About

Overview Key FeaturesStudents motivated by a desire to study literary art in the broadest sense of the term will find an intellectual home in the Program in Comparative Literature. The Comparative Literature program at Williams College gives students the opportunity to develop their critical faculties through the analysis of literature across cultures, and through the exploration of literary and critical theory. By crossing national, linguistic, historical, and disciplinary boundaries, students of Comparative Literature learn to read texts for the ways they make meaning, the assumptions that underlie that meaning, and the aesthetic elements evinced in the making. Students of Comparative Literature are encouraged to examine the widest possible range of literary communication, including the metamorphosis of media, genres, forms, and themes.Whereas specific literature programs allow the student to trace the development of one literature in a particular culture over a period of time, Comparative Literature juxtaposes the writings of different cultures and epochs in a variety of ways. Because interpretive methods from other disciplines play a crucial role in investigating literature’s larger context, the Program offers courses intended for students in all divisions of the college and of all interests. These include courses that introduce students to the comparative study of world literature and courses designed to enhance any foreign language major in the Williams curriculum. In addition, the Program offers courses in literary theory that illuminate the study of texts of all sorts.Note: the English Department allows students to count one course with a COMP prefix as an elective within the English major. I want to find another Bachelor Course

The Comparative Literature program at Williams College involves the study of literature from multiple cultural traditions in order to appreciate the variety, the complexity, and the breadth of what literature can be and do.

Disciplines

Literature

Requirements

Other Requirements

1Common Application, Coalition Application, or QuestBridge ApplicationSchool ReportCounselor RecommendationTwo Teacher RecommendationsMid-Year Report (Due February 5 or for schools on a trimester, when 2nd trimester grades are available)$65 Application Fee or Fee WaiverEarly Decision Agreement Form (Early Decision applicants only)

Comparative Literature