English Literature
College of Arts & Sciences
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Representing Boston
CAS EN 128
Literary and cultural geography of Boston, from Puritan sermons to modern crime fiction. Readings by Winthrop, Wheatley, Emerson, Hopkins, Antin, Lowell, Lehane and others; required fieldwork, including: Freedom Trail, Black Heritage Trail, MFA, the North End, and the West End. Effective Summer 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, The Individual in Community, Teamwork/Collaboration. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 1 (May 20-June 27)
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Reading Shakespeare
CAS EN 163
A critical introduction to Shakespeare through intensive analyses of six or seven plays. Possible attention to such topics as literary sources, early modern stagecraft, performance history, and contemporary film adaptation. Effective Summer 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 2 (June 30-August 8)
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The Graphic Novel
CAS EN 170
Examination of the rise, nature, and status of the contemporary book-length graphic novel. Topics include graphic vs. traditional novel, word and image, style and space, representations of subjectivity, trauma, and history. Authors may include Spiegelman, Bechdel, Nakazawa, Sacco, Satrapi, Backderf. Effective Summer 2024, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Digital/Multimedia Expression, Creativity/Innovation. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 1 (May 20-June 27)
A1 (IND) Tues./Thurs. 9 am-12:30 pm Add & Drop DatesLocation: CAS 227 ... Open SeatsJessica Ruliffson -
Introduction to Film & Media Aesthetics
CAS EN 176
Online offering. Introduction to fundamental concepts for the analysis and understanding of film and media. Key concepts of formal composition (e.g., editing, mise-en-scene, cinematography, sound and more) over a diverse set of media texts. Foundational skills in analysis appropriate to film, television, and moving-image media. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Aesthetic Exploration, Critical Thinking. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 2 (June 30-August 15)
Online Course: Meets online every Mon & Wed 10-11 am for a live class. Nonstandard course dates. Meets w/CAS CI 200For information about technology requirements for online courses at Boston University, see bu.edu/online/online-learning/technology. BU Virtual can be reached at buvirtual@bu.edu or 617-358-1960 for additional information. -
Seminar in Literature
CAS EN 220
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., EN 120 or WR 100 or WR 120). - Topic for summer 2025: English and American Literature on Film. Why do we adapt books into movies' How does the experience of a story we first encounter as a text change when we see it on screen' Are filmmakers obligated to be "faithful" to their sources, or do they have artistic license to innovate' Is literature an inherently "higher" form of art than movies' In this course, we consider these and other questions about cinematic adaptation in order to develop our skills as critical readers of texts and movies, and as proficient researchers and writers. We examine film adaptations of work by English-language authors such as Shakespeare, Jane Austen, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and August Wilson. Our goal is to produce well-researched, clear, and persuasive analyses of how film adaptation can enhance or sometimes challenge our understanding of literary masterpieces. Satisfies CAS WR 150 requirement. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing, Research and Inquiry, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Research and Information Literacy. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 2 (June 30-August 8)
Topic: English and American Literature on Film -
Major Authors I
CAS EN 221
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120). - Introduction to the major works of ancient and medieval literatures that influenced later Continental, English, and American literature: the Bible, Homeric epic, Greek tragedy, Vergil's Aeneid, and Dante's The Divine Comedy. Required of concentrators in English. (Cannot be taken for credit in addition to the course by the same title that was formerly numbered CAS HU 221.) 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 2 (June 30-August 8)
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Literature of the Harlem Renaissance
CAS EN 377
Undergraduate Prerequisites: one previous literature course or junior or senior standing. - Prereq: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., CAS EN 120 or CAS WR 100 or CAS WR 120) and one previous literature course or junior or senior standing. An exploration of the literature of the "New Negro Renaissance" or, more popularly, the Harlem Renaissance, 1919-1935. Discussions of essays, fiction, and poetry, three special lectures on the stage, the music, and the visual arts of the Harlem Renaissance. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 1 (May 20-June 27)
A1 (IND) Mon./Wed. 9 am-12:30 pm Add & Drop DatesLocation: AAS 102 ... Open SeatsMaryanne BoelcskevyMeets w/CAS AA 507 -
Reading and Writing Literary Nonfiction
CAS EN 502
Undergraduate Prerequisites: two previous literature courses or junior or senior standing; and Firs t-Year Writing (WR 120 or equivalent). - Prereq: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., CAS EN 120 or CAS WR 100 or CAS WR 120) and two previous literature courses or junior or senior standing. This reading and writing seminar explores literary nonfiction, a wide-ranging, sometimes controversial genre in which writers use techniques associated with fiction and poetry to make meaning of lives. How do writers describe their world, especially peoples, places, and things' What are different ways of using personal voice' Each weekly meeting includes discussion of published nonfiction along with writing short exercises, and workshopping writing. The learning goals of this course are to become better readers and more skillful practitioners of the craft of literary nonfiction. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Creativity/Innovation. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 1 (May 20-June 27)
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Linguistic Approaches to Literature
CAS EN 597
This course is concerned with the analysis of the language of literature. It is skill-based rather than knowledge-based. You will be introduced to grammatical and other technical terms that will enable you to be precise about language. By the end of the course, you should be able to use a technical vocabulary for identifying the structures of language, and to construct an interpretation substantiated by very detailed evidence drawn from your analysis. A wide range of texts from the sixteenth century to the present will be covered, and we shall reflect critically on the strengths, limitations, and theoretical implications of a linguistic approach. 4 cr. Tuition: $3260
Summer 1 (May 20-June 27)
A1 (IND) Mon./Wed./Fri. 1-3:30 pm Add & Drop DatesLocation: CAS 314 ... Open SeatsArchibald Burnett
Financial aid may be available to BU need-based scholarship recipients for certain HUB courses in summer 2025, including this one. For more information, please contact BU Financial Assistance at 617-353-2965 or finaid@bu.edu. Check out Summer 2025 HUB Course Scholarship eligibility requirements to see if you qualify.