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English Program Overview
Either the Bachelor of Arts or the Bachelor of Science is available
in English, but the department strongly recommends the study
of foreign
language that leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree.
Three concentrations are possible for the English major. The first centers on
literature, the second on writing, and the third on preparation for secondary
school teaching. All require 13 courses (39 credit hours); the secondary teaching
credential also requires courses in the Education Department. Students intending
graduate study in English generally should choose the literature concentration.
Regardless of concentration, first-year students who major in English should
take Rhetoric 101, 102, and 103, in the Honors section if qualified; English
203 or 204 (or Drama 203); and foreign language if seeking the Bachelor of Arts
degree.
The degree with Honors in English is awarded to graduates with a departmental
average of at least 3.5 who have completed a senior thesis (English 397). Planning
for Honors should begin early in the student's undergraduate career, in consultation
with the faculty advisor.
See
the Catalog for specific requirements.
Montage
Montage is an annual publication
that showcases our students' literary and artistic abilities. Typically,
this magazine features student poetry, short stories, photos, and
drawings, but it has also offered the lyrics and scores of musical
compositions and full-color reproductions of paintings. All students
are invited to participate as contributors and staff members of Montage,
and English majors are especially welcome.
Alumni Comments
- "I had heard quite a bit about a [graduate]
program . . . where you could get certified as a paralegal.
I looked into
it and began taking classes in January of this year. . . .
As to how this relates to my MacMurray experience? The assignments
I have submitted have exceeded expectations in every aspect.
My ability to be faced with a problem, organize my thoughts
about it, research it, and write an understandable brief has
made my work exceptional. You will all be proud to learn that
I am carrying a 4.0 GPA!!!
"The education that I received at MacMurray was one of how, not what. I learned
how to progress through issues and situations that I am faced with daily. My
other classmates are sorely lacking in this respect. When faced with a case situation,
they flounder and don't know where to begin. Their presentations are unorganized,
poorly written, and sometimes don't even address the issues at hand." - Gwen
England, paralegal student, class of '95
- "Throughout my English coursework, I appreciated that
Mac had a faculty who did not look for 'right' answers, but
carefully thought-out, well supported, and clearly expressed
ones." - Anonymous alumn, library director, class of '92
- "First of all, I felt that all the professors were enthusiastic
about the courses they were teaching, which was always a positive
influence on me, as a rather unmotivated student. I work on
a college campus where professors don't seem that interested
or involved in their students, let alone being happy with what
they're teaching. I can't recall one bored teacher presenting
a boring class in the English Department. That kind of consistent
quality is extremely rare in any academic department, I believe.
I am grateful to the [MacMurray student newspaper] for my solid
experience in writing. I met a lot of fantastic reporters from
other colleges and universities in my graduate program who
couldn't write worth a lick. I didn't have that problem. After
all, I was hired by a newspaper two weeks after graduation
with absolutely no news writing samples. I was hired on the
basis of my English papers. One more thing: the whole department
is tough, tough, tough on students, but never once did I think
a professor didn't care about me." - Anonymous alum, public
relations news writer and publications writer/designer, class
of '90
- "Not only were/are all professors intelligent, entertaining,
and helpful, but they also cared about us as people. Thanks!" -
Amy Jo Suter Murray, high school English teacher, class of
'89
- "All of my experiences with the English/Drama
department were wonderful. I felt nurtured
by all the professors and I highly enjoyed my time
at MacMurray!" - Mary Ponterio, graduate student,
class of '98
Faculty
Our department has six faculty
members who cover the range of English and American literature and language,
and theatre as well.
Allan Metcalf,
Ph.D.
Professor of
English
Dr. Allan Metcalf teaches freshman
Rhetoric as well as medieval English literature and linguistics.
Since 2003 he has also been the College Registrar. In his spare
time he studies words and American English and is executive
secretary of the American
Dialect Society, a national scholarly association.
Dr. Metcalf earned his bachelor's degree
at Cornell University and his M.A. and Ph.D. at the University
of California, Berkeley.
He also studied at the Free University of Berlin, Germany, and
has taught at the Riverside and Santa Cruz campuses of the University
of California as well as at Texas A&M University. He is the
author of two textbooks used in our distinctive Rhetoric course.
Recently he has written five books about language, all published
by Houghton
Mifflin Co.
- America in So Many Words (1997),
co-authored with David K. Barnhart, a year-by-year account
of the 327 most important words and phrases in American English.
He talks about this book and about MacMurray in an interview
on C-SPAN's "Booknotes" -- click
here for more information.
- The
World in So Many Words (1999), a world tour of more
than two hundred languages from which English has borrowed
words, with examples of words from each.
- How We Talk (2000),
a tour of the regional, state, and local dialects of the
United
States, including the "horseshoes" and "ponies" of
central Illinois. (Hint: You eat them.)
- Predicting New Words: The Secrets
of Their Success (2002), an investigation of why so
many smart new words fail to endure, complete with a five-part
scale to judge the likelihood of a new word’s success
and instructions for making your invention succeed.
- Presidential Voices: Speaking Styles
from George Washington to George W. Bush (2004), covering
every aspect of presidential language including vocabulary,
accent, and speaking skills, and telling who were the greatest
presidential communicators, orators, and bumblers; giving
instructions on how to talk like a president; and finishing
with a chapter on each president.
E-mail: allan.metcalf@mac.edu.
Robert Seufert,
Ph.D.
President William F. Short Professor of English
Dr. Seufert was born in New York City and earned his B.A. from Fordham University. He then attended graduate school at Ohio University, earning his Ph.D. in Renaissance English literature in 1975. While working on his dissertation, Robert taught at the University of Cincinnati. Robert then moved to Albuquerque, where he taught at the University of New Mexico. While in New Mexico, Robert acted in theatrical productions, took courses in the Navajo language and American Indian culture, and taught on a Navajo reservation. In 1981 Robert was hired to teach English at MacMurray College, specializing in Shakespeare and Renaissance literature, but teaching courses in other areas as well.
During his quarter century at MacMurray, Robert has received two awards for teaching excellence, has directed and acted in a number of theatrical ventures, has published an audiocassette version of his mythological epic The Voyage, and has written a book entitled Theories of Myth: An Overview. He has also received two sabbatical leaves, one to complete his book on myth and the other to study the relationship between Romantic art, music, and literature.
In addition to reading and writing, Robert’s hobbies include walking in nature and dancing. He is a member of Pondicherry Lodge, a Springfield chapter of the Sherlock Holmes Society, and has twice been named their Sherlockian of the Year. Robert has lectured frequently at the Sangamo Literary Club in Springfield , speaking on such authors as Shakespeare, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and D. H. Lawrence. Robert has three step-children, and he and his wife Diane live in Winchester , a small town near Jacksonville.
E-mail:robert.seufert@mac.edu
 Jeannie Zeck, Ph.D.
Associate
Professor of English
Dr. Jeannie Zeck (jeannie.zeck@mac.edu)
completed a Ph.D. in Twentieth-Century American literature in 1995 at
Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. For four years she taught
literature, writing, and women's studies at Susquehanna University in
Pennsylvania before coming to MacMurray College.
Dr. Zeck's professional interests include African-American literature,
domestic fiction, and gender and race issues. She has published
articles on Virginia Woolf's novel The Waves, Louise
Erdrich's Love Medicine, Bobbie Ann Mason's In Country,
and an interview with Pulitzer-Prize winning author Jane Smiley.
Jeannie's article "Stumbling Toward Ecstasy: Cyrano de Bergerac
as Comedy" appeared in Literature/Film Quarterly.
In April of 2000, Jeannie and her Rhetoric 102 students presented
MacMurray College's first Take Back the Night Rally. Students,
faculty, and health care professionals dedicated this evening
to acknowledging the violence that permeates our culture and
many of our homes. Take Back the Night is now an annual spring
event at the college. Participants become more aware of critical
issues such as domestic violence, dating violence, acquaintance
rape, and elder abuse. Those present also explore ways to eliminate
the violence on campus and off.
Along with organizing the annual Take Back the Night rallies,
The fall of 2006 was an exhilarating time for Dr. Zeck who was on sabbatical. While studying August Wilson’s plays, Jeannie traveled to see professional productions of his work in St. Louis, Kansas City, and New York City. During the spring of 2007, she is teaching an exciting course focused solely on Wilson’s 10-play cycle of African-American life throughout the twentieth century. She has taken her students on several trips to see productions of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone and Radio Golf at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago and Gem of the Ocean at the Indianapolis Repertory Theatre. Seeing Wilson’s plays come to life on stage tremendously enhances the semester.
E-mail: jeannie.zeck@mac.edu
Kathy Wynn Burkholder,
M.A.
Instructor of English
Kathy graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the
University of Georgia in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts degree
in English and mathematics. Between 1965 and 1994, she worked
as a computer programmer/analyst for four years in Washington,
D.C., and Saigon, Vietnam, and with her husband operated the
restaurant and bar, which they owned for 22 years near Greenfield,
IL. In 1989 while managing the business, she began studying
for a Master of Arts degree in English at Sangamon State University
(now the University of Illinois at Springfield). In 1993 she
completed that degree and began working as an adjunct professor
at Lewis & Clark Community College in Godfrey, IL, where
she taught writing and non-Western literature courses. In the
fall of 1998, she joined the English department at MacMurray
College, where she is now an Instructor of English teaching
Rhetoric 101 and 102 and Introduction to Short Fiction and
Poetry.
E-mail: kathy.burkholder@mac.edu
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