Princeton University

The degree of doctor of philosophy in comparative literature is offered by the department in cooperation with the other departments of literature. The program of study enables students with exceptional training in languages and literatures to profit from the increased awareness and understanding that may be derived from the considered view of more than one literature and of the theoretical presuppositions behind literary study as a whole. Lasting from four to five years, depending on the student's background, the program prepares candidates for scholarship in the field and for teaching in comparative literature, separate departments of literature, and the humanities. Entering students with a master's degree or its equivalent are normally expected to elect a four-year course of study; those without prior graduate training may enroll for five years.

Language Requirement

In addition to English, students must have a command of two modern and one classical language. These may be Western, East Asian, or Near Eastern. Students must elect one of these languages as their principal foreign language. A firm reading knowledge of the other two languages must be demonstrated either through undergraduate proficiency examinations or courses. In determining proficiency in the principal foreign language, students are held to the standards of the departments of foreign languages.

Course of Study

The curriculum in comparative literature has two major objectives: while training students in one literary tradition, it also requires them to be seriously interested in at least two other literatures as well as in the historical, critical, and theoretical problems raised by the study of literature. The course of study prior to the general examination reflects these objectives. It requires from four to six terms, depending on the student's preparation, background, and performance, and includes course work in comparative literature and the student's major and minor literatures.

Areas of Study

Major Literature The program of study in the major literature aims at giving students a mastery sufficient to enable them to teach it as part of their professional commitment. The scope of the major literature is historically defined. Its precise outlines vary among the individual literary disciplines, but they generally conform to the following patterns:

• Classical Literatures The major in classics includes the study of both Greek and Roman literatures. For a detailed description of the curriculum, see the separate Schedule for the Classics Major in Comparative Literature.
• Post-Classical Western Literatures Students majoring in these literatures choose one of the following periods: (1) Middle Ages to Renaissance, (2) Renaissance to Romanticism, (3) Romanticism to the present.
• East Asian Literatures Students majoring in Chinese or Japanese may follow the prescribed curriculum for comparative literature students concentrating in one or both of these literatures. For the detailed curriculum, see the separate Schedule for Chinese or Japanese Majors in Comparative Literature.
• Near Eastern Literatures Students majoring in Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish develop individual programs with the assistance of their advisers. These generally involve a version of one or more topics of concentration or fields of study required by the Department of Near Eastern Studies.

Additional Literatures Students are expected to enrich their knowledge of their special fields through work in different languages and literatures. Some of this work is done in comparative literature courses, but at least one minor literature must also be studied in the pertinent department.

Comparative Literature The program of study in comparative literature combines the students' work in their major and minor literatures by focusing on a specific area in which these literatures can be fully explored. This area may be a limited segment of literary history (the late Middle Ages, the 16th century, Romanticism) or a particular aspect common to all three literatures (a genre such as lyric or the novel, or a phenomenon like neoclassicism or the modern). It may also be a critical or theoretical problem, involving analyses of style or modes of interpretation; comparisons of genres and themes; questions about the artistic process in different art forms (such as painting and poetry); or problems in literary aesthetics or epistemology. In this way, comparative literature functions as the core of the curriculum, exposing students to a range of literary techniques and helping them to organize their work in their chosen literatures.

Advising

Advisers are ordinarily chosen at the end of the first year or the beginning of the second in preparation for the General Examination. At least one of these examiners must be from comparative literature.

After concluding the examination, students, in consultation with the director of graduate studies, select a primary adviser who directs the dissertation, either from the Department of Comparative Literature, or, occasionally, from another literary department.

A secondary reader is chosen by the student in consultation with the primary adviser and the director of graduate studies before the time of the prospectus defense. A third reader is appointed before the Final Oral Defense.

Teaching Experience

Practice teaching forms a significant part of graduate education in comparative literature. It is not only a crucial element in a graduate student's preparation for teaching and research but also an essential credential for future employment, especially if a student wishes to qualify for a position in his or her major literature. As a matter of departmental policy, therefore, all students, after their first year, are normally required to accumulate at least four hours of teaching experience during their time at Princeton.

General Examination

The general examination tests, as it reflects, the candidate's course of study. Based on a reading list devised by the student and the student's advisers, the written examination is divided into 2 parts. The first part concerns the candidate's major literature and is comprehensive in nature. It is normally taken at the end of the second or third term in the four-year program; at the end of the fourth for those following a five-year schedule. The second part, in comparative literature, is usually taken at the end of the fourth term for four-year students; at the end of the sixth term for those enrolled for five years. It is intensive in nature and consists of questions based on those areas of study that the candidate has prepared in consultation with the faculty adviser. An oral examination focusing on the proposed dissertation topic concludes the general examination at a later date.

Dissertation

The dissertation should demonstrate the candidate's competence in writing a substantial work of scholarship and criticism and his or her proficiency in maturely handling the foreign languages chosen. Under certain circumstances, candidates may be permitted to submit an original translation of a work of particular difficulty. A dissertation based on translation, however, must be preceded by a comprehensive introduction that examines in depth the comparative context of the translated work as well as the linguistic and theoretical problems arising from the translation itself.

A final public oral examination is required after the dissertation has been read and approved by representatives of the faculty. This examination consists of two parts. The first is a 30-minute lecture in which the candidate justifies the subject treated and the methods employed, accounts for any new contributions to literary history and criticism, and projects plans for future scholarship and publication based upon the dissertation. The second part is a series of questions growing out of subjects presented in the lecture and relating to both the criticism and teaching of literary material dealt with in the dissertation.