Creative Writing

Creative Writing

The English major introduces students to the aesthetic, communicative, and cultural dimensions of language. Students examine major topics in literature and language; English electives allow students to pursue special interests. English majors choose between a literature and a creative writing concentration. During the senior year, students complete a capstone research or creative writing project, depending on the concentration, and an internship in an area related to the study of English. In all coursework, there is an emphasis on the development of sophisticated writing skills. Students majoring in English also complete three service-learning credits through service-learning courses and/or linked credits. The English major helps students to prepare for careers involving oral and written communication, language applications, or the analysis of literature. Students in the English major may also prepare to be teachers at the elementary or secondary level. Students interested in this option should consult the program plans for English with Elementary Education Concentration or English with Secondary Education Concentration, to ensure that they meet requirements for licensure. Graduates receive a Bachelor of Arts in English.

The following goals and associated learning outcomes delineate what we strive for students to achieve when they complete the major program of study in English:

Goal 1: Canons and conventions
Upon completion of the major program of study in English, students will be able to

  1. articulate why qualitative approaches have special significance for scholars who work in the humanities (e.g., literary studies, composition, history, cultural studies, art, music, philosophy, and language), although quantitative approaches make good complements
  2. demonstrate a familiarity with the ethical and moral questions that attend the human condition and the human experience
  3. demonstrate an openness to and an appreciation of the richness and diversity of the human condition and experience

Goal 2: Interpretive and critical thinking
Upon completion of the major program of study in English, students will be able to

  1. research topics, themes, and questions
  2. summarize content in materials from the various fields of the humanities
  3. interpret humanities texts critically through close reading
  4. create a valid argument, while differentiating between argument and opinion

Goal 3: Discourse and dialogue
Upon completion of the major program of study in English, students will be able to

  1. write in a professional manner
  2. speak in a professional manner

Goal 4: Professionalism
Upon completion of the major program of study in English, students will be able to

  1. adapt to professional culture
  2. manifest good work etiquette
  3. explore career options

Additional Requirements: 18-33 credits
Social Science Electives AI (PS): 6-7 credits
Science Electives AI (S): 6-8 credits

Foreign Language: 0-12 credits *
* The Foreign Language Proficiency requirement is detailed in the Academic Information section.

General Education Core Requirements and remaining Unrestricted Electives: 37-55 credits

Minimum credits required for graduation: 120

Courses listed below fulfill Area of Inquiry requirements:
Aesthetic
ENG 209: Introduction to Literature
History
HIST 103 & 104: World Civilization I & II
HIST 123 & 124: American Civilization I & II
Multicultural
ENG 312: Literature of Postcolonial World
ENG 313: American Multiethnic Literature

Course Code Course Title Credits
Core Courses
ENG209 Intro to Literature & Literary Studies 3
ENG210 Survey of American Literature 3
ENG218 British Literature 3
HUM103 Invitation to the Humanities 3
HUM399 Humanities Internship Seminar 1
HUM400 Humanities Field Experience 4
Concentration Courses
ENG219 Creative Writing 3
ENG402 Advanced Writing Workshop 3
Choose 1 from the following:
COM305 Screenwriting 3
ENG307X Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop 3
ENG308 Fiction Writing Workshop 3
ENG310 Poetry Writing Workshop 3
Choose 1 from the following:
ENG312 Literature of Postcolonial World 3
ENG313 American Multiethnic Literature 3
Choose 2 from the following:
COM209 Journalism 3
COM314 Magazine & Feature Writing 3
Choose 2 from the following:
HIST103 World Civilization I 3
HIST104 World Civilization II 3
HIST123 American Civilization I 3
HIST124 American Civilization II 3
Science
ENV211 Environmental Science 3

Additional Requirements: 18-33 credits
Social Science Electives AI (PS): 6-7 credits
Science Electives AI (S): 6-8 credits

Foreign Language: 0-12 credits *
* The Foreign Language Proficiency requirement is detailed in the Academic Information section.

General Education Core Requirements and remaining Unrestricted Electives: 37-55 credits

Minimum credits required for graduation: 120

Courses listed below fulfill Area of Inquiry requirements:
Aesthetic
ENG 209: Introduction to Literature
History
HIST 103 & 104: World Civilization I & II
HIST 123 & 124: American Civilization I & II
Multicultural
ENG 312: Literature of Postcolonial World
ENG 313: American Multiethnic Literature

HIST203 - The History of Women in U.S.

This course explores the social history of women in the United States, beginning in the colonial period and ending with an examination of twen­tieth century issues. Emphasis is on the image of women held during these periods, in contrast to actual conditions. Contributions of women to social change and the growth of women’s move­ments are also analyzed. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST204 - Recent American History

This course focuses on the presidencies beginning with Kennedy to the present. Work is divided roughly into three areas: foreign affairs; domestic politics; economic, social, and cultural needs. Topics range from the Vietnam War to the Iraq War, the weakening of Congress and the expansion of the presidency, the women's movement, changes in popular culture, and domestic economic developments. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST207 - African American History

This course explores the history of African Americans in the United States from their African beginnings to the present. It traces the lives and status of African Americans, enslaved and emancipated, as they confronted the barriers of legal, institutional, and cultural prejudices; examines the socioeconomic and political experiences of blacks in America; and investigates strategies of accommodation, resistance, and protest in the struggle of African Americans to gain human and first-class citizenship rights. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST208 - Sub-Saharan Africa after 1800

This survey of sub-Saharan African history explores the ongoing story of African political, social, and economic developments from the post trans-Atlantic slave trade period to the present. The course includes treatment of the impact of European merchants, missionaries, and adventurers on Africa from the time immediately preceding imperialism and colonialism up through the emergence of nationalism and decolonization and liberation movements. The new nation-states, their post-colonial economies, and their developing systems of justice, education, and rule are investigated. Finally, topics such as soil erosion, disease, conservation, famine, and Africa’s relationships with the wider world are discussed. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST209 - China from 1600 to Present

This course is a survey of modern Chinese history from the founding of the Qing Dynasty in the seventeenth century to Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms of the 1990s. Special attention will be paid to modernization, Western and Japanese imperialism in China, and the rise of Communism under Mao Zedong. In addition to learning about important milestones in Chinese history, students will also be introduced to aspects of Chinese art, culture, and women's issues through primary sources translated into English. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST210 - Latin Amer Colonial Period to Present

This survey looks at Latin American history from pre-Columbian to contemporary times. Emphasis is on native cultures, the “discovery” of the New World, European presence, colonialism, imperialism, the creation of the peasantry, wars of independence, the formation of nation-states, the role of the military, slavery and racism, development and underdevelopment, the Catholic Church, liberation theology, poverty, and revolution. Major emphasis in South America is on Argentina, Columbia, Peru, Chile, Venezuela, and the Portuguese speaking nation of Brazil. The course also includes examination of foreign intervention and inner instability in Mexico, including struggles for democracy, economic rights, and social justice. In the Hispanic Caribbean and Central America, especially, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Belize, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Panama, land and labor systems, gender relations, race and ethnicity, and varied forms of rule are discussed. This is a writing intensive course. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST211 - Middle East & Islamic World Since 1800

This course looks at the Middle East and its relations with the wider world, from the appearance of Napoleon to the present. Topics include attempts at reform and modernization in the Ottoman Empire; the impact of Western imperialism on the region as a whole; and twentieth-century developments in the area, including nationalism, pan-Arabism, pan-Islamism, the cult of the personality, coup, revolution, Zionism, and the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation. The economic and social impact of oil, the influence of fundamentalism, and the Great Power rivalry down through the position of the United States toward the area are investigated. The efforts of Iran to gain acceptance in/by the contemporary world is examined, as is the shifting attitude of Egypt toward modernity. Finally, connections between the region and the rest of the Islamic world are explored. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST212 - Mod Japan: Culture & History

This course is a survey of Japan's modernization from the fall of the "warring states" period to the economic bubble of the 1980s. Special attention will be paid to the contributions of the "early modern" Tokugawa Shogunate, the Meiji period of cultural borrowing from the West, and the cultural nationalism of the Japanese empire until 1945. In addition to learning about important milestones in Japanese history, students will be introduced to aspects of Japanese art and culture through a variety of primary and secondary sources and film clips. This is a presentation-intensive course. Prerequisite: a 100 level history course or ENG 102.

HIST330 - Europe & The World/ Age of Expansion

This course examines political, economic, social, scientific, and religious developments that contributed to European desire for land and power, and also to fantasies and phobias directed by European conquerors toward those whom they subdued and subjected to Western rule. The reaction toward the white Westerners on the part of those exploited is also explored. The period covered is from the mid-fifteenth century through the eighteenth century. Prerequisite: a 200 level history course or permission of instructor.

Joseph Aieta III

Professor Emeritus

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Stephanie Athey

Professor of Cultural Studies, Director of the Honors Program

Office: Winslow

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Steven Bloom

Professor Emeritus, English

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Laura Commins

Assistant Professor of Humanities

Office: Winslow

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Dennis Frey Jr

Dean of Curricular Integration, Director of Rosemary B Fuss Teaching and Learning Center, Professor of History

Office: Winslow

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Jose Guzman

Professor of Humanities, Coordinator of World Language Program

Office: Winslow

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Sharyn Lowenstein

Associate Professor Emerita, Humanities

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Lizbeth Piel

Chair of Humanities; Associate Professor of Humanities

Office: Winslow

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Thomas Sullivan

Professor Emeritus

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ENG209 - Intro to Literature & Literary Studies

This is a foundations course required for the major and the minor in English. The course provides an introduction to a variety of forms and styles in poetry, drama, short story, fiction, memoir, and essay; European, African, North American, Central and South American, and Asian literatures are considered. The focus is on interpreting texts; students are introduced to various schools of interpretation and to standards for supporting an interpretation. Students become familiar with the conventional elements of each genre and with the terminology of critical interpretation. The course introduces print and database tools for research on literature. Prerequisite: ENG 102.

ENG210 - Survey of American Literature

This course surveys representative periods, authors, or genres in American literature from beginnings in Native American oral literatures through contemporary works. Individual sections organize study of classic and contemporary texts around particular themes, such as Queering American Literatures, American Migrations, Hemispheric American Literature, or Americans on the Edge: "Frontiers" in the American Imagination. Individual sections also trace twentieth- or twenty-first-century movements to their roots in or resistance to earlier movements or forms. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: ENG 102.

ENG218 - British Literature

This course surveys British writing in poetry, fiction, and drama, with a focus on key periods in the development of British literature. Emphasis is on representative writers in each period. Periods and movements surveyed include Anglo-Saxon, Medieval, Renaissance, Restoration and the Eighteenth Century, Romanticism, Victorian, Modern, and Contemporary or Postmodern. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: ENG 102.

HUM103 - Invitation to the Humanities

This course invites students to consider what it means to be human from manifold scholarly perspectives. As such, students are introduced to the many disciplines included in the Humanities. Arguably, there are eight: art, communication, history, language, literature, music, philosophy, and religion. Taking a thoroughly interdisciplinary approach, this course investigates how humanists employ these varied disciplines in studying and expressing humanness.

HUM399 - Humanities Internship Seminar

This seminar helps students to develop objectives and identify potential sites for the senior internship. Topics include the application of humanities course work to a professional career and the development of skills necessary to locate an internship. The final goal of this course is to locate an appropriate internship. Junior or senior standing is required; this course is designed for Humanities Department majors only.

HUM400 - Humanities Field Experience

This course provides individually arranged participation in a work setting related to students' majors. Students spend 150 hours at the internship site over the course of the semester. Primary responsibility rests with students in identifying and pursuing an area of interest in consultation with the instructor. Students participate in a one-hour seminar each week that focuses on reflective activities that enhance the internship experience. Students complete written exercises about and evaluations of the experience. Evaluation of the field experience is based on student performance as reviewed by the employer and instructor at the internship site as well as participation in the seminar and written assignments. Prerequisites: junior or senior standing, approval of instructor, HUM 399. Humanities Department majors only.

ENG219 - Creative Writing

In this course, students explore various types of creative writing including fiction, poetry, and screenwriting. Students do a wide range of in-class and out-of-class writing assignments, and they have the opportunity to select one form for a major project. Prerequisite: ENG 102.

ENG402 - Advanced Writing Workshop

This is the capstone course for creative writing majors and minors. In consultation with the instructor, each student develops and completes a major writing project that focuses on the student’s writing interests. A major component of the course is students’ analysis of one another’s work. The course includes reading assignments that relate to the writing projects. Prerequisite: ENG 308 or ENG 310.

COM305 - Screenwriting

This course includes writing techniques for series and stand alone productions in television and film. Students work both independently and collaboratively in order to understand industry procedures. Students experiment with several different genres and then develop a major project. Prerequisite: COM 105.

ENG307X - Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop

In this course, we consider creative nonfiction by reading and discussing personal essays and memoir and by writing our own creative nonfiction. We discuss the difference between journalism and creative nonfiction, as well as the different approaches writers take to the “fourth genre.” Work by class members is read and discussed in a positive, supportive environment, as are other works that illuminate the use of such literary tools as imagery, metaphor, diction, sentence rhythms, and structure. Reading assignments involve the close examination of personal essays and memoir; written assignments include in-class exercises, short essay annotations and/or creative assignments, and the crafting and revision of personal essays that will be workshopped during class. Prerequisite: ENG219 or COM209.

ENG308 - Fiction Writing Workshop

In this course students write various types of fiction. They work on different types of short stories and may have the opportunity to work with longer forms such as the novella or the novel. Students will analyze the work of professional writers in order to understand a variety of writing strategies, including the uses of and approaches to plot, dialogue, point of view, and description. Students work on short and longer assignments to develop technique and also have the opportunity to structure some of their own assignments. Students' analysis of one another's writing is an extremely important component of the course. Prerequisite: ENG 219 or COM 209.

ENG310 - Poetry Writing Workshop

In this course, we consider English verse by exploring lyric poetry and engaging in its practice. Work by class members is read and discussed, as are other example poems whose study illuminates the use of tools such as imagery, diction, sound device, structure, lineation, and figurative language in the construction of poetic meaning. Reading assignments involve the close examination of poems; written assignments include short poetry annotations and the creation of a portfolio of original poetry. Prerequisite: ENG 219 or ENG 222.

ENG312 - Literature of Postcolonial World

In this course, students consider issues, movements, or traditions in literatures that respond to a history of colonization and/or imperialism. Latin American, African, and Asian cultures or traditions are emphasized in English or in English translations; issues addressed might include matters of publication and criticism, myths about the "third world," nationalism, fundamentalism, human rights, technology, and cultural resistance. Example topics include The Novel in India, Caribbean Dub Poetry, Prison Writing, Major South African Writers, Magic Realism. This is a presentation-intensive course. Prerequisite: Any 200-level English course.

ENG313 - American Multiethnic Literature

This course focuses on the history, variety, and aesthetic conventions of one or more racial-ethnic traditions in American writing. Individual courses might focus on key forms or authors; distinct traditions such as African-American, Latino, Asian-American, or Native American literature; or a survey across several traditions. Examples include Barack Obama and the African-American Tradition, Contemporary Latino Literatures, or Haiti and the US in Haitian-American Writing. This is a writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: Any 200-level English course.

COM209 - Journalism

In this course, students learn reporting and writing techniques necessary to produce a variety of types of articles. Assignments may include politics, sports, entertainment, and interviews. There is discussion of roles of reporters, columnists, editorial writers, editors, photographers, and graphic designers in the daily process of journalism as decisions are made in the news­room as to what stories to cover; what stories, photographs and video clips to publish or broadcast; and on what page to display them or in which order to broadcast them. The various reporting specialties covered in journalism – Health, Education, Business, Arts, Sports, Lifestyle, Entertainment, Travel - are explored. Students have the opportunity to publish their work in the campus newspaper, The 1851 Chronicle. Prerequisite: ENG 102.

COM314 - Magazine & Feature Writing

This course is focused on the longer pieces of magazine writing, such as feature articles and interview profiles, and other forms of narrative, nonfiction journalistic writing. The course includes reading, analyzing, and modeling well-written newspaper and magazine articles that entertain as well as inform readers. Students have the opportunity to provide editorial support for and submit feature articles for publication to Polished, a Lasell College produced magazine. Prerequisites: COM 101, COM 209.

HIST103 - World Civilization I

Beginning with prehistory, this course explores early civilizations and then follows developments in a global context, showing interconnections between Asia, Africa, and Europe. Emphasis is placed on cultural, social, economic, religious, and political developments.

HIST104 - World Civilization II

This course emphasizes themes of interrelatedness and mutuality of influence between East and West. Internal as well as external developments are explored. Questions of exclusiveness, intolerance, and cooperation are examined.

HIST123 - American Civilization I

This course examines the chief political, social, and cultural features of American society as they have developed through the period of Reconstruction. Emphasis is on Colonial America, the War of Independence, the Constitution, and the emergence of the Republic through the Civil War.

HIST124 - American Civilization II

This course is a continuation of HIST 123 from the period of Reconstruction to the present. Emphasis is on reconstruction, industrializa­tion, immigration, constitutional issues, and the emergence of American foreign policy. There is some examination of American political life in the nuclear age.

ENV211 - Environmental Science

During this course, students are introduced to the concept of environmental sustainability. Issues such as climate change, biodiversity, food and agriculture, water resources, and energy are explored. Students are challenged to consider the impact of Lasell College on the environment and will complete a greenhouse gas inventory. Students also examine the role of science and technology in the pursuit of environmental sustainability.