Advanced Topics

Choose one path; others optional.

This section contains four different paths you can take after you have completed the Core:

• A. British Literature
• B. American Literature
• C. Creative Writing
• D. Linguistics & Language Studies

You do not need to do all of them. Most people choose one track that interests them most (or occasionally two). The rest can be left for later — or skipped entirely — depending on your goals.

• Choose British Literature if you love classic novels, older poetry, Shakespeare, or the long tradition of writing from the British Isles.
• Choose American Literature if you are especially interested in U.S. history, identity, race, ethnicity, or modern/postwar American fiction and poetry.
• Choose Creative Writing if you want to start writing your own stories, poems, or novels and learn craft techniques.
• Choose Linguistics & Language Studies if you are curious about how language itself works (sounds, grammar, meaning) or about digital/text-analysis approaches to literature.

A. British Literature

B. American Literature

C. Creative Writing

Note: For Creative Writing: Craft of Character and Craft of Style, they are part of the same Wesleyan specialization on Coursera: Creative Writing Specialization.

D. Linguistics & Language Studies