Graduate

Studies

in Comparative Literature

in the

Department of Comparative Studies

and in

cooperation with

the English Department

Fall 2003

Comparative Literature

at Stony Brook

Comparative Literature addresses the relationships among national literatures and between literature and other disciplines: media studies, philosophy, linguistics, history, the fine arts. Stony Brook's program in Comparative Literature attends to this diversity by encouraging students to complement their core departmental studies with individual projects based on personal interests and skills. The combination of literary history, theoretical inquiry, and special areas of study characterizes our graduate programs at both the M. A. and Ph. D. level.

Admission to Graduate Studies

To be considered for admission to Graduate Studies in Comparative Literature, all applicants must hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university with a suitable overall grade point average and with a high average in a major field appropriate to study in Comparative Literature. Applicants should also have a good command of at least one, and preferably two, foreign languages. In addition, they must submit the following:

1. An official graduate application form, including three letters of recommendation;

2. Two official copies of all previous college transcripts. (Transcripts of both undergraduate and graduate work must be submitted. If a student attended a junior college whose credits and grades are not listed on the senior college transcript, a separate junior college transcript is required.) International students must submit certified English translations of transcripts;

3. For international students, proficiency in English as demonstrated by a score of 550 or better on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL);

4. An appropriate score on the Graduate Record Examination General Test (GRE);

5. Two term papers or other writing samples in literature or a related field;

6. For international students, a foreign student financial affidavit;

7. For international students, a standard cassette demonstrating ability to speak English;

8. An application fee of $50.00

Tuition and Financial Aid

As of September 2003, the tuition for one academic year of study for a resident of New York State is $6,900 (or $288 per credit). For non-residents the tuition for one academic year of study was $10,500 ($438 per credit).

Any applicant admitted to Graduate Studies in Comparative Literature is automatically considered for financial aid. A limited number of full and partial teaching assistantships are available.

During the academic year 2003-04, a full assistantship carries a stipend of $11,665 plus a full Tuition Scholarship.

Students with excellent grades and GRE scores are strongly urged to apply early in the fall semester prior to the year they plan to begin their studies so that the program can nominate them for special fellowships, such as the Graduate Council Fellowship, which in 2002-03 carries a stipend of $14,500 plus a full Tuition Scholarship. In

addition, minority applicants are eligible to be nominated for the Turner Fellowship, which also carries a stipend of $14,500, plus a full Tuition Scholarship.

All New York State resident graduate students who apply for a Tuition Scholarship must apply for TAP (Tuition Assistance Program). New York State residents who are ineligible for TAP for financial reasons must provide the Graduate School with documentation proving their ineligibility. Students from outside New York State should investigate other sources of financial aid. All students with Tuition Scholarship of any kind must apply for New York residency immediately on arrival at Stony Brook. Beginning with the student's second semester of study, Tuition Scholarship cover only the amount of in-state tuition; students who choose to maintain residency in another state are required to make up the difference from their own funds.

Housing

1. Their are a variety of on-campus living arrangements for single graduate students and couples with or without children. All housing assignments are made on a first come, first-served basis, according to the date the housing application and advance deposit are received by the Divison of Campus Residences.

2. The Harry Chapin Apartment Complex houses graduate and married students. A limited number of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments are available. Rates for the apartments vary according to the size of the apartment and the number of occupants; rates may be obtained by writing the Apartment Complex Office or by calling (631) 632-6750. Http://www.stonybrook.edu/newstudentpreferences

On-campus housing is in relatively short supply, so students wishing to live on campus should apply early. Dormitories are regularly served by campus buses as well as by public buses that take students to the major shopping centers near the campus.

The Off-Campus Housing Office provides information concerning rooms, apartments and houses for rent in the local area. The price depends on the number of rooms in the house, the condition of the house, and its distance from campus. For more specific information contact the Off-Campus Housing Service, located in Room 104 of the Administration Building, (631) 632-6770.

Advisors

The Graduate School requires all students to have an advisor. The Director of Graduate Studies serves as advisor to all entering students during their first year and helps them plan their programs. Before the end of the first academic year, full-time students should choose one, or preferably two, official graduate advisors from the Comparative Literature graduate faculty. Advisor and student meet regularly to discuss the student's progress and program. Advisors are normally chosen for one year, but students are, of course, free to change advisors and are encouraged to consult with all members of the faculty.

Language Requirement

Entering graduate students are expected to have a good command of at least one, and preferably two, foreign languages. Candidates for the Ph.D. will eventually demonstrate competence in two or three foreign languages, depending on which of the two options outlined below the student chooses. All language requirements must be met three months before students sit for the comprehensive examination.

Non-native speakers of English may choose English (but not their native language) as one of their foreign languages. All students are of course required to demonstrate full command of written and spoken English, the language of instruction in most Comparative Literature courses.

Whenever possible, language exams for CLT students will be given by core or affiliated faculty in CLT. Each exam will be read by two faculty members.

The options for fulfilling the language requirement are as follows:

Option A: The student offers two principal foreign languages. A principal language is defined by the student's demonstrating a high degree of competence in the language, i.e., the ability to understand lectures given in the language and to read it with facility.

Students may demonstrate this degree of competence by taking for credit, and by earning a grade of B or better in at least one graduate or advance undergraduate course in the lettered humanities conducted in the language. This course must have been taken within five years of matriculating to Stony Brook and must have been taken at an accredited University. Final papers may be written in English. In special cases, students may substitute an advanced language examination of three hours in lieu of course work.

The examination consists of three sections: a) oral comprehension, defined as the ability to understand and summarize in English the contents of two graduate level lectures conducted in the foreign language; b) written comprehension, defined as the ability to understand and answer questions on a moderately long (approximately ten pages) theoretical, critical, or scholarly article; c) translation skills, shown through translating into English an advanced-level literary passage. The student is permitted to use a dictionary for part c but not for part b. If the principal foreign language being examined is a Classical language (e.g., Classical Chinese, Sanskrit, Greek), the three-hour test will consist of translations at an appropriately advanced level.

Option B: The student offers one principal language and two secondary languages. Demonstration and competence in the principal language will be the same as outlined for Option A.

Competence in the secondary languages can be demonstrated in either of the following ways:

1. By earning a grade of B or better in a graduate translation course taught by one of the foreign language departments at Stony Brook. Credits for a graduate translation course do not count toward the total credits required for the Master's or the Ph.D. degree in Comparative Literature.

2. By passing a departmental examination consisting of two parts, each one hour long, to be taken with a dictionary: a) a short theoretical, critical, or scholarly article that the student is required to summarize and discuss in English; b) a translation of a short literary prose passage of medium difficulty.

Teaching Assistantships

For Ph.D. students awarded teaching assistantships, four years of full support is the Department's norm. Awards are renewable annually, provided the student maintains satisfactory academic progress towards the degree and performs teaching duties appropriately (see below, Satisfactory Progress). Students (other than Turner fellows) should not count on assistantship resources beyond the fourth year of study. No student on a T.A. Line may teach more then one course during the Fall or Spring semester.

During their first year, Ph.D. students will normally be placed as teaching assistants in CLT lecture courses. During their second and third years, students will most commonly teach as instructors in the Writing Program, and during their fourth year, as independent instructors of CLT courses. Admitted students who would prefer a Writing Program placement during their first year should notify the Department immediately upon admission into the Ph.D. program. While placements will vary according to student and program needs and constraints, every effort will be made to provide each student with the available range of teaching experiences.

Graduate students in Comparative Literature have the opportunity to teach a wide variety of courses. Their teaching obligation may be fulfilled in several ways depending on departmental needs:

1. Assisting an instructor in a large lecture course;

2. Teaching a small section of a literature course under the supervision of the

Comparative Literature faculty;

3. Participating in the basic language course in a foreign language department or in a composition course in the English department.

T.A. assignments differ, but the amount of work required cannot exceed 20 hours per week. T.A.s will usually:

1. Hold office hours to review course materials, assist in grading, and discuss other course-related issues with undergraduates;

2. Attend classes (graduate courses will be scheduled to minimize interference with T.A. assignments) and read all required entries on the syllabus;

3. Lead discussion groups;

4. Grade exams, homework, and other written material.

The performance of teaching assistants is monitored by evaluation forms given to undergraduate students at the end of each semester, as well as by faculty members who visit certain classes taught by the T.A. and submit a written evaluation. Stipends of teaching assistants may be terminated if (on the basis of these evaluations and other relevant criteria) the Graduate Studies Committee judges that they have been deficient in carrying out their teaching duties. Superior work as a T.A. is highly valued by the Comparative Literature faculty and by the Graduate School. In the past, several T.A.s from Comparative Literature have won the President's Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student. This and other prizes for which T.A.s are eligible carry a cash award.

The M.A. in Comparative Literature

The Master's Program in Comparative Literature is designed both for students who seek only an M.A. degree and for those who intend to continue toward the Ph.D. In addition to knowledge of major texts of world literature, the program requires courses in Comparative Literature methodology, literary theory.

Language Requirements

Candidates for the M.A. offer one principal and one secondary language (non-native speakers of English may offer English as one of the two languages). All students must have fulfilled their language requirements before they are allowed to take the M.A. examination (see above, Language Requirements, Option A and Option B).

Course Requirements

Thirty credits of graduate work (including no more than three credits of CLT 597 or CLT 599). The following core courses must be taken by all M.A. students.

1. CLT 501 Comparative Literature Methodology

2. CLT 510 History of Literary Theory - Part I

3. Three CLT courses numbered 600 and higher

First-Year Evaluation

In the middle of the student's second semester of graduate work, the Director of Graduate Studies prepares a file for the student's first-year evaluation. It consists of: 1) the student's grades; 2) letters from the professors in all the student's classes; 3) if the student is a teaching assistant, a) a letter of evaluation from appropriate faculty and b) student evaluations from the section taught. Students may submit any other additional relevant material they choose. The Graduate Studies Committee will evaluate the dossier and decide whether the student should continue in the program.

Satisfactory Progress for the M.A.

Because so many factors influence students' satisfactory progress towards the degree, it is important for students to be aware of and to monitor their own progress. The following define the minimum limits for satisfactory progress for full-time students:

1. Maintain a 3.5 grade point average, with no course below B-, in each semester of graduate study.

There is a one-year maximum limit on incompletes. A student may accumulate no more than two incomplete grades in any one semester or she/he will no longer be considered a Student in Good Standing, a prerequisite to continue in the program. As a result, the student will likely face dismissal from the program.

2. Receive a satisfactory First-Year Evaluation in the spring semester of the first year of study.

Master's Examination

Students who have passed their Ph.D. oral comprehensive exams in the fall of 1995 or after that date will be deemed to have passed the equivalent of the master's exam and be granted a M. A. degree unless they already have a master's degree in Comparative Literature from another institution. The student must file appropriate papers with the department.

The Master's Examination Committee consists of three members of the faculty, at least two of whom are members of the Comparative Literature graduate faculty. The student's advisor normally chairs the Committee, and the other two members are chosen by the Director of Graduate Studies in consultation with the student and his/her advisor.

Reading List for the Examination:

The student, in consultation with the Examination Committee, prepares a list of works in each of the following three areas: A) History of criticism from the Greeks to the present; B) A literary genre; C) a literary period. The list for (A) is set. Each of the other reading lists will consist of 15-20 primary texts. (The number of required titles for the genre will be increased if the student chooses short works; whatever the genre, the reading required should approximate that imposed by 15-20 novels.) The list, signed by the student and all members of the Examination Committee, must be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies for approval by the Graduate Studies Committee at least four weeks prior to the examination date.

The Master's Examination will consist of a one and a half hour oral exam at which at least two of the three members of the Examination Committee must be present.

Thesis Substitute for Master's

Examination

Instead of taking the M.A. examination students may substitute a thesis for the Master's Examination. The thesis must be on a substantive topic in Comparative Literature requiring original research. The student will form a committee of three faculty, at least two of whom must be from the comparative literature graduate faculty, who will supervise the project and give final approval. The student's committee and project proposal must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee prior to embarking on the thesis.

The Ph.D. in Comparative Literature

Students are admitted to the Ph.D. program with either a Bachelor's degree or a Master's degree in an appropriate subject.

Residency

The University requires that students receiving a Ph.D. must take at least two consecutive semesters of full-time graduate study. For those entering without prior graduate study or with fewer than 24 graduate credits, this usually means 12 credits per semester; for those entering with more than 24 graduate credits or with advanced standing provided by prior graduate work, this would mean 9 credits per semester.

First-Year Evaluation

In the middle of the student's second semester of graduate work, the Director of Graduate Studies prepares a file for the student's first-year evaluation. The contents of this file are the same for both M.A. and Ph.D. students and are listed above in the M.A. chapter. The Graduate Studies Committee will evaluate the dossier and decide whether the student should continue in the program.

Course Requirements

A minimum of forty-eight credits of graduate work are required for the Ph.D.. Students who hold an M.A. in Comparative Literature or a related discipline can request that their transcript be evaluated by the Graduate Studies Committee and may receive a maximum of 30 credits toward their Ph.D. All students seeking the Ph.D. must take the required courses listed for the M.A., unless the Graduate Studies Committee accepts comparable courses taken previously, in which case other courses may be substituted. In addition, all Ph.D. students must acquire a minimum of one semester of formal teaching experience (even if they are unsupported or are on a fellowship requiring no teaching duties) and must take the formal teaching practicum, CLT 698 during their first year in the program.

Students must take the required courses when they are offered, and cannot replace them by Independent Study courses, except in the most unusual circumstances and by petition to the Director of Graduate Studies at the beginning of the term the course is offered. The petition has to be signed by the person directing the Independent Study and must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.

Students taking any Independent Study or Directed Reading course will do so under the departmental rubrics,

CLT 599 and CLT 690. Under exceptional circumstances, the Director of Graduate Studies may approve Independent Study under another department's designator, contingent on proper Comparative Literature procedures being followed. A maximum of six credits of Independent Study courses is applicable to the degree requirements for the Ph.D.. All such courses must be approved by the Director of Graduate Studies before the end of the add/drop period of the semester during which they are to be taken. All students taking Independent Study or Directed Reading courses must file a detailed description, for which forms are available in the Department office. Failure to have these courses approved in a timely fashion will result in de-registration or in denial of credit for the courses.

Satisfactory Progress Towards the Ph.D.

The following define the minimum limits for satisfactory progress for full-time students:

1. Maintain at least a 3.5 average, with no course below B-, in each semester of graduate study. There is a one-year maximum limit on incompletes. A student may accumulate no more that two incomplete grades in any one semester or she/he will no longer be considered a Student in Good Standing, a prerequisite to continue in the program. As a result, the student will lose his or her T.A. Line as well as face likely dismissal from the program.

2. Receive a satisfactory first-year evaluation in the spring semester of the first year of study;

3. Satisfy at least one language requirement in each year of residence until all language requirements are met. All language requirements must be completed at least three months before the comprehensive examination;

4. Complete all core courses in the first two years of full-time study and all 48 credits for the Ph.D. in three years;

5. Take the comprehensive examination no later than one year after completion of course work;

6. Submit a dissertation proposal in the semester following satisfactory completion of the comprehensive examination.

By rules of the Graduate School, students must satisfy all requirements for the Ph.D. within seven years after completing 24 credits of graduate work in the Stony Brook department in which they are registered. In rare instances, the Graduate School will entertain a petition to extend this time limit, provided it bears the endorsement of the department. The program may require evidence that the student is still properly prepared for completion of the degree. In particular, the student may be required to pass the comprehensive examination again in order to be permitted to continue work.

Comprehensive Examination

Full-time students who are candidates for the Ph.D. will normally take their comprehensive examination no more than one year after completing their course work. Completing their language requirements is a prerequisite for sitting for the examination.

Committee for the Examination: The student will discuss the choice of a chair for the Examination Committee with the Advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies. One Comparative Literature faculty member will be asked by the student to serve as chair the Committee. Four more faculty members who can examine the student in one or more areas of the examination, as defined below, will be selected by the student in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies, the Advisor and the chair of the Committee. At least three of the five members of the Examination Committee must be members of the Comparative Literature graduate faculty (including affiliates). At least four of the five Committee members must be present at the examination.

Reading List: A reading list for all four parts enumerated below will be compiled by the student with the help of the Examination Committee. The definitive version of the reading list, whose cover page bearing signatures of the Committee members indicates who will chair and who will serve as primary examiner for which part (see below), must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee no later than three months prior to the scheduled date of examination. It is advisable that a description of the special area, related to the dissertation, be submitted along with the reading list.

Examination: The examination is oral, with the duration to be determined by the members of the Committee but not shorter than two hours and not longer than three. Questions posed by examiners will be based on the reading list for the examination. The examination may be passed, passed with distinction, failed, or failed in part. In case of failure, the examination may be retaken once, but no later than the end of the semester following the time when it was initially scheduled. In case of partial failure, the second examination will cover only the area(s) on which the candidate's performance was inadequate. The comprehensive examination will consist of four parts:

1. The history and theory of literary criticism, from classical antiquity to the present. The reading list will be based in part on material covered in CLT 501 and 510. Works pertinent to the student's special interests may be added. The student should obtain the latest version of Ph.D. Reading List for Literary Theory and Criticism available in the Department office. This reading list also contains guidelines and procedures applicable to all parts of the comprehensive examination and should be consulted as a first step toward preparing the reading list.

2. A literary genre. Possible options include tragedy, comedy, novel, short narrative, romance, autobiography, epic, lyric, essay, or other categories approved by the Graduate Studies Committee. A knowledge of the historical development of the genre will be expected, and the reading list should include, in addition to relevant primary texts, a selection of major critical and theoretical works about the chosen genre (which may include its relation to other forms of expression such as music, art, film and philosophy). The list must include works from at least three language traditions.

3. A period in literary history. Possible options include Classical Antiquity; Medieval; Renaissance; Baroque and Neo-Classical; later Eighteenth Century; Romanticism; later Nineteenth Century; Modernism. Other categories (e.g. in the Eastern literary traditions) will be considered by the Graduate Studies Committee. The student will be expected to be acquainted with the history and the social and intellectual background of the period and to demonstrate a knowledge of the major genres produced during that period in at least three language traditions.

4. A special area of a comparative nature, which is defined as a broad subject related to the student's more specific projected dissertation topic. The student will be expected to have a wide knowledge of the history and scholarship that inform the background of the dissertation project.

For parts 2 to 3 of the comprehensive examination, the reading list submitted must include primary texts originally written in at least two languages other than English. Reading lists in these areas are not intended to be exhaustive, but they should provide coverage of the field that adequately prepares the student to teach courses in the areas of the examination. Guidelines for the preparation of the reading lists can be obtained in the Department. Parts 2 and 3 normally each include 35-45 primary texts and 12-15 secondary works.

Advancement to Candidacy

Advancement to candidacy is granted by the Graduate School upon recommendation of the Director of Graduate Studies after a successful Comprehensive Examination. Again, all other requirements must have been met before the student sits for the Comprehensive Examination. Advancement must be 1 year prior to defense.

Dissertation

The dissertation represents the culmination of the student's degree program and should be a serious contribution to scholarship. In consultation with the Dissertation Director, who must be a member of the Comparative Literature faculty, students choose their Dissertation Committee, which is then subject to the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. Affiliated faculty may direct dissertations only with the approval of the Graduate Studies Committee. The Dissertation Committee is usually composed of four members, three of whom (including the Director) are members of the Comparative Literature graduate faculty. In accordance with Graduate School regulations, one member must be outside the Comparative Literature graduate faculty.

The dissertation proposal, which must be appropriate to Comparative Literature, should be approximately 2,000 words, including footnotes but not including bibliography and should include the following:

1. Title of the dissertation;

2. Description of the topic and its appropriateness for comparative literature in focus and method;

3. The rationale behind the choice of topic, and the anticipated contribution of the proposed research to knowledge;

4. Current state of research on the topic and a basic bibliography;

5. Method of work, including the general approach (e.g., historical, generic, thematic,

structural) and an outline of chapters.

Students are advised to consult with their Dissertation Director concerning all procedures to be followed in preparing the dissertation. Early involvement of all members of the Committee is strongly recommended. Once the proposal has been approved and signed by all members of the student's dissertation committee, it is submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee for final approval. Specific guidelines on preparing the dissertation proposal and interacting with the dissertation committee during the composition are available in the departmental office.

Although there are no strict regulations on length, dissertations will normally be between 200 and 400 pages, not including bibliography and other supplemental material. The dissertation committee may, in special cases and with justification, allow a student to submit a shorter or longer dissertation.

When the dissertation has been completed in accordance with guidelines published in Guide to the Preparation of Theses and Dissertations, legible copies of the complete dissertation must be given to all Committee members at least one month in advance of the scheduled defense.

All Dissertation Defenses shall take place on campus and require the full attendance of the Dissertation Examining Committee. Any exceptions from this practice will require approval from the Dean of the Graduate School. Campus Audio/Video Services can be employed in the event that either a committee member or the defending student cannot be on the premises due to extenuating circumstances. While the examing committee may wish to hold the committee examination of the defense in private, the public presentation of the defense will be open to the University community and should be advertised campus-wide three weeks prior to the scheduled date. A minimum of three weeks prior to the dissertation defense, the dissertation abstract, approved by the student’s advisor and Graduate Program Director, must be submitted to the Graduate School with details of the time and location for the defense. The Graduate School will be responsible for advertising the defense to the University community.

The Committee will set up the ground rules for the defense, which usually involves the student giving a short précis of the research problem, the research method, and the results. This is followed by questions from the Committee and, if the Committee so desires, from the audience.

Leave of Absence

A student unable to continue graduate studies in a given semester must file a Leave of Absence form that requires the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate School. Students may not use a Leave of Absence to study for the comprehensive examination or to write the dissertation without maintaining residence. While preparing for the comprehensive examination or writing the dissertation, students must maintain residence by registering appropriately.

Courses in Comparative Literature

In accordance with University regulations, a student who has not come into the program with an accredited M.A. may offer no more than six credits from another graduate program toward a graduate degree at Stony Brook. Grades from courses taken at other universities are not figured in the student's grade point average.

All courses are three credits, except CLT 597, 690, and 699, 700, 701 which can be taken for variable credit. Core courses (CLT 501, 510) may not be repeated. All other courses are topic courses that may be repeated if the topic changes. No more than six credits of CLT 597, 599 or 699, 700, 701 may be counted toward degree requirements.

CLT 501 Comparative Literature Methodology

An introduction to the discipline of Comparative Literature, its history, methods and problems. Stress will be given to the interrelations of literature with other disciplines, as well as to questions involving subjects such as canon formation, genre, and periodization.

3 credits, letter graded (A, A-,B+, etc.)

CLT 510 History of Literary Theory - Part I

A history of Literary Theory from classical Greece to the Enlightenment.

3 credits, letter graded (A, A-,B+, etc.)

CLT 511 History of Literary Theory - Part II

A history of Literary Theory from the Enlightenment to the present.

3 credits, letter graded (A, A-,B+, etc.)

CLT 597 Directed Readings for M.A. Students

Directed Readings must be approved in writing by the Advisor, Director of Graduate Studies, and the supervising professor. S/U grading, variable and repetitive credit

CLT 599 Independent Study

A student may take no more than one Independent Study in a given semester. Only three credits of Independent Study may be counted toward the M.A. requirements, and a maximum of six toward the Ph.D. All Independent Study projects must be approved in writing by the third week (before the end of the add/drop period) of the semester by the advisor, the Director of Graduate Studies, and the supervising professor. Projects counted toward the degree must result in a final paper or exam that will be filed with the Department at the completion of the course.

1-3 credits each semester, repetitive credit, letter graded (A, A-,B+, etc.)

CLT 600 Seminar in Stylistics

Changing topics in the study of stylistic and structural elements of the literary text.