Literary and Critical Theory,MPhil

Explore critical theory in its historical and contemporary modalities on the Goldsmiths MPhil/PhD in Literary and Critical Theory.

Explore critical theory

• Originally designating a group of thinkers associated with the Frankfurt School, "critical theory" has expanded to encompass a range of approaches committed to reflecting on the premises and categories employed in disciplines ranging from literary studies and political science to history and film studies.
• By nature interdisciplinary, critical theory has become an integral part of literary theory and cultural analysis, as well as the study of philosophy and political thought.
• The MPhil/PhD Pathway in Literary and Critical Theory enables postgraduate researchers to explore topics in any aspect of critical theory, from its emergence in the 18th and 19th centuries in the work of Kant, Hegel, Marx, and Nietzsche, to the critiques of modern capitalism and fascism developed in the 20th century by the Frankfurt School and others, to contemporary modes of critical theory including critical race theory, postcolonial theory, feminist theory, gender studies and queer theory, eco-criticism, psychoanalysis, and various approaches developing out of structuralism and post-structuralism.

Unique resources and research opportunities

• Undertaking research in critical theory at Goldsmiths enables postgraduate researchers to take advantage of the unique resources available in the Department of English and Creative Writing as well as in the College at large.
• The Department is home (together with Sociology) to the Centre for Philosophy and Critical Thought (CPCT), which runs an annual research seminar, and hosts numerous public lectures, workshops, and conferences throughout the year. CPCT also hosts the Annual Goldsmiths Philosophy Lecture.
• Pathway researchers have the opportunity to become CPCT affiliates and lead workshops related to their research. Through CPCT, the Department is also the base for the Walter Benjamin London Research Network, which regularly organises international conferences and supports student-led initiatives on all aspects of Benjamin's work.
• Researchers also have the opportunity to play an active role in other aspects of the Department's research environment, including the Richard Hoggart Lectures in Literature and Culture, the Goldsmiths Literature Seminars (GLITS), and the e-journal, GLITS-e, and the Centre for Caribbean and Diaspora Studies; and to take advantage of the many public events run by research units elsewhere in the College such as the Centre for Postcolonial Studies and the Political Economic Research Centre.
• Recent and current PhD projects include: "uncriticizability" from Goethe to Benjamin; critique of "journalistic reason" in Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Benjamin; the liminal image in Warburg, Benjamin, and Didi-Huberman; Surrealism and the "secret society" in the history of political thought; Foucault and Zen Buddhism; Günther Anders and critique of technology in early critical theory; theories of the non-place in language and psychoanalysis; Kafka and language mysticism.

Find out more

Contact the department

If you have specific questions about the degree, contact Julia Ng.

You should normally have (or expect to be awarded) a taught Masters in a relevant subject area.

You might also be considered for some programmes if you aren’t a graduate or your degree is in an unrelated field, but have relevant experience and can show that you have the ability to work at postgraduate level.

International qualifications

We accept a wide range of international qualifications. Find out more about the qualifications we accept from around the world.

If English isn’t your first language, you will need an IELTS score (or equivalent English language qualification) of 7.0 with a 7.0 in writing and no element lower than 6.5 to study this programme. If you need assistance with your English language, we offer a range of courses that can help prepare you for postgraduate-level study.

Where this degree can take you

Our graduates have gone on to pursue careers in:

• Publishing
• Journalism
• Public relations
• Teaching
• Advertising
• The civil service
• Business/Industry
• The media

Carrying out a research degree will help you develop:

• Transferable skills, including enhanced communication and discussion skills in written and oral contexts
• The ability to analyse and evaluate different textual materials
• The ability to organise information, and to assimilate and evaluate competing arguments

Research training programme

Training in research methods and skills is provided both by the Department and Goldsmiths' Graduate School.

This begins with an intensive week-long induction in the first week of enrolment and continues later in the first term with a series of seminars focussing on the specific challenges of literary and linguistic research projects.

We will also inform you about any research training seminars or study-days offered elsewhere in the University of London (for exmaple, by the Institute of English Studies or the Institute of Modern Languages Research, School of Advanced Study) or beyond, such as at the British Library.

The specific training requirements of your project will be assessed, and guidance provided on specialist seminars and conferences to attend, which can be supported where possible by assistance from departmental funds.