General Linguistics

In conjunction with the Linguistics Program, English also offers an option in English Linguistics which provides a background in both literature. Students interested in Teaching English as a Second Language, which prepares students for the particular concerns of second-language acquisition and pedagogy, may pursue the Teaching English as a Second Language Certificate Program through the Anthropology Department. Please note that the Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) Certficiate Program is not a stand-alone route to licensure.  For licensure requirements, refer to the College of Education section in this catalog.

Bachelor of Arts - English; Linguistics Option

College Humanities & Sciences

Catalog Year: 2016-2017

Degree Specific Credits: 45

Required Cumulative GPA: 2.0

Note: Upon successful completion of the Pre-English requirements, students must declare the English major and choose a degree option. English majors with the option in Linguistics must earn 45-60 of their total credits in Department of English courses.

Pre-English Core Courses

Rule: Complete three courses (9 credits).

Minimum Required Grade: C
9 Total Credits Required

Early British Literature survey

Rule: Complete one course (3 credits).

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Show Description LIT 220L - Brit Lit: Med to Renaissance
Offered every term. Representative texts from the Anglo-Saxon period through the Renaissance.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C 3 Total Credits Required

British Literature and American Literature surveys

Rule: Complete two courses (6 credits).

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Show Description LIT 210L - American Lit I
Offered every term. Representative texts from the pre-colonial period through the Civil War.
 3 Credits
Show Description LIT 211L - American Lit II
Offered every term. Representative texts from the Civil War to the present.
 3 Credits
Show Description LIT 221L - Brit Lit: Enlightenment to Rom
Offered every term. Representative texts from the seventeenth through the eighteenth century.
 3 Credits
Show Description LIT 222L - Brit Lit: Victorian to Contemp
Offered every term. Representative texts from the early nineteenth century to the present.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C 6 Total Credits Required

Upper Division Requirements

Rule: Complete nine courses (27 credits).

Note: ENLI/LING 465 and LING 470 do not carry pre-requisites. LING 470 is a pre-requisite for all other LING courses above 470 (e.g. 471+).

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Show Description -
Show Description ENLI 465 - Structure of Eng for Tchrs
Offered intermittently. Same as LING 465. The development of the English language from a historical perspective contrasted with the phonological and grammatical structure of English from a modern linguistic point of view, specifically designed for teachers.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 470 - Linguistic Analysis
Offered autumn. An in-depth examination of the formal properties of language, concentrating on the core areas of linguistic analysis (phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics).
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 471 - Phonetics and Phonology
Offered autumn. Prereq., LING 470.  A study of phonetic and phonological systems from as many as 20 languages, most of them non–Indo–European; training in how to do linguistic analysis as well as linguistic theory. This course co-convenes with LING 571.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 472 - Generative Syntax
Offered autumn. Prereq., LING 470. A study of the human language sentence–formation system, the means for expressing semantic information as propositional content. Emphasis on the abstraction of utterances in the form of mathematical objects. This course co-convenes with LING 572.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 474 - Historical Linguistics
Offered spring even-numbered years. Prereq., LING 470. An introduction to the study of language change over time. Topics include: methods for studying language change (the comparative method and internal reconstruction); types of language change (sound change, borrowing, analogical change, lexical, syntactic, and semantic change); and explanations for language change. The principles of historical reconstruction and comparative method in the analysis of linguistic variation and change. This course co-convenes with LING 574.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 475 - Linguistic Field Methods
Offered spring odd-numbered years.  Prereq., LING 470.  Writing up linguistic data; developing techniques for eliciting linguistic data by working with a native speaker of a less commonly taught language. This course co-convenes with LING 575.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 477 - Bilingualism
Offered autumn. Prereq., LING 270S or equiv. Societal and individual bilingualism:  topics include language policy, maintenance, interference, code-switching and mixting, and bilingual education.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 478 - Learner Language
Offered spring. Prereq., LING 270S or equivalent. Observing/describing language learners' behaviors and, to a degree, advances toward proficiency (i.e., fluency plus accuracy); the presence of error as conditioned by a priori knowledge of language and implications for child and adult development; and applying typical methods of linguistic analysis to the (non-) systematic variants in language form characterizing developmental processes as a way of trying to explain variable behavior.
 3 Credits
Show Description LING 489 - Morphology
Offered spring.  Prereq., LING 470.  A survey of the morphological features of several unrelated languages to provide the student with a broad overview of how languages compare and contrast. This course co-convenes with LING 589.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 27 Total Credits Required

Upper Division English Electives

Rule: Complete one course

Note: Please note that these courses carry pre-requisites.

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Show Description LIT 349L - Medieval Lit
Offered alternate years. Prereq., LIT 300 or consent of instr. Exploration of literature from the medieval period, focusing on the major cultural and intellectual influences on the emergence of vernacular writing. Topics will vary, but will regularly include Anglo-Saxon literature and Middle English literature (excluding Chaucer).
 3 Credits
Show Description LIT 350L - Chaucer
Offered alternate years. Critical reading of Chaucer's masterpiece, the Canterbury Tales, with attention to Chaucerian irony, the author's place in literary history, and issues in Chaucer studies.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C-

Upper Division Writing Courses

Rule: Complete two courses (6 credits).

Note: LIT 300 is open only to English majors who have completed the Pre-English curriculum and have declared a major option.

Note: LIT 300 is the pre-requisite for most other 300- and 400-level LIT courses, including LIT 327. FILM 320 Shakespeare and Film substitutes for LIT 327 Shakespeare.

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Show Description LING 473 - Language and Culture
Offered spring. Prereq., LING 470.  Technical study of the relationships between grammatical categories and world view. This course co-convenes with LING 573.
 3 Credits
Show Description LIT 327 - Shakespeare
Offered autumn and spring. Prereq., LIT 300 or consent of instr. A survey of selected Shakespeare plays emphasizing close reading of the texts and consideration of their dramatic possibilities.
 3 Credits
Minimum Required Grade: C- 6 Total Credits Required

Modern or Classical Language major requirement

Rule: Complete the 202-level proficiency in either a modern or classical language other than English

Note: Students may either take four sequential semesters (101, 102, 201, 202) of a modern or classical language or exemplify proficiency through examination (available through the Modern and Classical Languages and Literature Department).

Minimum Required Grade: Pass
4-18 Total Credits Required