Applied Linguistics
The Applied Linguistics specialization brings together scholars working on overlapping areas of pedagogical, interpretive and quantitative approaches to language, literature, media and cultural studies. Among others, the specialty areas are Second Language Acquisition; Applied Cognitive Linguistics; Humor studies; Language Contact; Bilingualism; Language Acquisition; Pragmatics and Semiotics.
The student will be expected to develop an interdisciplinary specialized research project leading to a Ph.D. dissertation. This project can be based in one or more national languages, literatures or cultures (French, German, Classical Greek, Italian, Latin and Spanish), one or more genres or any of the areas of expertise in LCL within the Applied Linguistics research framework.
Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies
This specialization provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to study and teach the cultures of the Ancient Mediterranean. Areas of faculty specialization include the Greek, Hellenistic and Roman worlds, Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism, and the world of Late Antiquity. In addition to courses in the relevant ancient languages and literatures (including Greek, Latin, and Biblical Hebrew), topics seminars focus on the history, philosophy, art, and archeology of the ancient world. Students with an interest in Judaism will find additional resources available through UConn’s MA program in Judaic Studies (see below, “Hebrew and Judaic Studies”), while those with an interest in Late Antiquity may wish to consult the resources available for the MA and Ph.D. programs in Medieval Studies.
Digital Culture and Media Studies
The secondary concentration in Digital Culture and Media Studies prepares students to work in a wide variety of interdisciplinary fields such as Game Studies and Media Philosophy and to undertake research projects in Media History. Topics of study may include video games, social media, digital film culture, electronic literature and interactive fiction, virtual worlds, and the relation of all those topics to media archeology and the products of earlier discursive technologies such as non-digital artistic forms (i.e., traditional art and literature), film, radio, and the tabletop RPG. Students are encouraged to apply their expertise in New Media to the classroom and to artistic endeavors. The application of media theory and history to the burgeoning digital culture presents a unique opportunity to merge practice with theory and to pursue work in the humanities with a scope that extends from the classical world through our immediate contexts. Ultimately, students learn to participate as scholars and teachers in the discourses springing from the integration of digital computer technology and multiple media into world culture. Follow Professor Finger’s and Professor Travis’s blog for more information!
Hebrew and Judaic Studies
This unique section of the department brings together faculty of other sections who have teaching or research interests pertaining to the history, literature, languages, and cultures of the Jews (see: Hebrew and Judaic Studies Section, Faculty). Students who pursue either a M.A. or PhD in Literatures, Cultures, and Languages may take courses that advance their knowledge in these areas. The highly interdisciplinary graduate offerings of this section focus on historiographic, literary, and cultural issues that intersect with other literatures and cultures taught in the department, enabling graduate students in LCL to develop a concentration or focus in a Judaic related area or simply to enhance their program.
Recent courses have been devoted to: Midrashic literature, Talmudic historiography, Second Temple period History and Literature, Kabbalah, German Jewish literature, and Hebrew and Arabic contemporary fiction. The graduate offerings of this section have been enhanced by visiting adjunct faculty who teach in the M.A. program in Judaic Studies sponsored by the Center for Judaic Studies and Contemporary Jewish Life (see: http://judaicstudies.uconn.edu/graduate_program/).
History and Theory of World Cinema
This specialization provides students with the knowledge and skills necessary to study and teach world cinema through film history and theory in an interdisciplinary context. The analysis of film form and aesthetics as well as a cultural, economic and political phenomenon is this secondary field’s objective.
Additional Secondary Fields
Students may design additional secondary fields in consultation with their advisors and Ph.D. committees. These fields may include, but are not limited to: Caribbean and Latin American Cultural Studies, Gender Studies, Human Rights, Judaic Studies, Medieval Studies. Students may design additional secondary fields in consultation with their advisor and Ph.D. committee. For detailed information, follow this link to the Other Programs Menu.