When it comes to the best major at St. Olaf, the English major simply has no competition. Coming into college, I had a plan. I would major in political science and take on a concentration in international relations. Perhaps I’d go on to work in diplomacy for the U.S. government.
My life was forever changed when I took a course titled “Arthurian Legends and Literature” with — now retired, tragically — English professor Karen Cherewatuk. Tell me, in what other major would you get to take a class where you read Arthurian legends in Middle English and watch “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” as an assignment?
I would also like to take this time to acknowledge “Old and Middle English,” another Cherewatuk class that holds a special place in my heart. Without having taken this course, I may never have read — and fallen in love with — “The Canterbury Tales,” and I certainly would never have memorized and recited the first twenty lines in the original Middle English.
Being an English major is akin to being a member of an exclusive book club. In fact, some of the classes I’ve had have been just that — a book club. Special accolades in this regard are due to the “Literature & Film” course I had the pleasure of taking with Professor Björn Nordfjörd. For the class, we were expected to read and show up ready to discuss what we’d read. My favorite part? Reading “Little Women” and watching three — yes, three! — different film adaptations of the novel. Among the other fantastic courses I’ve taken to complete my major are “Global Shakespeares,” “Writing America,” and “The City in Literature and Film.” Respectfully, there is no way that “Cell Biology” or “Corporate Finance” are anywhere near as enjoyable as an English class.
To be an English major is to be a part of the most wonderful community. Made up of the professors and my fellow majors, there is no cozier environment on campus. Known for bringing baked goods to class, English professors are simultaneously the kindest and silliest people alive. My fellow majors are sweet, nerdy, and the epitome of the “bookworm” stereotype. So, despite the knowledge that I will never make six figures in my future career, I could not be more pleased to have fallen into such a fantastic major.
