Department of English

Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

How to choose 1000‑level English courses

How to impress your professor

1. Write all e-mail inquiries as if they were formal letters, beginning with the salutation "Dear Professor Whosit," using conventional caps, spelling, and punctuation, and including your full name and the specific class you are in.

2. Read the whole syllabus at the first of the year, paying close attention to all the rules that govern attendance, grading, absences, and the like.

3. Turn off your cellphone before class and leave it off until the class is over.

4. Do the prep.

5. Attend and participate. And enjoy!
 

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Current Course Offerings
Click here to see a complete list of this year's English course offerings

There is a variety of first-year (1000-level) English courses to suit all inclinations and needs, and all sections with a number ending in 0 or 5 can be used to fulfill the University Writing Requirement. Course codes ending with a 1 (for example, ENGL 1041.03 or ENGL 1051.03) are non-writing requirement sections, and do not fulfill the University Writing Requirement.  These non-writing requirement courses are offered in tandem with their writing requirement counterparts, but have a different method of evaluation with less emphasis on essay writing.

ENGL 1005.03, ENGL 1015.03, and ENGL 1025.03 introduce students to the advanced study and analysis of literature.  Students in these courses explore works of poetry, prose, drama, and fiction that illustrate the power of language to surprise, move, persuade, and entertain.  In addition to helping students strengthen their skills as readers, these courses also offer them the opportunity to become a better writer.

ENGL1005.03 Literature: A Global Perspective. This course offers an introduction to global literature. Examining the work of influential writers from around the world, the course will explore some of the pressing social, political and cultural questions of the present day.

ENGL1015.03 Literature: How it Works. This course provides an overview of literary genres and techniques, and an introduction to the analysis of literary forms and language. Readings will represent a variety of authors, genres, national literatures, and time periods, but the principal emphasis is on the relation of literary form to content and on training students in the close analysis and interpretation of literary meaning.

ENGL1025.03 Literature: Why it Matters. This course considers the value and evaluation of literary works.  It addresses such topics as the pleasures of literary reading, the concept of literature, and the criteria used in judging literature.  The material includes a selection of literary works, both popular and classic, drawn from early and recent periods, and in different genres.

ENGL/CRWR 1030.06 Reading and Writing Stories is a full-credit course offered in one term.  This course has three broad but connected objectives: (a) to introduce students to the advanced study and creation of fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction; (b) to develop students’ literacy skills so that they will be more critical and responsive readers; and (c) to aid them in refining their skills as imaginative writers.

ENGL 1040.03 Reading Popular Culture introduces students to the skills of critical and close analysis and the basics of academic writing and argumentation.  The range of cultural work studied includes print fiction, but is expanded to include other mediums such as film and television, examining the ways in which structure, content, and context come together to create multiple layers of meaning for any given work or cultural moment.

ENGL 1050.03 Pulp Fiction includes the same breadth of chronology and form as the more traditional introductory courses, but challenges and explores the distinctions between ‘high’ and ‘low’ culture to consider the ideological underpinnings of such categorizations.  Readings will include ‘high’ and ‘low’ versions of pulp genres such as romance, science fiction, fantasy, gothic/horror, and mystery, from their literary roots to contemporary versions.

ENGL 1060.03 Literature and Science has three central aims: it introduces students to recent debates about these disciplines; it promotes cross-disciplinary scholarship; and it provides instruction in effective writing. Tutorial groups are capped at twenty, making this course ideal for students not familiar with the study of English Literature.

ENGL 1100.03 Writing for University is an introduction to rhetoric and writing that focuses on developing the skills needed to produce analytic and research papers in a range of disciplines. Equipping students with strategies to facilitate all stages of the writing process, the class also introduces grammatical and rhetorical principles that enable effective writers.  This course is offered in a section open to students from all programs and disciplines, a section reserved for Kinesiology students, and a section reserved for Nursing and Health Promotion students.

ENGL 1005.03 Literature: A Global Perspective

This course offers an introduction to global literature. With the help of influential writers from around the world, we will explore some of the pressing social, political and cultural questions of the present day. In addition to strengthening your skills as a reader, this class offers you the opportunity to become a better writer.

ENGL 1015.03 Literature: How it Works

This course provides an overview of literary genres and techniques, and an introduction to the analysis of literary forms and language. Readings will be drawn from the principal literary genres: prose fiction, poetry, drama, and non-fictional prose. Readings will represent a variety of authors, genres, national literatures, and time periods, but the principal emphasis is on the relation of literary form to content and on training students in the close analysis and interpretation of literary meaning.

ENGL 1025.03 Literature: Why it Matters

This course considers the value and evaluation of literary works. It addresses such topics as the pleasures of literary reading, the concept of literature, and the criteria used in judging literature. The material includes a selection of literary works, both popular and classic, drawn from early and recent periods, and in different genres. Though students will be expected to analyze these works for their styles and meanings, the approach taken will be aesthetic and sociological.

ENGL 1030.06 Reading and Writing Stories

This class introduces students to the key facets of a writer's craft, including its methods and its practices, its genres and their masters. Students will study the techniques of a range of literary works in order to become familiar with the terminology and concepts central to literary studies. They will also hone their skills as creative writers through individual and collaborative expression, and will follow a number of original creative works from first draft to finished version. These skills and activities will be supported by tutorials, writing workshops, and lectures.

Note:  This is a full-credit (6 credit hour) course taught in one semester.

ENGL1040.03 Reading Popular Culture

This course introduces students to the serious study of popular culture.  Its objectives are broadly similar to those of introductory courses on literature, in that students in ENGL1040 learn to improve their skills in critical thinking, scholarly argumentation, and written communication.  The course’s particular focus, however, is on providing students with the methods and knowledge necessary for analyzing forms of cultural expression in diverse creative media, including film, television, literature, video games, electronic texts, jokes, advertising, graffiti, cartoons, song lyrics and consumer goods.  The selection of cultural works will vary from section to section; please consult each section’s list of texts on the Courses and Seminars section of the Department of English website.

The format of each section of ENGL1040 typically combines lectures with weekly tutorial meetings.  As a Writing Requirement course, ENGL1040 provides formal instruction in writing, with practice in writing being carried on throughout the term in regular essays and exercises.

 A non-Writing Requirement version of the course, ENGL1041, is offered from time to time.

ENGL1050.03 Pulp Fiction

This course introduces students to the serious study of popular fiction.  Its objectives are broadly similar to those of introductory courses on literature, in that students in ENGL1050 learn to improve their skills in critical thinking, scholarly argumentation, and written communication.  The course’s particular focus, however, is on providing students with the methods and knowledge necessary for analyzing forms of “pulp” genres such as romance, thrillers, crime, the Western, sci-fi, fantasy, horror, sports literature, and comic books.  The selection of works will vary from section to section; please consult each section’s list of texts on the Courses and Seminars section of the Department of English website.

The format of each section of ENGL1050 typically combines lectures with weekly tutorial meetings.  As a Writing Requirement course, ENGL1050 provides formal instruction in writing, with practice in writing being carried on throughout the term in regular essays and exercises.

 A non-Writing Requirement version of the course, ENGL1051, is offered from time to time.

ENGL1060.03 Literature and Science

While literature and science are often seen as opposed ways of discussing and analyzing the world, their history has always been intertwined. Literature has often pondered the ethical questions of scientific experiment, as in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, or contemplated the social and cultural transformations wrought by scientific development, as in Henry Adams’ meditation on electricity and religion. Likewise, language, literature, and culture have informed how science has been understood, and even which questions science has asked. In this course, we will read novels, plays, and poems that relate to a range of scientific disciplines. We will discuss how scientific discourses across a range of disciplines function, and how literature addresses and transforms those discourses.


As an English Writing Requirement course, formal writing instruction will take place both in lecture and in tutorials. Assignments are structured to give students experience with both formal and more informal styles of writing, and major assignments are “scaffolded” to allow for revision.

ENGL1100.03 Writing for University

This course provides students with formal instruction in the rhetoric and composition of academic writing.  Its principal objective is to prepare students to write analytic and research papers in a range of disciplines.  Students learn strategies for facilitating all stages of the writing process, are introduced to the grammatical and rhetorical principles that will help them to write effectively, and are expected to complete a variety of assignments to hone their writing skills from outline to revision.  The assignments and required readings will vary from section to section; please consult the description for each section on the Courses and Seminars section of the Department of English website.

The format of each section of ENGL1100 typically combines lectures with weekly tutorial meetings.  As a Writing Requirement course, ENGL1100 provides formal instruction in writing, with frequent practice in writing being required.