English studies
English studies (or simply, English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries. This is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which is a distinct discipline. The English studies discipline involves the study, analysis, and exploration of English literature through texts.
"Anglicist" redirects here. For English words borrowed by others languages, see Anglicism.
English studies include:
English linguistics (syntax, morphology, phonetics, phonology, etc.) is regarded as a distinct discipline, taught in a department of linguistics.[1]
The North American Modern Language Association (MLA) divides English studies into two disciplines: a language-focused discipline, and a literature-focused discipline.[2] At universities in non-English-speaking countries, one department often covers all aspects of English studies as well as English taught as a foreign language and English linguistics.
It is common for departments of English to offer courses and scholarships in all areas of the English language, such as literature, public speaking and speech-writing, rhetoric, composition studies, creative writing, philology and etymology, journalism, poetry, publishing, the philosophy of language, and theater and play-writing, among many others. In most English-speaking countries, the study of texts produced in non-English languages takes place in other departments, such as departments of foreign language or comparative literature.
English studies is taught in a wide variety of manners, but one unifying commonality is that students engage with an English-language text in a critical manner. However, the methods of teaching a text, the manner of engaging with a text, and the selection of texts are all widely-debated subjects within the English studies field.[1] Another unifying commonality is that this engagement with the text will produce a wide variety of skills, which can translate into many different careers.[3]