Best Accredited Universities for Doctoral Phd program in Comparative Literature

Phoebe Carter, PhD student, on dream interpretation and Bible translation for the Journal of Middle Eastern Literatures. Michael O'Krent, PhD student, on Chinese science fiction for online science fiction magazine Tor.com. A Collapse No One Story Can TellDaniel Behar recent article in Public Books. Lara Norgaard, PhD student, argues that experimental fiction can democratize storytelling in this recent article published by Public Books.

The Department of Comparative Literature introduces students to the study and understanding of literature beyond linguistic or national boundaries; the theory, interpretation, and criticism of literature; and its interactions with adjacent fields like visual and material culture, linguistics, film, psychology, law, and philosophy. The comparative perspective invites the exploration of such transnational phenomena as literary or cultural periods and trends (Renaissance, Romanticism, Modernism, postcolonialism) or genres and modes of discourse. Students may specialize in any cultures or languages, to the extent that they are sufficiently covered at Yale. The Ph.D. degree qualifies candidates to teach comparative literature as well as the national literature(s) of their specialization.

The first year of the Ph.D. program in Comparative Literature consists of eight graduate-level courses, all of which must be taken for a quality letter grade (not pass/fail). Students are expected to take a minimum of six courses in their field of study in years One & Two with room for language study built in. The two-quarter foundational sequence Comparative Literature 501 and 502 is required for ALL first years and transfer students, including those with a previous MA.

The English and Comparative Literature has played a significant role in the history of literary study in the United States and abroad since its inception. No advanced standing will be granted toward the MA for graduate work completed at other institutions. All sequential students are evaluated at the conclusion of the first year in order to be recommended to continue to MPhil studies. To complete the MPhil, sequential students take six courses and fulfill a second language requirement before taking the oral examination in preparation for beginning work on the PhD dissertation.

The Ph.D. Program in Comparative Literature covers the study of narrative, poetry, representation and cultural history. The Program enables students to engage rigorously with critical theory. We draw our faculty from many disciplines: the languages and literary histories of Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, East Asia, and South Asia: history, art history, religion; anthropology; folklore; political science; Africana studies; Jewish studies; Gender and Sexuality studies; sociology; communications.

The course of study, seminars, and tutorials lead to three area examinations administered by the department and committee. PhD students choosing a focus in comparative literature should be competent in three national literatures and have a general familiarity with critical theory. Students are encouraged to spend at least one year studying abroad, usually working in Paris, Florence, Hamburg, Geneva, or Madrid in programs sponsored by the department or the Modern Languages and Literatures. Similar arrangements can generally be made with the Classics and the programs in the romance languages and literatures.

The Field of Comparative Literature at Cornell offers a Ph.D. degree in all major areas of literary study and on literary and cultural theory. Because the field is small ( twenty students), it is possible to plan diverse and interdisciplinary programs of study. Because course work is completed within three years, the student should have proficiency in two foreign languages. Those intending to specialize in a foreign literature are strongly encouraged to acquire fluency in the relevant language.

Comparative Literature at Brown is a vigorous and comprehensive program in literature and culture. Since the founding of the graduate program in 1964, comparative literature has evolved to include not only Western cultures, both ancient and modern, but also Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Arabic. The department, in cooperation with the various literature departments and programs, offers a wide array of courses in literature, literary theory, and cultural studies. The program accommodates a wide range of individual emphases in literature and culture, periods, genres, history, criticism, and theory.

The Ph.D. program in Comparative literature is designed to provide familiarity with one literature in comprehensive historical and critical ways and the demonstrated ability to do comparative work in three literatures. The Ph.D. is awarded upon the successful completion of a doctoral dissertation.

The Department of Comparative Literature offers the Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Comparative Literature.