Girton College University of Cambridge

Undergraduate Common Room

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English

Fellows

Details and statistics

Brief outline of the course

The Cambridge English course is divided into two parts. Part I is examined at the end of the second year, and Part II at the end of the third year.

Part I involves the study of English literature across a broad timespan, from 1300 to the present day. This timespan is divided into four main periods, 1300–1550, 1550–1700, 1688–1847 and 1830-the present. Within these large periods there is plenty of room for developing your own interests. Other papers include ‘Literary Criticsm’ (on the theory and practice of criticsm from a variety of perspectives), and there are also a number of language-based papers to choose from, such as French, Italian, Old English and ‘English Language for Literature’. It is possible to write a dissertation and a portfolio of essays to replace two of the exams, and in both parts of the course, students have the option to submit their own creative writing.

In Part II, students choose from a very wide range of optional courses such as American Literature, Shakespeare in Performance, the Novel, or Commonwealth and International Literature. Other options include papers devoted to particular authors, or to the literature of specific periods (early medieval literature, for example, or Victorian literature, or literature since 1970). There are opportunities for comparative work and for the study of philosophy or of the history and theory of criticism. In addition, Part II students write a dissertation on a topic of their own choice, and they take a course in ‘Tragedy’, which involves the study of tragedies from a wide range of cultures and periods from the Greeks to the present day. For further details on the Cambridge English course, see the English Faculty website at http://www.english.cam.ac.uk.

Organisation of teaching

Students of English at all the colleges follow the same degree course and sit the same university examinations, though the order in which the different elements of the course are studied and the style of teaching vary from one college to another. Lectures are organised centrally by the English Faculty and are open to students from all colleges. In addition, each student is assigned a Director of Studies, usually an English fellow from their own college, who arranges and oversees their study. Each term the Director of Studies appoints supervisors who are specialists in the subjects to be studied that term. Supervisors see students regularly in small groups, pairs or sometimes singly and they are responsible for setting and marking essay work and for providing a more personal form of teaching than that offered in lectures. The reading and written work set by supervisors forms the backbone of the student’s work schedule in any particular term.

The Girton English Department

Girton has a large and successful English with three Official Fellows (Dr Anne Fernihough, Dr Sinead Garrigan Mattar, and Dr Edward Holberton) and one Research Fellow (Dr Mike Rodman Jones). Life Fellows of the College in English include Dr Juliet Dusinberre, Professor Gillian Beer and Professor Jill Mann.

The department offers extra-curricular activities of various kinds, including regular evening events. At these meetings a guest speaker is invited to talk on any subject related to literature, and this is followed by refreshments and discussion. The speaker might be a practising novelist, poet or playwright, a lecturer from within Cambridge or from another university, or perhaps one of the Girton students themselves. There are also optional courses in creative writing on offer from time to time, open to all three years of students, as well as optional courses in other literary subjects. In the summer term, the College offers various prizes for creative writing. The extensive and beautiful College grounds provide an ideal setting for the staging of plays in the summer and students often take advantage of this.

Girton English has a long and fascinating history. Many well-known writers been associated with the College, either directly or indirectly, since its founding in 1869. George Eliot, for example, gave money to the College when it was first founded, and Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own (1929) was partly based on a lecture delivered here. The department continues to thrive and to achieve excellent Tripos results. The atmosphere in Girton is, however, a friendly and informal one and we encourage applicants from as wide a range of backgrounds as possible. The proportion of undergraduates from state schools, for example, reflects that of the country as a whole.

Studying English at Girton

If you come to Girton to read English, you will be supervised by Girton fellows for a substantial part of your course. In addition, you will be supervised by fellows of other colleges where appropriate. Girton teaching takes the form of seminars and classes, in groups of between five and ten students, and supervisions in pairs or singly. Girton is unusual within Cambridge in the emphasis it places on seminar teaching. Students are often asked to give brief presentations on a particular topic, followed by open discussion amongst the group. The purpose of this is partly to develop the student’s confidence and skill in expressing himself or herself in group situations, and partly to facilitate a fruitful interchange of ideas. In supervisions, on the other hand, the individual student’s written work is monitored and discussed.

At the start of their third term, Girton English students sit a preliminary examination organised by the College. This consists of two timed examination papers on courses followed in the first two terms, together with a mini-dissertation on a topic of the student’s own choice. This is not a university examination and the results do not count towards the student’s degree. The prelim is intended more as a practice for the first university examinations (Part I exams), which take place at the end of the second year.

A typical weekly work schedule

In a typical week, a Girton English student might attend two or three classes and/or seminars, a supervision, and half a dozen or so Faculty lectures. Students choose, in consultation with their director of studies and supervisor, which of the Faculty lectures they will attend.

A weekly work schedule at Girton might include an essay (of at least five pages, roughly speaking) on a topic from the main course being studied that term, and a short piece of ‘practical criticism’, i.e. a critical appreciation of one or two short passages of poetry and prose. In Part I some language work (eg a short translation or a critical commentary) is also often required. On top of this, a student may be asked to prepare notes for an informal, 10-minute seminar presentation.

Applying to read English at Girton

We are looking for students from all educational, social and regional backgrounds, with an enthusiasm for independent reading and hard work, and a willingness to have their ideas about literature and the world questioned. An interest in literary language and form is essential, as well as an interest in the cultural and historical contexts of literature.

In assessing candidates who apply to read English at Girton, we recognise that schools vary enormously in their teaching methods and in the courses followed, and we take this into consideration at all times. Candidates are normally invited to send in two of their school essays on literary topics, unrevised and complete with the teacher’s original corrections and comments. In cases where this is inappropriate because of the type of course followed at school, other forms of written work will be considered. In addition, candidates are asked to sit a one-hour written test when they come for interview. The test usually involves a comparison of two short pieces of poetry or prose, with straightforward questions about style, tone and argument.

Girton undertakes to interview all serious applicants. The candidate will normally be given two subject interviews. In these interviews, they may be asked to read and comment on short unseen passages of poetry or prose, and they will be asked about what they have been reading recently. In selecting candidates, we try to take into account any disadvantages they may have experienced, and we encourage students from all types of school and situation.

We are willing to consider candidates taking English Language and Literature A2-level rather than straight English Literature. The course at Cambridge is, however, literary in emphasis, so that candidates taking English Language and Literature A2-level should try to read as widely as possible and to broaden their knowledge of literature.

We are also happy to consider candidates who wish to take a ‘gap year’ between school and university provided that they plan to make good use of their time either academically or in other ways.

Typical offers

Candidates are not expected to sit STEP papers. A typical conditional offer would be A*AA at A2 level. One of the A2-level subjects must be English Literature or English Language and Literature. A2-level subjects which are useful for an English degree at Cambridge include history, foreign languages (modern or ancient), sociology, philosophy and politics. We do, however, consider candidates with any combination of A2 subjects, including science subjects, as long as one of the subjects is English.

On average Girton accepts 10 students a year to read English, making it one of the larger English departments in Cambridge. The number of applicants varies from year to year but is usually in the region of 20–30.