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The worlds of literature and language in Group I
When you picture yourself becoming the consummate Yale intellectual, you think of afternoons spent contemplating the mysteries of life and literature in the Sterling reading rooms, a copy of Joyce or Milton on your lap. Or evenings spent discussing—in Italian—the circles of Purgatory over tiny cups of espresso. Or late nights spent over your keyboard furiously composing insightful essays. It all points to Group I, the first and foremost of Yale's distributional groups.
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Group I is your universal translator: from French or Spanish to languages you didn't even know existed. Language classes are small, often with native speakers as teachers. The classes meet five days a week, allowing you to establish solid relationships with your teachers and your classmates. They're also fast-paced; German students read Kafka during their first year. For those of you lucky enough to have already fulfilled the language requirement, Yale's Group I superiority might very well lure you to become even more worldly by learning another language or to continue in upper-level language courses focusing on conversational skills and untranslated novels.
Group I's other focus is literature. The English, literature , and comparative literature departments are consistently among Yale's finest and boast an impressive roster of star professors. English Professor Harold Bloom, GRD '56, one of the world's greatest literary scholars, just released How to Read and Why this May. For creative writers, Daily Themes offers a small group of student writers a chance to hone their craft through short daily assignments. Yale's literature classes represent a range of genres, from Medieval Italian comedy to modern gay fiction. As a Group I major, I have the luxury of reading books for class that I'd want to read on my own anyway. The literature major also allows you to combine your love of literature with any other interest you may have—politics, women's studies, or even science.
Whatever your style or preference, the languages and literature of the world are more than wide enough to encompass it. Whether you prefer Homer, Ibsen, or Ellison, Group I has courses for you. Detest poetry or love it, like to write or like to read, check out a Group I class and find your literary niche.
—Siobhan Peiffer
All materials © 2000 The Yale Herald, Inc., and its staff.
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