English Literature

Bethel's English Department offers both a major and a minor in English Literature with courses ranging from World Literature to Shakespeare to The Harlem Renaissance.  The English Literature major is just 36 credits which allows students to easily combine it with other majors or courses of study.  In this major, you will meet professors like Dr. Thomas Becknell, an American Literature scholar and published author who has strong interest in the environmental sciences as well.  Dr. Dan Ritchie is a British Literature scholar who established Bethel's four semester Humanities general education option. Access an audio file of his lecture at the McLaurin Institute here.  Dr. Mark Bruce is a Bethel graduate who has returned to teach courses like Chaucer, Shakespeare, and World Literature.  His passion is medieval studies--see a sample of his interactive Beowulf here.

English Literature and Writing

    The Literature and Writing major gives students the opportunity to both read and create literature.  It includes most of the literature study required for the English Literature major but includes significant coursework in writing as well.  There are over fifteen writing courses from which to choose, ranging from Poetry Writing to Principles of Editing and Design.  In this major you will meet Dr. Joey Horstman, an essayist who also directs Bethel's Film Studies program.   Here is a review of Joey's work written by a departmental graduate who has his own freelance writing business. Professor Angela Shannon is a poet who was recently nominated for a Minnesota Book Award and teaches Introduction to Creative Writing and Poetry Writing.  She also is the faculty advisor to the Coeval, Bethel's literary journal. Read a sample poem here courtesy of PoemHunter.com.  Dr. Marion Larson brings an expertise in Japanese literature to the department's World Literature course as well as directing Bethel's Honors Program.  Dr. Dan Taylor has written a number of books including The Myth of Certainty and Letters to My Children.

Other Off-Campus Opportunities

The department offers Travel Writing each January so students get the opportunity to explore the intersection of culture and writing as well as to learn specific strategies for this genre.  Groups have recently traveled to Australia and Costa Rica with Dr. Dan Taylor.

In Interim 2009, Dr. Dan Ritchie will be taking students to Jordan and Egypt to study the literature of Christianity and Islam.