English

English 1 students engage in an exploration of the self. Inspired by our Kent School motto — Self-Reliance, Directness of Purpose, and Simplicity of Life — we will probe essential questions such as Who am I? What are the components of my identity? What is my purpose? What does it mean to be self-reliant? Students will hone their reading and writing skills in a collaborative classroom environment, exploring poetry, plays, novels, short stories, and essays. Through both critical and creative written responses, as well as instruction in grammar and mechanics, students learn to share their ideas in writing that is effective, persuasive, and engaging.

English 2 builds on the work of English 1 and expands our exploration of the self to consider the relationship between the individual and society. Students will deepen their exploration of the Kent motto — Self-Reliance, Directness of Purpose, and Simplicity of Life — by considering essential questions such as How does society affect an individual’s sense of self? How does one engage with and contribute to society? How do storytelling and memory preserve personal and collective histories? By carefully analyzing a wide variety of literature from a diversity of voices, English II students discover what literature reveals about our humanity and the contemporary age. Through critical and creative written responses, as well as continued instruction in grammar and mechanics, students learn to share their ideas in writing that is effective, persuasive, and engaging. Prerequisite: departmental approval for enrollment in Honors level.

English 3 students read a variety of American literature (including The Underground Railroad, The Things They Carried, The Great Gatsby, and a selection of narratives, short fiction, plays, essays, and poems) to develop a broad understanding of American voices and perspectives. Through both critical and creative responses, English 3 students will build upon the skills developed in earlier classes to express their ideas in writing that is effective, persuasive, and engaging. Prerequisite: departmental approval for enrollment in Honors level.

Across their Fifth and Sixth Form years, students will need to take a total of six (6) term courses, including at least one writing-focused course and at least one literature-focused course. Students must take English every term. All new Fifth and Sixth Form students will take Writing Seminar in the fall term of their first year.  We invite students who are interested in advanced coursework in English to consider Advanced Studies electives.

 

Personal Narratives 

In this course, students will refine their skills as personal storytellers outside of the context of the college essay. Students will explore exemplary autobiographical pieces of writing that weave personal experiences into compelling narratives. Particular emphasis will be placed on students reflecting on their own experiences, developing a written voice, and crafting thematically compelling stories. Students will also analyze different works, experiment with storytelling techniques, and engage in peer writing workshops. At the end of the term, students will put together a portfolio of their written work.

Poetry Writing: Doggerel and Beyond 

Students in this course will be introduced to forms and genres (e.g., sonnet, villanelle, free verse, and elegy), will dive deep into the work of a poet they come to admire, and will try their hand at the writing of several forms of poetry. Most of the composition–drafting, workshopping, and revising–will happen during class time; the homework will often be a close reading of a model poem. 

Poetry Workshop 

Students will read a mix of contemporary and historical poets: Christian Wiman and John Donne, Ocean Vuong and Sappho, Mary Oliver and John Clare, among many, many others. Each week students will share a poem of their own with the class for feedback and discussion. By the end of the term, students will have a small portfolio of poems. 

Playwriting 

Experience the excitement of seeing your written work come to life! Students in this class will write short original plays after spending the first portion of the term studying selected great plays and following a development process created by one of America’s most produced writers. Students will build their work in class through weekly presentations of their newest scenes and will revise their plays based on both peer and instructor criticism. All students will seek to finish the semester with polished, dramatically sound works. We will end the term with in-class readings of the completed plays. This course will fulfill the English Department elective requirement or the Performing Arts Department elective requirement (but not both.)

Public Speaking 

Speaking in public can be a daunting and nerve-wracking experience. In fact, most people go their whole lives trying to avoid situations in which they have to speak in front of a crowd. In this course, you will learn about the public speaking through both written and recorded speeches as well as a collection of resources on best practices. Then, you will be tasked with writing and giving your own speeches, honing your ability to express yourself in front of others and, ideally, coming to a realization that public speaking can be a powerful and rewarding exercise.

Screenwriting 

When we write a story, it's our responsibility to think about the reader. They will use their imagination to build the world we have created, and our words will serve as the instructions for them to follow. Things work very differently, though, when the final product will already have a visual component. Screenwriting — the writing process for film and television — requires a unique approach and a slightly different set of skills. In this class, we will begin with the basics of story structure, character development, and writing dialogue while analyzing short films. Students will work in a collaborative "writing room" environment as they work towards writing their own short film screenplay. Later, we will turn our attention to writing for television, specifically focusing on sitcoms. Students will watch several episodes of the same sitcom before writing their own episode. Students are highly encouraged to download a screenwriting software (like KIT Scenarist) as proper script formatting will be expected. 

Sports Writing 

The best sports writing is more than a box score and trying to make something out of the cryptic and evasive comments of a paranoid coach. The best sports writing includes all the elements of the human condition: ego, ambition, disappointment, personal sacrifice, virtue, and vice. It also employs some of the devices of great literary fiction and non-fiction — strong characters, conflict, and suspense. In this course, we will read classic and contemporary sports writing to be entertained and to learn about the craft of effective writing. Students will argue and debate. They will also read, write, explain, analyze, and describe. Students will be asked to write in a variety of sports-related modes from the game recap to the sports profile to the opinion piece.

Write On! 

Writing fiction is fun, especially when you have the freedom to write about things that interest you. Writing fiction is exhilarating when you write not only for yourself but for an audience who appreciates your work. This course is a short story writing workshop designed to help students produce three short stories in the term; students will then choose one of their stories to submit to The Cauldron for consideration. For inspiration, we will read stories from various authors with diverse backgrounds and styles. For guidance, we will use Browne and King’s Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to Edit Yourself Into Print. Drafting and sharing our work is fundamental to the course’s design. 

Writing Seminar 

In this course, students will develop strong analytical writing skills, focusing on crafting clear, well-structured, and persuasive arguments. Through workshops, peer reviews, and personalized feedback, students will strengthen their writing process from brainstorming to final revisions. They will learn to organize ideas effectively, develop thoughtful thesis statements, and integrate textual evidence with precision. Students will also explore rhetorical strategies to adapt their writing for different audiences and purposes. This seminar is required for all new juniors and seniors and may also be recommended for returning students who would benefit from additional support in writing.

Zines & Protest Literature 

This course is for anyone who is interested in learning more about zines — self-published, small-distribution works made of text and images. Drawing on cultural, social, and political perspectives, we will consider such topics as personal identity, fashion, music, youth culture, and any topic that moves you! In addition to reading and creating zines each week, we will explore protest literature by examining excerpts from Civil Disobedience, the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, and the writings of American suffragists.

 

21st Century Drama: Zacarías and Morisseau 

Dominique Morisseau and Karen Zacarías are two of the most-produced playwrights in America today. Both have presented indelible images on stages around the country, but their approaches are vastly different from each other. Morisseau’s incisive dramas present the Black experience in a manner that leaves audiences breathless and tearful, while Zacarías commonly employs outrageous humor to illustrate her point of view as a Latina living in America. Both achieve results that have garnered countless accolades. We’ll read at least two plays from each author: Morriseau’s Detroit ’67 and Skeleton Crew and Zacarías’ Native Gardens and The Book Club Play will definitely be on the agenda, and we’ll have the option to add another play by each author from the collections we’ll have in class. Students will both write about each work and read aloud from the plays, sometimes dramatically on the small stage in the Acting Studio!

21st Century Short Stories

Short works dating from 2001 through today will be on the table for our class! Through discussion and close-readings, our class will discover the key distinctive literary features of short story writing in the 21st Century through close textual analysis of writers such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Haruki Murakami, Claire Keegan, and Jennifer Egan. We will analyze the authors’ exploration of themes such as identity, place and trauma in the personal and social context. We will spend time discussing and reflecting and writing about what you learn with other students, and even write a story of your own.

The Art of Living Well 

In this course, students will read a variety of texts that engage with the question of what it means to lead a good life. Where do we find happiness? How can we explain the coexistence of joy and sorrow? What does true happiness look like for you? Authors may include: Marcus Aurelius, Thoreau & Emerson, Annie Dillard, Muriel Barbery, Ted Chiang, and Matt Haig. In addition to close reading and analytical writing, students will practice journaling, meditative walking, art and music appreciation, and time spent in nature. 

The Art of Simplicity: Exploring the Works of Ernest Hemingway 

What do bullfights, shark attacks, plane crashes, and WWII espionage have in common? They are all experiences that shaped Ernest Hemingway into an iconic American writer. In this class, students will read a selection of Hemingway's most renowned works: The Old Man and the Sea, The Sun Also Rises, and a collection of his short stories. Through close reading and critical analysis of these texts, we will begin to explore the literary techniques and minimalist prose that defined Hemingway’s life and his work. By the end of the term, students will have gained a better understanding both of the thematic underpinnings of these texts and of Hemingway's artistry more broadly.

Black American Horror 

What scares you the most? Is it something physical like bats? Spiders? Needles? Darkness? Maybe it’s something supernatural like ghosts, vampires, aliens, or Lovecraft’s Great Old Ones. Or perhaps, it’s something a bit more abstract. Heights. Isolation. Death. Writers within the horror genre play with all of these themes and countless more to make our skin crawl, our heart rate surge, and our minds conjure evil all around us. African American authors have used the genre not only to scare, but to comment on what it means to be Black in America. This class will examine how Black authors have partnered essentials of horror writing with the real life horror of racial persecution.

Dystopian Literature 

From The Hunger Games to the Divergent series, artists and audiences alike are finding grim delight in imagining nightmarish worlds that are not far off in the future. These fictional worlds underline the very real fears of current society by extending current issues—like authoritarian governments, over- reliance on technology, lack of privacy—to a foreseeable doom. Although these stories rarely have happy endings, the vivid details of these dystopian worlds present a nuanced perspective on what makes us human. This course will begin with selections from Sir Thomas More’s Utopia, and then we will turn our attention to more contemporary texts, George Orwell’s 1984 and Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale.

Hamilton, the Elective

The musical Hamilton took the world by storm when it opened back in 2015. Why? How did a young writer take a fat historical biography and turn it into the most successful theatrical production the world has seen in a generation? How could hip-hop, R&B, jazz, and a dash of musical theatre standard flavor be mixed to create a concoction that has not only topped bestseller charts, but also told the story of a dead white guy from two centuries ago? Our study of the poetry Lin-Manuel Miranda creates for this musical will be compared to the source material, and the many dramatic, literary, and musical techniques employed by the creative team will be explored, revealing the many reasons why Miranda has been recognized as a new Shakespeare for our time.

Hamlet

A Kent School tradition for seniors: exploring the elusive and allusive world of Hamlet. In this course, students will refine their understanding of Shakespearean language, learn about the political, religious, and social influences on the play, and pay attention to the ebbs and flows of Hamlet’s “words, words, words”. Reading and examining the play will, of course, be accompanied by viewing various film and filmed stage adaptations. The final project will be a research project on some element of the play or Shakespearean England, accompanied by a presentation. 

Horror and Madness 

Emily Dickinson writes, ”Much Madness is divinest Sense - To a discerning Eye -” This course tests the validity of her poetic statement by examining gothic horror stories whose narrators relate spine-chilling accounts of supernatural events. Before examining these stories, we will ground our understanding of madness by reading Ernest Becker’s chapter in The Denial of Death, “A General View of Mental Illness.” Course texts include selected Poe short stories, Charlotte Perkins Gillman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, and Mark Danielewski’s House of Leaves. We will seek answers to the following questions: What is truth and how can we tell if something is true? What truths do these stories offer regarding what it means to be human? What does our attraction to this genre suggest about us? Would Becker agree with Dickinson’s assertion, and after reading these stories, do we? 

Magical Realism 

Magical realism with its interest in the fantastic, the surreal, and even the supernatural is a genre that pushes boundaries while entrancing readers. Fantastic premises and stories are told “straight” or as Gabriel Garcia Marquez says: “with a brick face.” In this course, we’ll consider questions like: Why magical realism? How is the genre especially well-suited for exploring truths that realistic fiction is less capable of describing? How does the genre allow marginalized peoples a creative way to speak to their experiences? How might magical realism be especially relevant to the modern moment? Students will write creatively and analytically and will be expected to contribute regularly to class discussions. Representative authors may include: Kafka, Garcia Marquez, Ionesco, Gogol, and Link.

The Modernists

In this elective, we will explore the ideas of 20th-century modernism through the study of writers such as Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, T.S. Eliot, and others. Fragmented narratives, stream-of-consciousness, existentialism, and the search for meaning in an increasingly hopeless world — this course will examine how these authors grappled with the rapid changes of the modern era. We will analyze how modern texts challenge traditional narrative forms, question established values, and reflect the anxieties of modern life. 

Page to Screen 

Some people say that Hollywood has run out of ideas, focusing instead on remakes and sequels. However, the film industry has long relied on pre-existing works to inspire its productions, with plays, novels, and short stories being a frequent well from which screenwriters draw. There’s even an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay just for this purpose! However, lovers of the written word frequently say that no film adaptation can ever live up to the original novel. Why is that? In this course, students will read and analyze first, then watch the movie adaptations. They will compare the two, exploring similarities and differences, editorial choices, and how faithful the adaptations were to both the source material and their own mental representations of the story. The class will show how the film industry benefits from great works of literature but still must remain true to itself. 

Pride and Prejudice 

Together we will travel back in time to Regency England (c.1810-1820) and delve into Jane Austen’s classic novel, Pride and Prejudice. Over the course of three months, we will engage deeply with the novel’s themes, characters, and social commentary. One of the most iconic texts of the British literature canon, this novel has been scrutinized and adapted in countless forms after its publication in 1813. We will not only examine Austen's witty narrative style and keen insight into human relationships, but we’ll also explore the enduring relevance of Pride and Prejudice in today’s world through several different adaptations, mostly of the screen variety.

Shakespeare’s Comedic Heroines 

William Shakespeare created some of the most joyful, assertive, and intelligent female roles in theater history. We will explore two pairs of them: Viola and Olivia in Twelfth Night, and Rosalind and Celia in As You Like It. Both plays famously center on the lead female character donning a male disguise in the first act of the play. Shakespeare’s world was a highly visual and coded one: social standing, as well as gender, was communicated through clothing. In taking a closer look at both the plays, we will explore gender roles and non-heterosexual relationships, and the ways in which appearance can be adapted, misconstrued, and resolved. Students will gain familiarity with Shakespearean language, engage in active performing, and write close analysis of the plays. 

Weird Stories 

This course focuses on mind-bending short stories and novellas that explore modern angst and philosophical dilemmas. Course texts include Kafka’s The Castle, Camus’ The Stranger, and a variety of short stories from authors including Nabokov, Chiang, Borges, and Saunders. We will examine how these authors’ fantastical storytelling compels us to explore what Kant describes as philosophy’s central questions — What can I know? What should I do? What may I hope? The course will conclude with a culminating essay in which students will articulate their philosophy of life, answering Kant’s questions while referring to course texts for inspiration and comparison.

What is Water?: Finding Meaning and the Power of Conscious Choice 

Whether it be mindlessly scrolling on our phones or going through the motions of a school day, we are constantly making choices without even realizing it. In fact, we make thousands of unconscious decisions every day. In this elective course, we will explore what it means to make a conscious choice — to intentionally consider your own ideas in relation to others. To think about your own thinking. In doing so, we will consider whether making conscious decisions and overriding our “default settings” can improve our well-being and, in the long run, help us find meaning in our lives. Course materials include the essays “This is Water” and “Self-Reliance,” the novels Fahrenheit 451 and Siddhartha, and the film Good Will Hunting.

World Food Literature 

Let me ask you a question: You know that bread that Aladdin stole from the market — what did it taste like? Did Lao Tzu eat warm, steamy egg cakes? Did Gilgamesh enjoy a fermented beverage? Hmmm. Let’s find out. Make no mistake, this is a typical World Literature class. You will study ancient literature from its earliest recorded writings including fables, myths, folktales, and parables, as well as sacred texts of ancient cultures. You will dabble in the Epic study of heroes from different cultures learning the elements that make up epic literature. There will be poetry study which will include the poetry of ancient Greece and Rome, poetry from Egypt, Japan, China, the Middle East, and the European sonnet. We will read excerpts from the books of Michael Pollan who wrote The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s Eye View of the World, and Mark Kurlansky who wrote Salt: A World History. And, of course, we will cook. We will eat.

 

AS-level Writing Electives are available to all Fifth and Sixth Form students dependent upon departmental approval and availability. AS Writing Electives are intellectually demanding, designed to foster a rigorous and sustained writing practice. Students will engage in extensive writing, refining their craft toward mastery of their chosen genre. Each elective culminates in a final product—whether a portfolio, collection, or revised body of work—that reflects their intellectual growth. Active participation in workshop-style discussions is essential, allowing students to present their work, engage in critique, and refine their writing through constructive feedback. Reading will be central to the course, with students analyzing works that exemplify the genre, deepening their understanding of form and technique. By the course’s end, students will have a polished body of work and a deeper command of the genre. Students should anticipate approximately one hour of homework per class. 

AS Literary Journalism 

This course will explore literary journalism, where the boundaries between fact and fiction blur, and storytelling transcends traditional reporting. Through the works of iconic writers such as Truman Capote, Joan Didion, Gay Talese, Tom Wolfe, and Hunter S. Thompson, we will examine how narrative techniques, vivid character portraits, and personal perspectives transform real-life events into compelling stories. The course will focus on developing the skills to write deeply researched, engaging nonfiction that reads like fiction, while maintaining a commitment to truth. Students will learn to craft their own pieces of literary journalism, blending investigative rigor with creative narrative techniques.

AS Memoir Workshop 

In this course, we will read, discuss, and write about memoir (both long-format and short-) with the goal of becoming memoir writers ourselves. Our analysis will focus on the craft choices made by the author in constructing the story (i.e., trying to figure out why the memoir is the way it is) with the ultimate goal of learning to incorporate these craft elements into our own work. Classmates will construct their own memoirs, rely on peers for constructive suggestions for improvement through regular workshop classes; the term will conclude with each student crafting and revising a long-format memoir of their own. 

AS The New Yorker: Contemporary Culture, Arts and Politics 

What will we read in this class? We won’t know until each week’s issue of The New Yorker, “a magazine offering a signature mix of reporting and commentary on politics, international affairs, popular culture and the arts, science and technology, and business, along with fiction, poetry, humor, and cartoons,” comes out! Over the course of the term, you will create pieces in similar genres (from long-format non-fiction to creating cartoons), and the term will culminate with your creation of your very own version of the magazine. The only text is a 12-week subscription to the magazine. If you’d like to check out the kinds of things we’ll be reading and writing, head to www.newyorker.com/magazine. 

AS Short Fiction Workshop 

In this course, we will read, discuss, and write about a series of contemporary short stories with the goal of becoming better short fiction writers ourselves. Our analysis of the stories will focus on the craft choices made by the author in constructing the story (i.e., trying to figure out why the story is the way it is) with the ultimate goal of learning to incorporate these craft elements into our own creative work. One class each week will be devoted to workshopping short stories written by class members, and the course will conclude with students revising their own short fiction in a curated portfolio. This will be a discussion-driven class that will demand your creativity and commitment to improving your craft.

 

AS-level Literature Electives are available to all Fifth and Sixth Form students dependent upon departmental approval and availability. AS-level Literature courses offer an intensive exploration of advanced literary study, challenging students to cultivate insight and precision as readers and writers. Students will develop confident, critical voices, producing work that reflects originality and clarity. Writing assignments will often require students to generate their own prompts, encouraging intellectual curiosity and a sense of ownership over their ideas. Active participation in discussion is essential. By the end of each term, students will demonstrate a growing capacity for independent thought and sophisticated analysis. Students should anticipate approximately one hour of homework per class.

AS Gothic & Domestic Thrillers: Death by Patriarchy 

Enter the haunting world of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and the gripping realm of female domestic thrillers. This course explores how women’s writing delves into fear, power, and psychological tension within domestic spaces. Through close reading, literary analysis, and genre study, you’ll uncover the feminist undercurrents of these suspenseful narratives while engaging with their historical, cultural, and critical contexts. Discover how these stories illuminate women’s resilience in navigating oppressive structures—and prepare to be thrilled along the way.

AS Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads in Them 

This will be an advanced study of challenging poems. Students will encounter sophisticated relationships among elements such as subject, form, rhyme, allusion, context, and voice. The poems will range from the Renaissance to the very recent; expect works by Ben Jonson, John Donne, Emily Dickinson, James Merrill, Jorie Graham, Wallace Stevens, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Robert Hayden, Kevin Young, and many others.

AS James Baldwin: His Work, His World, and His Heirs 

The course surveys work by James Baldwin (1924-87), one of the most essential American writers. Black, gay, born in Harlem and for many years an expatriate, Baldwin saw America simultaneously from within and without. The pleasures of his prose, however, lie not simply in his point of view or even his analysis. He must be heard. We’ll also briefly survey his legacy among writers he has influenced. 

AS Literature and the Land 

This course is about appreciating nature and considering varied perspectives toward land – artistic, cultural, economic, historical, poetic, scientific, spiritual. While nature writing is a rich and flourishing genre, students will read a selection of fiction, poetry, and non-fiction that makes encourages connections with Wordsworth and the Romantics’ reaction to the industrial revolution before turning to the American version of romanticism with Emerson, Thoreau, Dillard, Ehrlich, along with essays by modern activists. Students will engage in close reading and advanced literary analysis, as well as draw their attention to the natural environment through narrative and descriptive writing.

AS Magical Realism 

Magical realism with its interest in the fantastic, the surreal, and even the supernatural is a genre that pushes boundaries while entrancing readers. Fantastic premises and stories are told “straight” or as Gabriel Garcia Marquez says: “with a brick face.” In this course, we’ll consider questions like: Why magical realism? How is the genre especially well-suited for exploring truths that realistic fiction is less capable of describing? How does the genre allow marginalized peoples a creative way to speak to their experiences? How might magical realism be especially relevant to the modern moment? Students will write creatively and analytically and will be expected to contribute regularly to class discussions. Representative authors may include: Kafka, Garcia Marquez, Ionesco, Gogol, and Link.

AS Medieval Literature 

Let’s step back in time to the medieval world, where epic battles, chivalric quests, and legendary creatures reign supreme. In this course, we will be diving into stories of heroism, morality, and the supernatural. Through texts such as Beowulf, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, The Canterbury Tales, and Dante’s Divine Comedy, we will examine the central themes of honor, faith, and the human struggle against both internal and external monsters. From dragons and demons to knights in shining armor and noble ladies, we will explore the fascinating intersection of myth, religion, and medieval society, while also considering how these stories continue to influence modern culture. 

AS Mid-Century American Plays: Hey Daddy-O, Let’s Talk Drama 

This elective invites students to explore the vibrant world of mid-century American theater. We will delve into the works of iconic playwrights such as Miller, Hansberry, Williams, O'Neill, Inge, Childress, and/or Baldwin. Through in-depth reading and analysis, we will examine how these plays reflect the social, political, and cultural landscapes of the 1940s and 1950s. Students will develop their skills in play analysis and read and discuss key pieces of literary criticism. Expect dynamic discussions, opportunities for performance and close reading, and a deeper appreciation for the powerful role of theater in shaping American culture.

AS Poet Laureates — Their Inspiration, Their Poetry 

When the Greeks were living large, the laurel was used to form a wreath or crown of honor for heroes and poets. The custom is derived from the myth of Daphne and Apollo and has been widely adopted since the 14th century. The term “laureate” is a form of recognition for superlative achievement, and distinguished writers may be honored as Nobel laureates. A Poet Laureate’s work has national significance, and notable bards are appointed in North America, Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Europe, and Oceania. This course will focus on selected works of American Poet Laureates — poems by Gwendoyn Brooks, Billy Collins, Rita Dove, Ada Limón, Tracy K. Smith, W.S. Merwin, Robert Penn Warren — and Youth Poet Laureates, poems by Amanda Gorman and Stephanie Pacheco. Students will engage in close reading and advanced literary analysis, and later in the term, each student will lead a Harkness discussion on a poem of their choosing.

AS Shakespearean Comedies: Ye Olde Romantick Comedies (

Dive into the intricate world of Shakespeare’s comedies in this advanced literature elective, which will focus on The Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night. Often regarded as the precursors to modern romantic comedies, these plays use humor, disguise, and romance to interrogate themes of gender, power dynamics, identity, and societal norms. Students will engage in close reading and advanced literary analysis, exploring the plays’ complex structures, genre conventions, and rich historical and cultural contexts. Through critical essays, scholarly discourse, and creative interpretations, you’ll unravel the depth behind Shakespeare’s comedic brilliance and its continued influence on literature and film.

AS Shakespeare’s “Henriad” as Early Seventeenth-Century Agit-Prop 

The four plays commonly called the Henriad–Richard II, Henry IV parts 1 and 2, and Henry V–offer distinctly skewed history, high art, low humor, seemingly immortal characters, and possibly subversive political insights. The legitimacy of the royal line will be threatened by spendthrift kings, wayward princes, felonious associates, and France. We will focus on a close reading of the plays (a typical assignment will be 300-400 lines), but excerpts from filmed adaptations will also mark the breadth and depth of what is possible with these plays. 

AS Toni Morrison’s Beloved 

In this class, students will study and discuss the legacy of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison through the close study of her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Beloved. In its unflinching portrait of the traumas and lasting, far-reaching effects of slavery, Beloved forces readers to confront how the past haunts the present. Students will consider the ways in which Morrison’s style and technique work to illustrate her themes of race, family and motherhood, and personal agency. Students will engage in close reading assignments and a longer analytical essay. In addition to the novel, students should expect to read critical essays on Morrison and some of Morrison’s own non-fiction.

AS Women in Antiquity 

Beginning with an exploration of the lives and myths of women and goddesses from ancient Greece and Rome, students will examine the role of women in society. In addition to studying Lysistrata, the Aristophanes comedy written for performance in 411 BCE, this course will build from interdisciplinary study and will offer students the opportunity to explore drama, literature, and the work of archaeologists and art historians. Students will engage in close reading and advanced literary analysis, as well as personal reflections on the perspectives and philosophies offered in the range of materials studied.

 

Students are placed in this course following a review of relevant testing (including TOEFL). ELL Literature provides an introduction to works of British and American literature. In this course, students become familiar with the basic elements of critical analysis through readings of, and written responses to novels, short stories, poetry, essays, and plays.

An integrated skills (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) course for non-native English-speaking students at the advanced level of English proficiency. Students develop active and passive vocabulary through learning word roots. Students do both informal (journals) and formal (paragraphs and essays) writing. We focus on editing strategies to make writing more clear, concrete, and concise. Class discussions and student presentations increase students' confidence using spoken English and listening skills in an academic environment, while students work together on projects, learning to collaborate. In this class, students have the opportunity to help determine course content and activities.