admission” on page 219 for admission requirements.
Application Deadline
February 1
Residence Requirement
Six terms
Program Requirements
The first two years involve course work, field examinations, and a thesis prospectus to provide necessary grounding before the thesis project. In the third year, students engage in dissertation research and writing. Upon admission, the graduate chair is the advisor until a senior supervisor and supervisory committee are confirmed. Each student is matched with a potential senior supervisor, normally upon admission, and the supervisory committee should be formed during the first year and no later than the beginning of the field exams. Student and senior supervisor are encouraged to meet early.
Language Requirement
PhD students must demonstrate to the supervisory committee an acceptable reading ability in a language other than English. For information and regulations, see “Graduate General Regulations” on page 219.
The program’s three stages include course work; field exams and thesis prospectus; thesis oral defence.
Courses
By the third term’s end, the student completes five regular courses, at least one of which must be outside the student's specialization area. ENGL 880/881 is also completed, which is the graduate professional development seminar. The senior supervisor, in consultation with the graduate program chair, advises the student about course choices.
Field Exams and Thesis Prospectus
The field exam process begins at the start of the third doctoral term, normally in the first summer term, and must be completed by the end of the sixth term. There are two fields to be completed consecutively in the fourth and fifth terms. The thesis prospectus is written in the sixth term.
The Field Committees
The committee for the secondary field, which will be written first, consists of an advisor who is a field specialist and one knowledgeable faculty member. The primary field committee, which will be written second, consists of three faculty members: the primary field advisor (normally the dissertation supervisor) and two faculty members in the field.
Secondary Field
The secondary field examination paper ensures a comprehensive expertise in an area of study distinct from, but providing a basis of, knowledge that is useful to the student's field of specialization. The department offers fields in three general areas (historical, geographical, and theoretical) and may consider other fields if faculty and library resources are sufficient and it is academically appropriate.
Primary Field
The primary field exam ensures that students have a broad knowledge and understanding of the literature, historical contexts and critical history of the primary field of English studies that is germane to their dissertation area and in which they will be claiming expertise as university teachers and scholars.
Thesis Prospectus
The thesis prospectus guides students toward defining a thesis topic and is undertaken normally in the sixth term following the completion of the second field exam. The supervisory committee for the thesis prospectus will be the dissertation committee that was formed for the primary field.
Thesis
After the completion of the thesis prospectus, the candidate will write a scholarly thesis normally consisting of between 200 and 250 pages (not including bibliography).
From the supervisory committee’s appointment, the student and senior supervisor meet at least three times a term through the field exam period, thesis prospectus term, and thesis research/ writing period.
The completed thesis is defended in an oral exam. The (defence) examining committee consists of a chair (normally the graduate program chair), members of the supervisory committee (senior supervisor and at least one other department member), a faculty member external to the department, and an external examiner who is not a member of 91ÅÝܽ.
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