English

Immerse yourself in the imaginative worlds of poetry, fiction, literary nonfiction, and drama, and develop the skills and experiences to pursue a wide variety of career paths. Studying what gives you joy and sparks your creativity and intellectual curiosity will also set you up for a rich personal, professional, and civic life.

James Weaver,Associate Professor, Chair of English, Lorena Woodrow Burke Endowed Ch…

Margot Singer,Professor (English/Creative Writing), Director of Creative Writing, Di…

Highlights

Beck Series: Writers That Inspire

Reynolds Young Writers Workshop

Renowned writers Billy Collins, Piper Kerman, and Alice Walker have all visited Denison and worked with students in recent years through the English Department's Beck Series.

Think Critically & Creatively

Choose an emphasis in creative writing

Creative Writing

We offer a wide variety of courses that engage with human experience, recent and historical as well as local and global.

One of the oldest undergraduate creative writing programs in the country, Denison’s major and minor in creative writing offer small classes taught by full-time professors, all practicing writers and poets, who also mentor and advise students.

Choose an emphasis in literary studies

English Literature

Denison’s English majors develop expertise in critical reading and writing along with skills in cultural understanding, empathetic thinking, imaginative reasoning, storytelling, critical thinking, and textual analysis—all highly valued by 21st-century employers.

Spotlights

4 questions with English professor Diana Mafe

Mafe talks about her research, teaching practices, and how The Legend of Zelda connects to the liberal arts.

Denison Magazine

To go proudly and boldly into the world

For these high-achieving ’90s graduates, an education on The Hill was about exploring, stumbling, adapting — and thriving.

Fred Porcheddu-Engel has brought the Middle Ages into the digital age with his research of manuscripts.

4 questions with English Professor Fred Porcheddu-Engel

As he celebrates his 30th year as part of the Denison faculty, Porcheddu-Engel remains as enthusiastic as the day he arrived as a student.

24 hours of improv and 4 years with a new ‘family’

This 24-hour improv show is an extreme bonding experience, a great way to get close to your friends, and a big opportunity to work toward a common goal