DEPARTMENT OF COMPARATIVE LITERATURE
435 Humanities
Instructional Building; (949) 824-6712
Rei Terada, Department Chair
Faculty
Dina Al-Kassim, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley, Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature (British, American, French, Arabic, Anglophone and Francophone modernism; postcolonial critique)
Eyal Amiran, Ph.D. University of Virginia, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and of Film and Media Studies (digital media theory, twentieth-century literature, narrative and textual theory, psychoanalysis, modern and postmodern intellectual history)
Etienne Balibar, Docteur en philosophie, Katholieke Universiteit Nijmegen, Professor of French and of Comparative Literature (critical theory, political philosophy)
Lindon Barrett, Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania, Director of African American Studies and Professor of Comparative Literature (critical theory, African American cultural studies)
Ellen S. Burt, Ph.D. Yale University, Department Chair of French and Italian and Associate Professor of French and Comparative Literature (nineteenth-century French literature; critical theory)
James Fujii, Ph.D. University of Chicago, Associate Professor of Japanese and Comparative Literature (literature and theory of East Asia)
Alexander Gelley, Ph.D. Yale University, Professor of Comparative Literature (eighteenth- and nineteenth-century European novel, critical theory)
David Theo Goldberg, Ph.D. City University of New York Graduate School and Center, Director of the UC Humanities Research Institute and Professor of Comparative Literature and of Criminology, Law and Society
Jonathan M. Hall, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Cruz, Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature and of Film and Media Studies (Japanese literary, cultural, and cinematic history; critical theories of East Asia; East Asian cinema; psychoanalytic and queer theory)
Susan Jarratt, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin, Campus Writing Coordinator and Professor of Comparative Literature and Education (histories and theories of rhetoric, composition pedagogy and teacher preparation, feminist theory and pedagogy)
Adriana M. Johnson, Ph.D. Duke University, Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature (Latin American literature, nineteenth- and twentieth-century Latin America, cultural and postcolonial studies)
Laura H. Y. Kang, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Cruz, Associate Professor of Women's Studies, Comparative Literature, and English (feminist epistemologies and theories, cultural studies, ethnic studies)
Ketu H. Katrak, Ph.D. Bryn Mawr College, Professor of Asian American Studies, Comparative Literature, and English (Asian American literature, post-colonial literature)
Karen R. Lawrence, Ph.D. Columbia University, Dean of the School of Humanities and Professor of English and Comparative Literature (twentieth-century literature, travel writing, women's writing, the novel)
Julia Reinhard Lupton, Ph.D. Yale University, Professor of English and Education (Renaissance literature, literature and psychology)
Juliet Flower MacCannell, Ph.D. Cornell University, Professor Emerita of Comparative Literature (eighteenth-century French literature, modern semiotics, comparative literature)
Steven Mailloux, Ph.D. University of Southern California, UCI Chancellor's Professor of Rhetoric (rhetoric, critical theory, American literature, law and literature)
J. Hillis Miller, Ph.D. Harvard University, UCI Distinguished Research Professor of Comparative Literature and English (Victorian literature, critical theory)
Jane O. Newman, Ph.D. Princeton University, Professor of Comparative Literature (sixteenth- and seventeenth-century German literature, contemporary theory and criticism, feminism)
Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Director of the International Center for Writing and Translation and UCI Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature and English (African and Caribbean literatures, theater and film, performance studies, cultural and political theory)
Margot Norris, Ph.D. State University of New York, Buffalo, Professor of English and Comparative Literature (modern Irish, British, American and continental modernism; literature and war)
Mark S. Poster, Ph.D. New York University, Professor of History, Film and Media Studies, and Comparative Literature (film and media studies)
R. Radhakrishnan, Ph.D. State University of New York, Binghamton, Department Chair and Professor of Asian American Studies and Professor of English and Comparative Literature (critical theory, Asian American studies, poststructuralism, postcoloniality, globalization, nationalisms, diasporas)
John Carlos Rowe, Ph.D. State University of New York, Buffalo, Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature (American literature, modern literature, critical theory)
Annette Schlichter, Ph.D. Humboldt University of Berlin, Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature (feminist theory and criticism, queer theory, contemporary American literature, gender and literature)
Gabriele Schwab, Ph.D. University of Konstanz, UCI Chancellor's Professor of Comparative Literature (modern literature, critical theory, psychoanalysis)
Martin Schwab, Ph.D. University of Bielefeld, Director of the Minor in Humanities and Law and Professor of Philosophy and Comparative Literature (philosophy and aesthetics)
John H. Smith, Ph.D. Princeton University, Director of the Critical Theory Institute, Department Chair and Professor of German, and Professor of Comparative Literature (nineteenth-century German philosophy and literature)
Rei Terada, Ph.D. Boston University, Department Chair of Comparative Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature and English (theory, poststructuralism, nineteenth- and twentieth-century poetry)
Jennifer Terry, Ph.D. University of California, Santa Cruz, Director of the Program in Women's Studies and Associate Professor of Women's Studies and Comparative Literature (gender and queer studies, film studies)
Comparative Literature reaches beyond any single national culture to consider relations between various literatures and cultures, methods of study, periods, and media. Because it does not limit study by nation, language, period, or medium, Comparative Literature tends to orient itself by defining and analyzing questions. Hence, Comparative Literature emphasizes theoretical approaches (critical theory, political theory, feminism, psychoanalysis, and more) and produces new theories. Areas in which the Department of Comparative Literature offers courses include postcolonial studies, comparative American studies, critical theory, film studies, rhetoric, and queer theory.
CAREERS FOR THE COMPARATIVE LITERATURE MAJOR
The study of Comparative Literature trains students to do independent research, learn languages, and think and write analytically, always in an international context. This helps qualify majors for careers in education, international relations, law, government, communications, or journalism, and for graduate study in the humanities, education, or law. An undergraduate degree in Comparative Literature is widely taken to indicate intellectual ambition.
Comparative Literature offers a major and a minor. The major focuses on the study of literature and culture from around the globe and across historical periods. While students in Comparative Literature study novels, plays, films, and poems written in English, emphasis is placed on works originally in other languages. Most of these will be studied in translation; to ensure that students have the experience of encountering another culture from the inside, however, two upper-division courses must be taken in literature or culture in an original language other than English. Another key component of the program is the study of critical theory, or the methods required to think about works analytically and philosophically. Comparative Literature is well suited for students interested in international issues, the history of inter- and cross-cultural contact, and the ways in which literatures and cultures dialogue with one another across time and space. Most Comparative Literature classes are small and intimate and emphasize student discussion. The Department also sponsors meetings and activities for majors so that students can get to know one another.
The Comparative Literature 50A, B, C series introduces students to a geographically and chronologically broad selection of works not limited to the western tradition. This series studies literatures and cultures in dialogue and in a historically intensive way, and through the lenses of genre and medium. Transfer students may be required to take one or more courses in this sequence, depending on the courses they have taken previously.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE BACHELOR'S DEGREE
University Requirements: See pages 59-64.
School Requirements: See page 254.
Departmental Requirements for the Comparative Literature Major
CL 50A, B, C; CR 100A; CL 101; CL 102; CL 106; and four additional upper-division courses, two of which must be Comparative Literature courses and two of which may be drawn from Comparative Literature, English, Creative Writing, or upper-division literature courses in a foreign language (in addition to any such courses used to fulfill the Comparative Literature foreign language requirement).
Competence in a foreign language sufficient for reading and understanding literature and culture in that language, fulfilled by two upper-division courses in literature or culture in that language.
NOTE: One upper-division course in literature or culture in translation may substitute for one upper-division course in a foreign language. If this option is taken, students are usually required to match language and literature (e.g., if the student's foreign language is German, then the student must take a course in German literature or culture in translation).
Some languages, such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese, ordinarily require three years of language study for competence. Students who wish to study these languages may take three years of language training and one approved upper-division course in literature or culture of that language in translation in order to fulfill the major's language requirement. Here again, literature and language should be matched. Students who have completed two years of Greek or Latin fulfill this requirement as well. In both cases, the second year covers literary texts and thus meets the requirement for doing advanced work in these languages. If the student intends to go on to graduate work, the study of a second foreign language is highly recommended.
Study abroad through the UC Education Abroad program is encouraged.
Residence Requirement for the Comparative Literature Major: CR 100A, CL 101, and three upper-division literature courses must be completed successfully at UCI.
Departmental Requirements for the Comparative Literature Minor
CL 50A, B, C; CR 100A; CL 101; one upper-division CL course; and one upper-division foreign language literature course in the original language or a third year of languages such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese.
Residence Requirement for the Comparative Literature Minor: Four upper-division courses must be completed successfully at UCI. By petition, two of the four may be taken through the UC Education Abroad Program, providing course content is approved by the appropriate program advisor or chair.
PLANNING A PROGRAM OF STUDY
The Department offers close consultation for academic planning. All students should plan courses of study with faculty advisors. Students who wish to pursue double majors, special programs, or study abroad are urged to seek advising as early as possible.
Comparative Literature faculty are particularly equipped to guide students in critical theory, postcolonial studies, and comparative American studies. Comparative Literature is engaged with disciplines such as psychoanalysis, rhetoric, political theory, narrative theory, and gender studies, and many small seminars in these fields are offered. The M.A. degree is considered to be a step toward the Ph.D.; only students intending to complete the doctorate are admitted to the program. Applicants must hold a B.A. or equivalent degree and should normally have majored in Comparative Literature, English, or a foreign literature. Majors in other disciplines (e.g., philosophy, history, visual studies, women's studies, ethnic studies) will be considered, provided that a sufficient background in literary and cultural studies and in at least one foreign language is demonstrated.
The Department offers a track in (1) Comparative Literature with an emphasis in a literary tradition, (2) Comparative Literature with an emphasis in Translation Studies, and (3) Comparative Literature with an emphasis in Critical Theory. (See the departmental graduate student handbook for a description of these emphases.) Graduate students in Comparative Literature may also complete an emphasis in Chinese Language and Literature, Classics, East Asian Cultural Studies, French, German, Japanese Language and Literature, or Spanish. Emphases in Asian American Studies, Feminist Studies, and Critical Theory are available through the School of Humanities. Within these emphases, students enroll in sequences of courses that highlight individual interests and expertise. In consultation with advisors, students may also develop individualized curricula that cut across these and other offerings in the Department and School.
A minor field specialization
is recommended. This optional component promotes engagement with a field or methodology
outside the student's specialization. It may be of a national, historical, disciplinary,
or methodological nature, with the student of western postmodern literary theory
and forms engaging in a focused study of ancient Greek or Roman philosophy and culture,
for example, or the student of East Asian languages and diasporic literatures may
work in anthropology or ethnography. This optional component of the student's program
may be fulfilled through course work, independent studies, or a Qualifying Examination
topic. For
the graduate student in Comparative Literature, proficiency in foreign languages
is essential. Ability to study theoretical and literary traditions in their original
languages (e.g., Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, or
Russian) is usually expected, and a classical language (Arabic, Greek, and Latin)
is indispensable. The student's own area of specialization may require the mastery
of still other languages. Competence in two foreign languages is required for the
Ph.D. and is verified through examination.
The Department recognizes that most of its graduate students intend to become teachers, and believes that graduate departments should be training college teachers as well as scholars—indeed, that teaching and scholarship complement one another. Thus candidates for the Ph.D. are expected to acquire experience in teaching, and all Ph.D. candidates gain supervised training as part of the seminar work required for the degree.
Several substantial fellowships are available to graduate students. The Schaeffer Fellowship provides $20,000 plus fees for up to two years to Ph.D. students in Comparative Literature for whom translation will be a crucial element of their dissertation work. Scholars translating literary or historical texts or archival materials not previously reliably available in English as part of their dissertation research are eligible. Multiple fellowships per year may be awarded. Students interested in the Schaeffer Fellowship should contact the Department prior to applying to the Ph.D. program. The Murray Krieger Fellowship in Literary Theory is intended for an outstanding entering graduate student pursuing the Ph.D. in Comparative Literature or English who demonstrates a primary interest in theory as theory relates to literary texts. A range of other fellowships is also available to students in the Department.
Master of Arts in Comparative Literature
Entering students are assigned a faculty advisor who usually serves as the chair of the student's M.A. examination committee (which consists of at least two other members of the faculty). Nine courses and an examination are required to complete the degree. The normal academic load for both M.A. and Ph.D. candidates is three courses a quarter; teaching assistants take two courses in addition to earning credit for University teaching. Only in exceptional circumstances will students be permitted to undertake programs of less than six full courses during the academic year.
The M.A. examination is normally taken during the quarter in which the student completes course work. For the examination, the candidate submits an M.A. paper and a statement of purpose outlining past and future course work and preliminary plans for the Ph.D. qualifying examination. The M.A. examination consists of a discussion of the student's paper and the statement of purpose. In practice, it resembles an extended advising session, but with particularly close attention to the student's paper.
Doctor of Philosophy in Comparative Literature
The doctoral program in Comparative Literature prepares the student for a professional career in the research and teaching of comparative literary and cultural studies. Some students also choose to enter professions (e.g., specialized research, nonprofit organizations, international cultural exchange) in which the specialized work in a specific field indicated by an advanced degree is highly desirable.
Normally, students who have not done graduate work at another university must complete at least 16 courses. Upon completion of the course work, the student takes a qualifying examination on six areas formulated by the student in consultation with the four faculty members who make up the examination committee. The topics should combine historical breadth and some generic variety with specialization. The examination is part written, part oral, according to a formula decided by the student and the committee. The examination as a whole should reflect the student's ability to work in at least two foreign languages.
After passing the qualifying examination, the student forms a dissertation committee of three faculty members, formulates a dissertation topic in consultation with them, and submits a prospectus for the dissertation along with a preliminary bibliography. Study toward the Ph.D. culminates in the dissertation. The normal time for advancement to candidacy is four years. The normal time for completion of the Ph.D. is seven years, and the maximum time permitted is nine years.
Courses in Comparative Literature
LOWER-DIVISION
Satisfaction of the UC Entry Level Writing requirement is a prerequisite for all departmental courses except CL 8. Descriptions of the undergraduate courses available during a given year may be obtained in the Department office in the fall.
CL 8 Topics in Comparative Literary Study (4). Lecture, three hours. Comparative studies in different literatures. Readings in English and in English translation on such generic topics as tragedy, epic, short tales, and such thematic topics as love, war, cities, travel writing, politics, violence. May be taken only once in lieu of one quarter of the E 6, E 7, E 8 series. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (IV)
CL 9 Introduction to Multicultural Topics in Literature (4). Introduction to multicultural literature including African American, Asian-American, Chicano/Latino, and Native American. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (VII-A)
CL 40A, B, C Development of Drama (4, 4, 4) F, W, S. Same as Drama 40A, B, C. (IV, VII-B)
CL 50 Introduction to Global Comparative Literature: Literary and Textual Traditions. F, W, S. Lecture, three hours. An introduction to the comparative study of literature and culture, Western and non-Western. Offers students the opportunity to study literatures of various cultures, periods, and traditions in depth and in dialogue with one another. Prerequisite: satisfaction of the lower-division writing requirement.
50A Literatures in Dialogue (4). Studies the principles of literary imitation and canon formation, asking, for example, how the study of the Homeric epics can help us understand Caribbean novels and film "epics" such as Star Wars. Readings include major works from several historic periods and traditions. (IV)
50B Periods and Movements (4). Allows students to study literatures comparatively and in a historically specific and intensive way, for example, the period of the Middle Ages across Europe and in dialogue with various contact cultures, such as Islam, or modernism and post-modernism, East and West. Focus of the lecture varies according to the instructor's field of expertise. (IV)
50C Genre and Medium (4). Focuses on understanding the concept of genre and the difference that medium (literature vs. film, novels vs. plays, prayers vs. poetry, for example) makes on the way a text is produced and received. Different media studied each quarter to allow the special qualities of each medium to emerge. (IV)
UPPER-DIVISION
CR 100A Literary Theory and Criticism (4) F. Lecture, three hours. A series of lectures and discussions devoted to the theoretical dimensions of literacy criticism as reflected in major theorists from Plato to the present. Prerequisites: CL 50A, 50B, 50C or equivalent. CR 100A and English E 100 may not both be taken for credit.
CR 100B Undergraduate Seminar in Literary Theory (4) F, W, S. Seminar, three hours. Exploration of a theoretical topic through a number of theoretical, literacy, visual, and/or mixed-media texts. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
CL 101 Comparative Literature/Theories in Dialogue (4) F, W, S. Students read literary texts in conjunction with two theoretical models. This literary and theoretical dialogue enhances students' grasp of different types of theoretical analysis, emphasizes the interplay of theories, and insists on the interrelation of theory and literary practice. Prerequisite: CR 100A.
CL 102 Undergraduate Seminar in Literary Theory and Practice (4). F, W, S. Seminar, three hours. Sections limited to 20 students. Instructors announce topics that join consideration of comparative study with the practical consideration of individual texts, such as Autobiography and Travel, Romance and History, Performing Gender, Translation and the Native Tongue, Politics and Literature. Prerequisites: a lower-division series in literature and satisfactory completion of the lower-division writing requirement. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. Formerly CL 100.
CL 103 Undergraduate Lectures in Comparative Literature (4) F, W, S, Summer. Lecture, three hours. A series of lectures on and discussions of announced comparative topics in literary criticism, history, genres, modes, major authors. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. Same as East Asian Languages and Literatures 150 when topic is appropriate.
CR 103 Contemporary Critical Theory (4). Lecture, three hours. Discussion of contemporary critical theory. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
CL 104 The Interdisciplinary Course (4) F, W, S. Lecture and discussion course open to all students, three hours. Treats interdisciplinary topics of various kinds (e.g., literature and politics, literature and religion, literature and science, literature and other arts). Prerequisites: none for most topics; check descriptions of individual course topics. May be taken for credit as topics vary. Same as Art History 114, Art History 125, or Humanities 110 when topic is appropriate.
CL 105 Multicultural Topics in Comparative Literature (4) F, W, S. Treats the literature and culture of one or more minority groups in California and the United States, including African Americans, Asian-Americans, Chicano/Latinos, and Native Americans, in relation to other national literatures. May be repeated for credit as topics vary. (VII-A)
CL 106 Advanced Seminar in Comparative Literature and Theory (4) F, W, S. Seminar, three hours. Limited to 20 students. Capstone seminar for the Comparative Literature major. Designed to deepen students' understanding of the history and methods of Comparative Literature as a discipline. Joins theoretical analysis with practical criticism of individual literary texts. Prerequisites: satisfactory completion of the lower-division writing requirement; CR 100A and either CR 100B or CL 101. May be repeated for credit as topics vary.
CL 198 Special Topics (4-4-4). Directed group study of selected topics. By consent, by arrangement.
CL 199 Reading and Conference (1 to 4). To be taken only when the materials to be studied lie outside the normal run of departmental offerings, and when the student will have no formal chance to pursue the subject. Prerequisites: consent of the student's advisor, the instructor, and the Department Chair.
GRADUATE
All graduate courses may be repeated when the topic varies. Descriptions of the topics to be treated in a given academic year are published by the Department in the fall. Enrollment in each graduate course requires the consent of the instructor. The courses are limited to registered graduate students, except for specially qualified fifth-year students seeking teaching credentials, who may enroll if they have received permission from the Director of Graduate Studies and if space permits.
In addition to the following courses, graduate students in the Department of Comparative Literature might find Humanities 200 (The Nature and Theory of History) and Humanities 291 (Interdisciplinary Topics) of special interest.
CL 200 Theories and Methods of Comparativism (4). Addresses the disciplinary, institutional, and theoretical dimensions of Comparative Literature. Course design varies with instructor.
200A History of Comparative Literature and Introduction to Methods and Theories of Comparative Literature (4) F. Seminar designed to introduce graduate students in Comparative Literature to the parameters and practices of the discipline of Comparative Literature. Major issues and theories of comparative literary and cultural study are covered. Strongly recommended for first- and second-year students before the M.A. examination and review.
200B Theories of Translation (4) F, W, S. The reproduction, translation, and transfer of literary and cultural, ideological and political, and symbolic codes and texts have long been the object of study in Comparative Literature. Addresses the diverse ways in which expressive systems interact and intersect.
200C Theories of Globalization, Inter-Nationalism, and Post-Colonialism (4) F, W, S. Addresses both theories and the complex history of literary and cultural expression in a national, trans-, inter-, and post-national, global frame. Topics may include: globalism and nationhood, theories of citizenship and political subjecthood, post-colonial literature and theory.
200D Cultural Rhetoric and Rhetorical Theory (4) F, W, S. Surveys contemporary theories of cultural rhetoric and the cultural rhetoric of contemporary theory, and interrogates the intersection of rhetoric, critical theory, and cultural studies. Both historical and contemporary theories of rhetoric and cultural rhetorics are studied.
CL 210 Comparative Studies (4) F, W, S
CL 220 Translation Workshop (2 to 4) F, W, S. Trains students in the methodologies and practice of translation. Students focus on the translating process in a series of case studies and individual projects. May be taken for a total of 8 units.
CR 220A, B Studies in Literary Theory and Its History (4, 4) F, W. Introduction to criticism and aesthetics for beginning graduate students. Readings from continental, English, and American theorists. Same as Humanities 220A, B.
CR 240 Advanced Theory Seminar (4) F, W, S
CL 290 Reading and Conference (4) F, W, S
CL 291 Guided Reading Course (4)
CL 299 Dissertation Research (4 to 12) F, W, S
