Comparative Literature (CPLT)

Luis Fernando Restrepo

Director

425 Kimpel Hall

479-575-2951

E-mail: lrestr@uark.edu

 

Web:  http://www.uark.edu/ua/cplt/

Comparative Literature Committee:

• Professors DuVal, Haydar, Pritchett, Ricker
• Associate Professors Arenberg, Fredrick, Kahf, Scheide, Slattery
• Assistant Professor Erickson

See affiliated faculty list on the program’s web page.

Degrees Conferred:

M.A., Ph.D. (CPLT)

 

Comparative Literature is an interdisciplinary program, dedicated to the study of literature and culture from a global perspective and across languages, genres, disciplines, nations, and cultures. The program offers advanced academic training in foreign languages, literary translation, comparative literature, and cultural studies.

 

The program is supported primarily by the Departments of Communication, English, and Foreign Languages. The program also has affiliated faculty members in several programs and departments in the humanities and social sciences, including Anthropology, Area Studies (European, Latin American, Middle East), Art, Classics, Drama, Gender Studies, Geography, History, Music, Philosophy, and Sociology.

 

Areas of Concentration: Master of Arts – Classics, English, German, French, Arabic, and Spanish. Doctor of Philosophy – Comparative literature, modern language, cultural studies, literary translation.

 

Prerequisites to Degree Program:  The normal preparation for graduate study in comparative literature is an undergraduate or masters degree in English or foreign languages and literatures.  Applicants should have advanced proficiency in at least one foreign language. The program may also accept students with undergraduate or master’s degree in the humanities, the social sciences, and other relevant fields under the condition that any deficiencies in literature or foreign languages be completed in addition to the requirements for the degree.

 

Admission Requirements:

The following materials must be submitted to the Director of the Comparative Literature program:

 

1. Application for Admission to Graduate Study in Comparative Literature. The form is available from the Program Director and the program’s web page.

2. Admission to the University of Arkansas Graduate School.

3. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores on the Aptitude Test (verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing) and the advanced test in literature.

4.  International students are required to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) exams, meeting the minimum score required by the Graduate School.

5. Complete official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate work.

6. Three letters of recommendation from former teachers,
employers, or supervisors.

7. An examination paper from a literature course, including essay answers, or a term paper or other evidence of writing ability.

8. Statement of purpose describing academic interests and professional goals.

 

Requirements for the Master of Arts Degree: The candidate must take a minimum of 36 hours of graduate courses to be selected from offerings in the fields of classics, English, German, Arabic, French, and Spanish, under the following guidelines:

 

1. A minimum of 12 hours must be taken in each of two of the following language areas: Arabic, Classics, English, French, German, Spanish or other languages offered by the Department of Foreign Languages.

2. A minimum of six hours must be taken in courses that deal with the literatures of several language groups. 

3. All courses selected must be approved by the adviser, who will consult with the other members of the Master’s Program Advisory Committee.

4. WLIT 5193, Introduction to Comparative Literature, is required of all candidates.

5. Each master’s degree candidate is required to take a comprehensive examination.

 

Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree: The doctoral program in comparative literature is designed so that it may be based upon a Master of Arts in Arabic and other languages, Comparative Literature, English, French, German, Spanish, Communication, or upon the Master of Fine Arts in Translation. Applicants with masters’ degrees in the humanities and the social sciences may also be accepted into the program, but will be required to fulfill any deficiencies that the advisor and the Ph.D. Program Advisory Committee identify. In addition to meeting hour and distribution requirements in one of the concentrations listed below, the student must select a field, period, or genre specialization to support the dissertation (e.g., the epic tradition, postmodern cinema, Renaissance poetry, strategies for translating dialects). The program of study for each student, including administration of candidacy examinations and the satisfaction of all requirements of the Graduate School, will be designed, approved, and supervised by the Program Advisory Committee, which will consist of the Program Director, who will serve as the primary advisor, and at least two other faculty members drawn from the student’s areas of specialization. 

 

The following specific requirements must be met by all Ph.D. degree candidates in Comparative Literature:

 

1. Candidates must take a minimum of 66 hours of graduate course work (including credit taken for the M.A. or M.F.A) and must attain a 3.00 grade-point average in each of their fields. Part or all of the graduate course work completed at other U.S. institutions or abroad with a grade of “B” or higher may count towards the 66 hours requirement with the approval of the Program Advisory Committee. However, it should be noted that this course work will not be reflected on the student’s transcript.
2.  All candidates are required to take a minimum of 18 dissertation hours.
3.  WLIT 5193 Introduction to Comparative Literature is required of all candidates.
4.  A literary or cultural theory seminar is required of all candidates.
5.  Each Ph.D. degree candidate is required to pass the following candidacy examination:

a.  A written examination on specific topics within the student’s fields, approved jointly by the student and the Advisory Committee.
b.  An oral examination to discuss strengths, weaknesses, or
omissions in the written exam. Students may retake only once any examination they fail.

6.  Upon successfully completing the candidacy examination, each student must submit a dissertation proposal to be discussed and approved in a formal meeting with the student’s dissertation committee.
7.  Within the time limits specified by the Graduate School, each student must submit a dissertation acceptable to the student’s dissertation committee.
8.  Each student must pass a dissertation defense administered by the student’s dissertation committee.

Traditional Concentration: A candidate will prepare three fields, one of which will be world literature; the others will be drawn from Arabic, English, French, German, Spanish, Classics or other languages. A minimum of 24 hours must be taken in one field, a minimum of 18 in the second, and a minimum of 15 in the third. Courses may be substituted from related fields with program approval. The M.A. will typically be in comparative literature. Each student must demonstrate fluency in at least one language other than English and a reading knowledge of a second foreign language.

 

Modern Language Concentration: A candidate will prepare two fields, one of which will be English, French, German, or Spanish. The second field may be English (if not selected as the first field) or a second foreign language (Arabic, French, German, or Spanish). The candidate’s Master of Arts will typically be in English, French, German, or Spanish. Students with a Master of Arts in these and other languages from other U.S. universities or from programs abroad may also be admitted into the Modern Language Concentration.  In such cases, the program committee will evaluate the candidate’s academic record, accept part or all of the course work completed elsewhere, and assign any deficiencies that the committee identifies.  However, it should be noted that course work taken elsewhere will not be listed on the students U of A transcript. A minimum of 36 hours must be taken in the first field, a minimum of 24 in the second. Up to 12 hours of relevant world literature or related courses may be applied to either or both fields with program approval. Each student must demonstrate fluency in two languages other than English.

 

Cultural Studies Concentration: A student will prepare three fields, the first of which will be in cultural studies courses in communication. The second field shall emphasize language, literary, and cultural studies in Arabic, Classics, English, French, German, Spanish, or world literature. The third field may emphasize another language, literary or cultural tradition, field or discipline different from the first two fields.  A minimum of 30 hours must be taken in the first field, 15 in the second field, and 15 in the third field.  The M.A. will typically be in comparative literature, cultural studies, communication, English or a foreign language.  Applicants with master’s degrees in the humanities and the social sciences may also be accepted into the program, but will be required to fulfill any deficiencies that the advisor and the Ph.D. Program Advisory Committee identify.  Each student must demonstrate fluency in at least one language other than English and a reading knowledge of a second foreign language.

 

Literary Translation Concentration: A student will prepare three fields. A minimum of 36 hours will be taken in Arabic, French, German,  Spanish or other languages for the first field; a minimum of 9 hours will be taken in translation workshops (ENGL 5043) for the second field; and a minimum of 12 hours drawn from courses on the form and theory of translation, poetry, and fiction (ENGL 5223, ENGL 5263, ENGL 5273, ENGL 5283, ENGL 5293) for the third. Courses may be substituted from related fields with program approval. The M.A. will typically be in Arabic, French, German, or Spanish. Each student must demonstrate fluency in at least one language other than English and a reading knowledge of a second foreign language.

 

Through an agreement with the Academic Common Market, residents of certain Southern states may qualify for graduate enrollment in some of these degree programs as in-state students for fee purposes.

(WLIT) WORLD LITERATURE

WLIT4123 Survey of Russian Literature from Its Beginning to the 1917 Revolution  (Irregular)  The instructor will discuss the historical and cultural backgrounds while focusing on major writers and will deal with literature as an outlet for social criticism. There will be textual analysis. It will be taught in English. (Same as RUSS 4123)

WLIT4133 Survey of Russian Literature Since the 1917 Revolution  (Irregular)  The instructor will discuss the historical and cultural backgrounds while focusing on major writers and will deal with literature as an outlet for social criticism. There will be textual analysis. It will be taught in English with readings in English. (Same as RUSS 4133)

WLIT4273 Literature of India and the Near East  (Irregular)  Leading works and genres of the ancient civilizations, the Moslem world and India, and their contribution to the Western literary tradition.

WLIT4293 Literature of China and Japan  (Irregular)  Survey of the literary works of the Far East, and of its contribution to the Western Tradition.

WLIT4913 Literary Reflections of the Holocaust  (Irregular)  Drawing on fiction, poetry, autobiography, and drama from works written originally in French, Polish, German, Dutch, English, and Yiddish, this course introduces students to the Holocaust through literature. Deals with the adequacy of imaginative literature in the face of atrocity, the comparative effectiveness of fiction versus autobiography, and the dangers of exploitation and trivialization. (Same as HUMN 4913)

WLIT4923 Modern World Drama  (Irregular)  Drama from Ibsen to the 1930s. (Same as ENGL 4923)

WLIT4963 Contemporary World Drama  (Irregular)  Drama since the 1930s. (Same as ENGL 4963)

WLIT4993 African Literature  (Irregular)  A study of modern African fiction, drama, poetry, and film from various parts of Africa in their cultural context. Works are in English or English translation. (Same as ENGL 4253)

WLIT5193 Introduction to Comparative Literature  (Irregular)  Literary theory, genres, movements, and influences. Prerequisite: WLIT 1113. (Same as ENGL 5193)

WLIT5233 Form and Theory of Translation  (Irregular)  An examination of the principal challenges that confront translators of literature, including the recreation of style, dialect, ambiguities, and formal poetry; vertical translation; translation where multiple manuscripts exist; and the question of how literal a translation should be. (Same as ENGL 5233)

WLIT5483 Germanic and Celtic Backgrounds of Medieval Literature  (Irregular)  Literary traditions of Old and Middle English, of Germany, Ireland, Scandinavia, and Wales. (Same as ENGL 5483)

WLIT5593 The Renaissance  (Irregular)  Italian forms and writers of the late 15th and 16th centuries and the spread of the Renaissance tradition in Spain, Portugal, France, and Northern Europe up to 1660.

WLIT5623 The Bible as Literature  (Irregular)  The several translations of the Bible; its qualities as great literature; its influence upon literature in English; types of literary forms. (Same as ENGL 5623)

WLIT5793 The Enlightenment  (Irregular)  Literature of the late 17th and 18th centuries, especially in France and Germany.

WLIT5963 Twentieth-Century Continental Novel  (Irregular)  Survey of the continental novel from 1900 to the present.

WLIT600V Master’s Thesis (Sp, Su, Fa) (1-6)  

WLIT603V Special Studies in Comparative Literature  (Irregular) (1-6)  

WLIT690V Seminar  (Irregular) (1-6)  

WLIT699V Master of Fine Arts in Translation Thesis (Sp, Su, Fa) (1-6)  

WLIT700V Doctoral Dissertation (Sp, Su, Fa) (1-12)