Reasons for My Choice of Majoring in English Literature

張貼日期：Nov 16, 2010 1:26:35 PM

Reasons for My Choice of Majoring in English Literature

Pace Chen

     When I was a freshman, a required course Epics evoked my interest in literature. It made me decide to transfer to another university where I can study more about literature. When I was taking the reading course at Chinese Culture University (CCU) last year, the teacher asked us to read at least three novels each semester. It made me realize that I needed to be prepared to do a lot more reading than I thought. I knew it was good for me because I could challenge myself with more English literature.

     My reading ability has been improving due to many courses about English literature. The pace of my reading became faster. The ways I read was also changed. We were asked not to check dictionaries when encountering a new word. At first, I did not get used to reading a lot. The teachers at the other school did not require us or push us to read a lot, so I could not keep up the pace of the lesson here and reading was not that interesting at the beginning of the semester. The load was heavy to me. I had to force myself to read at least 30 minutes everyday. After a month, I have acquired the habit of reading every night before going to bed. Indeed, this course was not only a beginner’s approach to literature but also a huge step for me. It makes me fall in love with reading and get used to reading English.

     Literature requires us to do a lot of reading. This makes me realize that reading makes great writing as well. No matter what I read, I sometimes pay attention to the phrases or the patterns the authors use. The more I read, the more patterns and descriptions I learn. My writing skill has also improved after I attended the English Department of CCU.

     What else can I learn from literature? I learn the ideas of a particular period of time, the historical background of the stories, and the philosophy that authors have experienced and explicated. Every time I appreciate a work of literature, I always feel the same ways as the authors did. Some show personal emotions or attitude toward societies, religions, or slavery. Other works show philosophy about equality, freedom, and feminism.

     English literature is essential to English learners. An English major who hasn’t read any Shakespeare’s works is just like a Chinese who doesn’t know a poem of LI-Bai’s李白. We see the beauty of a language through the literature. English literature reveals humanism and emotions that are appealing to me.