Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Comparative Literature
Undergraduate Degrees
Comparative Literature Major
Students may earn the B.A. in Comparative Literature by satisfying the requirements for either of two tracks.
The Literature/Media/Critical Thought Track allows students to focus their study in one of three concentrations while also taking courses in the other two. Together, these three concentrations represent the broad range of interests in the discipline: (1) literature considered comparatively and transnationally; (2) the media of other arts and modes of communication (photography, film, music, painting and digital media); (3) modes of critical thought that inform and shape theoretical reflection on the arts and society.
This track offers the opportunity to pursue a major that is broadly based in the liberal arts. Students on this track might consider extending their concentration with a double major or minor. For example, the literature concentration could be extended with a second major or minor in a national literature (French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, English, classics or an East Asian literature); the media concentration by another major or minor in cinematic arts, art history or communication; and the critical thought concentration by a second major or minor in philosophy, religion, history, sociology or anthropology.
The Foreign Language Track incorporates the study of at least one literature in a foreign language into the comparative perspective of the comparative literature major.
Students who intend to pursue a graduate degree in either comparative literature or a foreign literature are strongly advised to choose this track, as are students who already possess advanced skills in a language other than English. Majors in comparative literature with foreign language emphasis might consider a double major or a minor in a department of foreign language or in a non-literary field such as international relations or journalism.
The requirements for both tracks of the major accommodate very well semesters of study abroad. Students are helped and encouraged to plan their programs in advance to allow for that experience.
Requirements for the Major
Literature/Media/Critical Thought Track
Students earn a B.A. in Comparative Literature and are required to complete at least 40 units (10 courses) as follows:
(1) COLT 302 and COLT 303
(2) At least four additional COLT courses in one of the three concentrations.
Literature Concentration:
CLAS 360, COLT 101, COLT 102, COLT 250, COLT 251, COLT 264, COLT 311, COLT 312, COLT 324, COLT 335, COLT 345, COLT 346, COLT 348, COLT 351, COLT 374, COLT 382, COLT 420, COLT 426, COLT 435, COLT 445, COLT 448, COLT 472, COLT 475, COLT 476, COLT 485, EALC 454, EALC 460
Media Concentration:
COLT 354, COLT 357, COLT 365, COLT 373, COLT 379, COLT 451, COLT 452, COLT 462, COLT 470, COLT 480
Critical Thought Concentration:
CLAS 370, COLT 375, COLT 377, COLT 381, COLT 385, COLT 391, COLT 454, COLT 471, COLT 474, COLT 476, COLT 478, COLT 486, COLT 487
(3) At least four additional COLT courses. No more than two of the 10 courses required for the major may be at the 100 or 200 level.
Foreign Language Track
Students earn a B.A. in Comparative Literature and are required to complete 40 units (10 courses) as follows:
(1) COLT 302 and COLT 303
(2) At least five additional COLT courses, of which no more than two may be at the 100 or 200 level.
(3) At least three upper-division courses in the literature or culture of one or more foreign languages (other than English), with all readings in that language.
Honors Program
Students who satisfy the following requirements of the honors program receive the B.A. in Comparative Literature with Honors. To be admissible to the honors program, an overall GPA of at least 3.0 and at least 3.5 in courses counted for major credit is required. The decision to enter the Honors Program should be made and discussed with the departmental undergraduate adviser at least one year (two semesters) before graduation.
To be awarded honors, majors in comparative literature on the literature/media/critical thought track must complete 4 units of COLT 490x Directed Research and 4 units of COLT 495 Senior Honors Thesis. These courses replace two of the COLT courses required beyond the four-course concentration. Majors in comparative literature on the foreign language track must complete, in place of two of the five required COLT courses, an additional upper-division course in the literature or culture of a language other than English and COLT 495 Senior Honors Thesis.
The director of the senior honors thesis must be a member of the comparative literature faculty. The second reader may be any regular USC faculty. To qualify for the award of honors, the director and second reader must both approve the thesis.
Minor in Comparative Literature
Students can minor in one of three tracks: the literature/media/critical thought track, the foreign language track or the global cultures track.
Literature/Media/Critical Thought Track
Students are required to complete at least 24 units (six courses) as follows:
(1) COLT 302 and COLT 303
(2) At least three additional COLT courses in one of the three concentrations.
(3) At least one additional COLT course in any of the three concentrations.
No more than one of the six courses required for the minor may be at the 100 or 200 level.
Foreign Language Track
Students are required to complete at least 24 units (six courses) as follows:
(1) COLT 302 and COLT 303
(2) At least three additional COLT courses, of which no more than one may be at the 100 or 200 level.
(3) At least one upper-division course in the literature or culture of a foreign language (other than English), with all readings in that language.
Global Cultures Track
Students are required to complete at least 24 units (six courses) as follows:
(1) COLT 302 and COLT 303
(2) At least two additional COLT courses, of which no more than one may be at the 100 or 200 level, to be chosen from the following list: COLT 101, COLT 102, COLT 250, COLT 264, COLT 360, COLT 374, COLT 375, COLT 379, COLT 385, COLT 445, COLT 448, COLT 470, COLT 474
(3) At least two other courses in a relevant USC College department to be decided in conjunction with the adviser according to the following guidelines:
A. Students may choose a region of the world and take two upper-division courses related to that region in relevant departments.
B. Students may choose a national/linguistic tradition and take two upper-division courses related to that tradition in relevant departments.