Students and faculty praise an individualized approach to discovering and creating literature in the Monmouth College English Department. “We are deeply committed to our students as individuals—their goals for particular projects or essays, for a course, for their college educations, and for their careers. We know our students—their doubts, their strengths, their aspirations, and their weaknesses—and that knowledge helps us to support them as they develop their thinking and abilities as much as they can in four years. We are constantly looking for opportunities and books and scholars who will interest them and help them develop their goals,” said Dr. Marlo Belschner, chair of the English department at Monmouth College. This individualized approach is appreciated by the students of the English department as well. “The English program ...is special because of the professors,” said senior English and Communications Studies major, Carrie King. “They are all very invested in making your time at Monmouth worthwhile and they work with you one-on-one to help you grow as a learner, as a reader and especially as a writer.” “One of my fears before diving into the (British and American) survey courses was that I would struggle to understand the sentence structure and language of older literature,” said King. “My professors were there to assist me to understand”. King enjoys the variety the English department offers. “My favorite thing about the English department is the vast array of options for every major” she stated. “Not every major enjoys the same things about English, but every English major can find their space within it. I found my space within Creative Writing and theory-based essays. I think my choices reflect my other major as well – someone who likes Communication Studies would like a form of writing to express themselves and their ideas. Similarly, someone who is interested in theatre would likely enjoy talking about Shakespeare.” There are a variety of courses for students to choose from in the English department in order to find “their own space”. “(English) majors study a foundation of great literature in history and also explore electives of interest from Global Literatures to Sherlock Holmes to Literary Criticism to Creative Writing. We explore the importance of themes and consider all the possible meanings of important moments in important literature. We consider the craft of writing, and the implication of careful choices, and every class requires great creativity that synthesizes to create new knowledge and new works of beauty, both fictional and analytical,” said Belschner. This variety has led to three new classes being offered in the department for the Spring semester including: Young Adult Fiction led by Professor Kevin Roberts, Contemporary Literary Theory taught by Dr. Belschner, and a new focus for Advanced Creative Writing this year, “Building Stories, Building Worlds” with Professor David Wright. While King described some of the preliminary courses for an English major as “English major boot camp”, Belschner provided more details: “The majors study a foundation of great literature in history and also explore electives of interest from Global Literatures to Sherlock Holmes to Literary Criticism to Creative Writing. We explore the importance of themes and consider all the possible meanings of important moments in important literature. We consider the craft of writing, and the implication of careful choices, and every class requires great creativity that synthesizes to create new knowledge and new works of beauty both fictional and analytical. Our majors understand that writers develop through determination and careful attention to detail; they don’t arrive at Monmouth College fully fledged. Once they leave Monmouth, our students have a portfolio of valuable skills that translate into the professions they want”. Whether it is analyzing work from Belschner’s favorite author Toni Morrison, or writing essays on the themes of Whitman’s poetry, the English department offers the opportunity for a well-rounded education for majors and non-majors alike. As Belschner stated, “Being well-educated means understanding the arts and humanities at least at the conversational level. Be the person who can speak meaningfully about Walt Whitman and Shakespeare and Terrence – at a party or with colleagues. Be able to argue about the importance of Las Meninas and debate the strengths of a theatrical performance. Amazing literature shows us the astonishing power of the human mind to create worlds with words.”
Melanie Delbridge - Staff Writer