The Death of the English Degree, Brought on by Critical Analysis [View all]

[TheBlackAdder]

In recent years, numerous publications and broadcasts highlight that an English Language & Literature degree could be a poor educational choice in the current marketplace.

http://www.forbes.com/pictures/fgek45hg/no-10-english-language-and-literature/

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/23/opinion/sunday/the-decline-and-fall-of-the-english-major.html?_r=0

http://business.time.com/2013/10/02/foroohar-forget-unemployment-time-to-worry-about-mal-employment/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2014/01/10/the-college-degrees-with-the-highest-starting-salaries-2/

http://www.today.com/money/job-after-graduation-major-these-not-those-6C10112004


At New Jersey’s State Universities, and most other major colleges and universities, there seems to be a recent misguided approach that concentrates their undergraduate degree towards critical thinking. Critical thought and analysis are important skills for everyone to possess, but an entire undergraduate program should not stress critical analysis as a primary objective. These schools will offer one or two creative writing courses to compliment their sanitized critical analysis curriculum, but in order to delve into creative thought, one must pursue a master’s degree.

When discussing this topic with English majors, I have found that many are unhappy with their school’s emphasis on critical analysis as opposed to creative thought. Classes will require several critical analysis essays on topics such as how wealth might have an influence on one of Shakespeare’s plays, but that will only expose critical thought to a small subset of that one individual work. None of the students I have spoken with can write plays, write prose, or write poems nor can they rewrite the aforementioned. However, they can provide critical analysis on any part of a work that you desire.

This type of education yields graduates who are void of creative and dynamic thought. Three-dimensional thought is replaced by antiseptic analysis. The skills required to write creative works are missing, relegating the students to non-English employment or careers such as copy editors or technical writers. Instead of writing about the influence of privilege in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” students should be asked to submit a rewrite of a section of that work to make it better. Have the students write a better ending, one that does not appear to be as rushed as the original work while retaining the same look and feel of Shakespeare. Have the students alter the climax, extend the denouement, add more back story to the characters—something that adds a skill related to English! Instead, they are given critical analysis busy work, reinforcing a skill learned early in the sophomore year and required by other elective courses. It is just that…busy work and nothing more!

This mode of thought forces the students to obtain a master’s degree in order to learn creative writing skills, skills that they are woefully deficient in demonstrating. When they enter the master’s program, they have poorly developed creational foundations. Many students will become damaged goods in the literary world since their creative juices were dried up on analytical thought. Others will become disillusioned with a career in English and move on to other majors or concentrate on finding a job to survive. Once critical thought becomes infused in one’s writing skills, their creative abilities change. Although a critical reader can appreciate and analyze a fine piece of literary work, their ability to think abstractly and creatively diminishes to the point where they cannot readily produce such work. This is akin to a painter (fine arts) versus that of an art critic (art history). Meanwhile, most of these students will need to provide some kind of income to carry them through their graduate studies. Unfortunately, the majority will find careers outside of English, working in a field that does not reinforce their collegiate talents or goals. They will not be able to submit creative works to media, self-publish creative works, or provide support for others as an intern because they will lack the creative skills to do so.

It appears as though the academia that runs the English departments at many universities lose grasp of this issue. Having spent many years learning to submit journals for peer-review, they push that same structure as a requirement for their curriculum. Most students do not want to pursue a career in professorship, most want to develop their internal gifts and talents that they feel they possess and produce creative works in the very same manner the literary greats they study have. Most English students have dreams, dreams that get suffocated by the reality that they lack the skills to achieve them. If English needs to thrive, there needs to be diversity of thought. This thought diversity is what the majority of media groups look for in prospective job candidates, the ability to bring divergent talent to the workforce, not a common cookie cutter analytical thinker.

If the English departments need to stress critical thinking, they need to provide two learning tracks to the student body. One that emphasizes critical thought for careers in technical and educational trades, and one in creative thought to develop the next generation of literary greats. They could also blend the two and have their courses stress a critical analysis paper while also requiring the submission of original creativity projects. Anyone who calls him or herself a Christian or is interested in American history should perform a critical analysis of John Winthrop’s “A Model of Christian Charity” and those who are English majors should submit an interpretative rewrite of such work. English Departments of various universities and colleges need to rethink their objectives, to ones that will better the students. The modern shift from creativity to analysis needs to find balance, especially if the needs of the undergraduate and graduate body are important to the university.


Note: If one were to pursue a career in academia, critical analysis is imperative. Unfortunately, those careers require a minimum of a master’s degree (ideally a Doctorate degree) and are extremely limited in their openings and are quite competitive.