The Comparative Literature Major
January 2025
Dear Comparative Literature Majors,
Happy new year, and welcome back to campus! I hope you have had time to rest and recover a bit. As I step back into the role of Director of Undergraduate Studies, I want to thank Prof. Fradinger for kindly taking my place and working with you all throughout my fall leave.
With the spring add-drop period approaching, I wanted to reach out to remind you of a few basic logistics, and offer my help to you. The window for all of you to adjust your schedule runs from today, Monday Jan. 6 (a week before the first day of classes) until Wednesday Jan. 22. In this letter you’ll find some information about the classes being offered this spring, as well as a few reminders about requirements for the Major.
If you have any questions about your courses, I encourage you to sign up for a meeting with me at my office in HQ 331 (please only sign up for a 15-minute appointment to begin with, to make room for others). I have added extra hours for the next two weeks, to make sure I can talk with you about your course selections. Send me any specific questions by email in advance, and if possible, bring your up-to-date requirements worksheet (here are the worksheets: literature and comparative cultures; intensive language; translation; and film).
As questions come up, you can also email me at samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, or, to discuss any practical questions, our department administrator, Lisa Tomlin, at lisa.tomlin@yale.edu, or our registrar, Sabrina Whiteman, at sabrina.whiteman@yale.edu. If you need to contact any member of the Comparative Literature department, you can find their email address or check their virtual office hours here. The default method of contact is to email faculty directly.
If you are a senior writing a thesis this semester, you hopefully already have a senior essay advisor and a plan that you have discussed with Moira and/or me for your timing (just the spring semester, or continuing or starting a full year?) and your topic. You are likewise hopefully already in touch with our brilliant senior essay coordinator, Neta Kleine (neta.kleine@yale.edu); if not, write to her immediately. Please review carefully the section of our website that discusses the senior essay, and keep in mind all relevant deadlines. Responding promptly to any questions from Neta and me will help us to keep you on track for graduation.
Three of our four central departmental courses, each of which can fill the second required course slot, will be taught this spring: I will teach the required course in the Intensive Language track, LITR 140, How To Compare; Prof. Peter Cole will teach the required course in the Translation track, LITR 348, The Practice of Literary Translation; and Prof. Moira Fradinger will teach the required course in the film track, LITR 143, Cinema in the World. Students in the Literature and Comparative Cultures track can take any of these three courses. The one course required of students in all of our tracks, LITR 130, Fundamentals of Comparison (formerly How To Read), should be offered next fall, and I encourage you to take it as early as possible.
I’m happy to discuss any questions you may have about whether a given course might satisfy requirements, including a course you may have taken in the past (it’s always helpful to bring along a syllabus from the course).
Let me also remind you that that any literature class, in any department (including English), is potentially eligible for general credit in the Comparative Literature Major, whether or not it carries an LITR number. To discuss whether a particular class qualifies, please contact me.
I look forward to meeting with many of you soon.
With best wishes for the new term,
Samuel Hodgkin
Director of Undergraduate Studies
The Comparative Literature Major