English Courses

ENG 103.  Elements of English.  3 hours credit, fall.
This course emphasizes grammar and basic composition skills. This course does not count toward a major in English or toward the general education requirement for core-level courses.  Required of all entering freshmen that score below 18 on the ACT English examination or below 450 on the SAT Verbal examination.

ENG 113.  English Composition I. 3 hours credit, spring.
This course fulfills the general education requirement for core-level courses; this course is a study of the essentials of composition. Readings are grouped by the rhetorical patterns they illustrate; therefore, compositions follow the rhetorical examples.  Some attention is given to the basics of grammar, spelling, parts of speech, sentence structure, and punctuation. Assignments are designed to enable the student to read discerningly, think logically, and write accurately.  MLA-style documentation is taught and required for paper submissions.

*Both composition courses are framed upon the following criteria: 1) Scope of literature in the various genres, 2) Analytical writing about Literature, 3) Academic research and formal MLA-style documentation in papers.

ENG 123.  English Composition II.  3 hours credit, fall.
This course fulfills the general education requirement for core-level courses. Conceived with a strong component of literature, this course focuses upon the literary genres and culminates in a literary research paper. The objective is to develop critical reading, writing, and thinking skills through essay responses to literature.

*Both composition courses are framed upon the following criteria: 1) Scope of literature in the various genres, 2) Analytical writing about Literature, 3) Academic research and formal MLA-style documentation in papers.

ENG 151/251/351/451. Newswriting. 1 hour credit, fall and spring; cross-listed as Com 151,251,351,451.
Discusses the basics of newswriting. Students are responsible for publishing the York College student newspaper. May be repeated one time at each level for additional credit. Each higher-level course requires progressively more advanced assignments.

ENG 203. English Proficiency. 3 hours credit, spring.
Intensive review and practice in sentence structure, punctuation, and writing skills. All students graduating with a Bachelor’s degree from York College are required to pass the York College English Proficiency Exam during their sophomore year. If the student does not make a 70% on the exam by the second attempt, then (during the student’s junior year) he or she will be required to pass ENG 203 with a minimum grade of “C”.

ENG 213. American Literature I. 3 hours credit, spring, even years.
This course does not fulfill the general education requirement for core-level courses. This course is a survey of the literary canon from the colonial era to the Civil War. This course offers a variety of genres and will focus upon the historical impact of writing and the connection to social and political movements, as well as other relevant ideas that come from the readings.

ENG 223. American Literature II.  3 hours credit, spring.
This course fulfills the general education requirement for core-level courses. This course is a survey of the major works of literature from the Civil War to the present. The course offers a variety of genres and will focus upon the historical impact of literary movements as related to social, political, and ethical effects upon society.

ENG 273. World Literature. 3 hours credit, fall.
This course fulfills the general education requirement for core-level courses. Through civilizations, both ancient and modern, this course introduces the liberal arts student to the multitude of perspectives created by culture, situation, and time context. The contrasts in similarities and differences in readings will acquaint, broaden, and develop the student’s individual global perspective.

ENG 313. British Literature I. 3 hours credit, fall, even years.
A study of British literature from the Middle Ages through the Restoration with attention given to the various influences upon the writers and the literary movements.

ENG 323. British Literature II. 3 hours credit, spring, odd years.
A study of British literature from the Romantic Period to Post-WWII with attention given to the various influences upon the writers and the literary movements.

ENG 343. Advanced Composition. 3 hours credit, spring, even years.
This course refines and polishes research and composition skills beyond the rudiments of rhetorical patterns. The emphasis will be upon expository and argumentation readings with student analysis and student constructions that mirror a more in-depth and refined approach to writing.

ENG 383. Poetry. 3 hours credit, spring, odd years.
This course emphasizes the study of poetic theory with applications to all periods and types of poetry. The course content assists in the development of special skills for the appreciation and criticism of poetry.

ENG 385. Creative Writing. 3 hours credit, fall, odd years.
The study and application of the creative writing process through professional models, designs, and forms. The course may focus upon a specific creative genre and it will emphasize creating original works of poetry and fiction. Prerequisite: ENG 113, ENG 123, and sophomore standing.

ENG 395. Film as Literature. 3 hours credit, fall, even years.
Film as Literature provides a forum to think about film as a literary production through discussion, analysis, critique, and composition. Students will write popular reviews and analytical responses, as well as a documented research project. Students will be exposed to a variety of films in multiple genres with a special emphasis on contemporary film.

ENG 404. Literary Criticism. 3 hours credit, spring, odd years.
By combining readings in critical theory with examples of critical practice on specific literary texts, this course will introduce the central evaluative and interpretative questions of literary theory and will introduce many of the major schools and dominant figures of literary criticism.

ENG 413. Introduction to Linguistics. 3 hours credit, fall, odd years.
This course introduces the student to the scientific study of English, as well as a survey of the history of English as related to origin, phonology, morphology, semantics, and syntax.

ENG 423. Short Story. 3 hours credit, fall, even years.
Course content covers the history and development of the Short Story as a genre. This course discusses the social and individual author influences affecting the story constructions, along with the analysis of author techniques that will be applied to each story.

ENG 433. Shakespeare. 3 hours credit, fall, odd years.
The Bard’s major tragedies, comedies, and histories are placed in their historical, intellectual, critical, and dramatic contexts of Renaissance England for this course. Although film and live performance will be inclusive in the course framework, the course emphasis will be upon the textual study of Shakespeare's compositions. Prerequisite: Junior or Senior standing.

ENG 453. Novel. 3 hours credit, spring, even years.
Studies the novel as a genre by introducing the student to literary analysis through further class discussion of ideas that have been generated by the author and other parallel readings.

ENG 473. Special Topics in English. 3 hours credit, fall and summer.
Content of course is structured according to faculty availability. Each version allows an in-depth study of an author, genre, or field of English. Topics may not be repeated for credit, although the course may be repeated for a total of 6 hours. When available, the summer session will be a travel course open to only English / English-Ed majors.

ENG 495. Capstone in Research and Professional Writing. 3 hours credit, spring.
This course is to be taken only during the student’s senior year. During the course, the student will complete a portfolio based upon business and professional correspondence with some assignments in the community. The second component will be the culminating senior paper, based upon both on and off-campus research, with the objective that the student will write a conference-quality paper to be formally presented on campus.