Professor Mecca Jamilah Sullivan awarded Next Generation Indie Book Award
May 19th, 2023
The department is excited to announce that Prof. Mecca Jamilah Sullivan’s novel BIG GIRL (W.W. Norton & Co. 2022) has been awarded a 2023 Next Generation Indie Book Award for First Novel. The…
Association of Departments of English-Association of Language Departments Joint Summer Seminar Hosted by Georgetown, 1-4 June 2023
May 12th, 2023
Georgetown is happy to host the 2023 Joint Seminar of the Association of Departments of English and the Association of Language Departments in Washington, DC, from 1 to 4 June. Prof. Ricardo Ortiz…
Professor Carolyn Forché is elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
April 19th, 2023
The Department of English is excited to announce that Distinguished University Professor Carolyn Forché has been elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. According to the…
Prof. Bruce Holsinger Presents the 2023 Lacay Lecture in Riggs Library
March 24th, 2023
On March 20, 2023, students, faculty, and staff gathered in Riggs Library for the return of the annual Lacay Lecture. Professor Bruce Holsinger, presenting work from his latest publication, On…
The Department of English at Georgetown University has one of the largest undergraduate majors in the College of Arts and Sciences and houses one of the few stand-alone English Master’s programs at a nationally ranked university.
With its small classes, the Department of English at Georgetown University emphasizes close work with students and teaching excellence. Our faculty boasts a robust and diverse record of publication, and many have won major university teaching prizes. Reflecting a broadening of the field in recent years, our department offers courses in canonical and non-canonical literature and film in English. The Department is the home of the Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice and the University Writing Program.
Statement of Principles from the Faculty of English, Georgetown University
The Department of English at Georgetown University stands united in its commitment to the fundamental equality and inherent dignity of all human beings. These values are the foundation of our work in the humanities and transcend political affiliation. They are also embedded in our University’s mission and the Jesuit tradition of seeking social justice.
As humanists we are committed to the practices of principled argumentation, free inquiry, careful consideration of evidence and fact, and sustained, contemplative engagement. A prerequisite for those practices is respect.
We join together in opposition to those who would ignore, reject, or recast as debatable the principles of equality and justice that are the foundation of our work as educators.
We affirm this shared commitment publicly because the values of equality and human dignity continue to be under threat. Instances of racist, misogynist, Islamophobic, anti-immigrant, homophobic, and anti-Semitic harassment, coupled with hate crimes and acts of racial terrorism, are on the rise nationally. They also occur at Georgetown.
The climate for these acts has been substantively shaped by a rhetoric of divisive bigotry that has come to dominate our political discourse, even at the highest levels of our government. As teachers of English we know that words are powerful. We reject the language of division and affirm publicly our shared commitment to justice.
To our students: we stand in solidarity with you. We acknowledge your fears and affirm your right to pursue knowledge regardless of your identity or origin. Our task is to support, to encourage, and to challenge all of you. We commit to that task now and always.
Many courses are interdisciplinary and our faculty have played a major role in founding the African American Studies Department and interdisciplinary programs of the College:
Department Leadership
Department Chair: Daniel Shore
Director of Graduate Studies: Patrick O’Malley
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Pamela Fox
Director of Honors: Lori Merish
Director of Creative Writing: Phil Sandick
If you are seeking information on English language courses, please contact the English Language Center.