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Department of Humanities
CURRICULUM REQUIREMENTS
Advanced training is offered in three areas of
study:
• Literature and other cultural productions.
Students will achieve broad intercultural
competence in genre, period and theme.
• Theoretical frameworks. Students will
explore a range of literary and cultural
theories, and demonstrate significant
mastery of at least one.
• Research methods and written and
oral expression. Students will work with
experienced researchers in a variety of
media and receive advanced training in
written and oral communication.
Graduate students in Comparative Literature
must complete 30 credit hours in three areas:
A. 18 credits of core courses:
CLT801
Methodologies of Comparative
Literature
3
CLT803 Literary Theory I 3
CLT804 Literary Theory II 3
CLT820 Period 3
CLT830 Themes 3
CLT840 Genre 3
B. 6 credits of coursework in one of the
following:
1. A national literature and culture.
2. A non-literature cognate (graduate-level
courses in a field of interest such as
anthropology, film, history, music, philosophy,
psychology, etc…).
C. A written Preliminary Exam, and a 6-credit
Master’s Thesis, CLT 899
The Preliminary Exam in Comparative
Literature tests the student’s capacity to deal
with specific topics rather than address very
general areas. A reading list that consists
of 5-10 texts prepared by the examining
committee in consultation with the student
takes into consideration the field/s of
research related to the thesis topic for each
student. The Preliminary Exam takes the
duration of three hours. Each member of the
Examining Committee will receive a copy of the
answering sheets, and will correct the exam
independently. The result, which is either a
Pass or Fail, is communicated to the Director of
the Program. If the three examiners give a Pass
to the examinee, the student will be notified
about the result. If one of the examiners fails
the student, the Director will call for a meeting
where the examiners decided on whether the
student should pass or fail. Students who fail
are given a second chance within a month from
the date of the first exam. Those who fail in the
second comprehensive preliminary exam will
be suspended from the Program. The students
are expected to pass the Preliminary Exam
prior to commence working on their thesis.
COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
ARABIC STUDIES
ARA101 Essay Reading and writing I
[3-0, 3 cr.]
This course concentrates on essay reading
and writing. Through selected readings that
represent different types of essays, students
will receive training on literary analysis and
essay writing skills. This course also includes
a review of essential grammatical rules of the
Arabic language.
ARA102 Essay Reading and writing II
[3-0, 3 cr.]
This course, being complementary to ARA 101,
focuses on the study of the development of the
“Essay” as a literary genre. It focuses on articles
on literary criticism, newspaper articles, and
articles that deal with autobiography, memoirs
and travel. It also tackles the Western influence
on the evolution of essay writing in Arabic. In
this course, students receive training on skills
of writing articles.
ARA201 Appreciation of Arabic Literature
[3-0, 3 cr.]
This course is divided into two parts. First, the
theoretical part, which deals with the essential
characteristics of literature, as well as literary
themes, schools, and genres, and second, the
practical part, which includes the intensive
analysis of selected excerpts illustrating
important literary forms, and trends.
ARA301 Advanced Arabic Grammar [3-0, 3 cr.]
This course covers the fundamental principles
of the Arabic language, and deals with the
grammatical and syntactic mistakes commonly
made by students in writing. It includes written
exercises.
ARA302 Arabic Rhetoric [3-0, 3 cr.]
This course includes the main forms of rhetoric,
and their application in ancient, and modern,
poetry and prose. It includes written exercises
in rhetorical and literary analysis.
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