With registration for the upcoming fall semester just around the corner, the English department would like to highlight some of the higher level courses that will be available next semester.

WRIT 280 – Intro to Rhetoric for Writers

Taught asynchronously by Dr. Pfannenstiel

Course Description: “In the past few decades, scholars of writing (Writing Studies and Composition) returned to rhetoric and rhetorical theories to develop productive ways of teaching writing. As part of our Writing Studies program here in Millersville University’s English and World Languages Department, Introduction to Rhetoric for Writers introduces students to the rhetorical theories that form the baseline of how we understand and develop as writers.

This course starts with rhetorical theory in Greek and Roman times. We then jump to contemporary uses. We build an understanding of how rhetoric exists within communication all around us, all the time”

ENGL 331- Special Topic: The Beats- Before, During, and After

Taught by Dr. Ording on Monday, Wednesday, Friday at 11:00-11:50pm

Course Description: “Explore the brilliance and influence of The Beat Generation through the poets from each era. This includes predecessors Whitman, Emerson, then The Beats themselves Kerouac and Ginsberg, and their successors Brautigan, Bukowski, and Morrison.”

ENGL 334- African American Literature II

Taught by Dr. Jakubiak on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:10-2:25pm

Course Description: “Students will read works by 20th and 21st century African American poets, prose writers and playwrights including James Baldwin, Toni Morrison and Colson Whitehead. Explore how these major writers use literary art to ask questions about race and intersectional identity in the United States.”

ENGL 343- Ecofeminist Fiction Seminar

Taught asynchronously by Dr. Mondello

Course Description: “Ecofeminist Fiction centers relationships between women and the natural world in novels, novellas (short novels), and short stories. While sometimes this takes the form of a celebration of connection, it is more often portrayed as a shared subjugation to patriarchal forces. Responses include solidarity between women, animals, and nature, as well as monstrous figures and revenge plots against exploitation. We will read texts from a variety of time periods to consider the history of ideas about the connections between nature and gender in fiction to trace the wide range of styles and techniques across literary fiction more broadly. Readings and class discussions will focus on literary representations of the environment with an emphasis on gendered, racialized and other intersectional depictions of nature, as well as on human and non-human characters who are associated with nature.”

ENGL 428- Contemporary American Literature (1945-Present)

Taught by Dr. Ording on Mondays from 6:00-9:00pm

Course Description: “Explore fiction and other cultural productions in the contemporary period through works by notable writers such as Salinger, Steinbeck, Morrison, and Baldwin.”

WRIT 466- Special Topics Seminar on Rhetoric, Writing, and Social Justice in Educational Settings

Taught asynchronously by Dr. Farkas

Course Description: “Words are powerful and can be used to inspire and foster change.  This course will examine the intersections among rhetoric, writing, and advocacy, and in it, students will focus on understanding the ways language and practice can affect systems of inequality, particularly in an educational context.  Beginning with a reflection on their own educational journeys and culminating with a case study of an educational context, students will examine whether Pennsylvania and Lancaster County schools (K-12 and higher education) provide a thriving learning environment for every student, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity, disability, and sexuality. Students will also analyze the role of power and privilege in shaping educational policies and practices and develop strategies to advocate for equity and justice in education.”