This program offers students a course of study responsive to the interdisciplinary nature of recent work in literary theory, literature and philosophy. It provides an extensive background in literary history and methods of reading, as well as significant preparation in philosophy and modern theories of language and interpretation informed by research from such fields as anthropology, the humanities, linguistics, psychoanalysis and semiotics. As a site for joint research and inquiry, the philosophy, literature and criticism group seeks to bring into focus such topics as the disciplinary articulation of knowledge and truth, the nature of epistemological and metaphysical foundations, the possibilities and limits of theory, and the politics of understanding and signification. It draws on exceptional campus resources in the areas of philosophy and modern theory of criticism, and seeks to bring these into vital interplay with literary research and work in the visual arts.
Students who enter with a BA earn a PhD in comparative literature with a specialization in the theory of criticism, as well as an MA in philosophy. Students, who are admitted to the program with a master’s degree have a choice between two tracks: the option to pursue a master’s degree in philosophy and a PhD in comparative literature or to earn a PhD in comparative literature with a PLC specialization (without the master’s degree in philosophy). Graduates are qualified for joint appointments in philosophy and literary programs and single appointments in Comparative Literature and national literature departments. Administered by the Comparative Literature Department, the program is supervised directly by the co-directors Gisela Brinker-Gabler (Comparative Literature) and Melissa Zinkin (Philosophy), and a PLC program committee.
Qualified students holding a bachelor’s or master’s degree are eligible for admission (check web site of Binghamton Graduate School). An undergraduate specialization in philosophy or literature is desirable but not essential for admission. Students considered insufficiently prepared for work in the program may be required to do additional work to make up deficiencies.
During the first year of study, students entering with a BA are considered to be enrolled in a master’s-level program. At the end of the fourth semester, students take a four-hour qualifying examination covering some of the core material of the program and approximately one-third of the comprehensive examination reading list. Students entering wih a master’s degree will take a qualifying exam after the second semester of study.
Students who fail the examination may take it once again. Students not admitted to the doctoral level may be permitted to continue work toward a master’s degree in philosophy, comparative literature or a national literature, according to the requirements of the appropriate department.
For students entering with a BA the minimum course requirements for the PhD are 16 courses distributed as follows:
| Courses | Number of Courses |
| Courses with philosophical content (the relevant courses are determined every semester) | 6 |
| COLI 592. Proseminar | 1 |
| COLI 568. History of Criticism and Theory | 1 |
| Literature courses leading to specialization | 6 |
| Electives | 2 |
Some of the specific requirements may be modified on the basis of the student's prior experiences. Students may be asked to take additional courses in philosophy or literature, depending on career goals and specializations. The program normally requires six semesters of full-time coursework beyond the BA.
For students entering with a master's degree, who pursue the option of a master's degree in philosophy and a PhD in comparative literature the minimum requirement are 12 courses, and for students, who earn a PhD in comparative literature with a PLC specialization the minimum requirement is 8 courses. The course of study and the courses required will be determined upon the students' entering the program. In general, half of the required courses will have philosophical content (e.g. primary texts and major figures), and the other half of courses will focus on literature and theory.
Students should realize that the program may require more time for completion than more traditional programs of study. In order to receive a master's degree in philosophy, students must take six courses with some philosophical content; i.e., the courses that include primary texts in the history of philosophy, contemporary philosophy or an explicit philosophical approach to literary texts. Three of the six courses (and two courses only by students entering with a master's degree) must be taken in the Philosophy Department.
Students are required to demonstrate proficiency in French and German. The standard proficiency-level evaluations accepted by the Comparative Literature Department are used. These, however, represent minimal requirements, and students are advised to develop stronger proficiency in languages essential to their dissertations. Students are expected to have satisfied the language requirements by the end of their fifth semester of study.
PLC students take two examinations. The first is a three-hour qualifying examination taken by students entering with a bachelor's degree in the fourth semester and by students entering with a relevant master's degree in the second semester. The examination is based on the PLC background core reading list (comprising philosophical and literary texts respresenting the core of the PLC program) and on the student's coursework. The comprehensive examination is taken after the completion of course requirements and after all proficiencies have been met. This examination consists of three segments: a two part examination of the core of the PLC program (philosophical and literary texts), based on a reading list provided by the student, a field of specialization examination, and an oral examination. After passing the comprehensive examination, a student is admitted to candidacy and is ready to submit a dissertation prospectus and begin work on the dissertation.
Gisela Brinker-Gabler, Comparative Literature,
Program Co-Director
Melissa Zinkin, Philosophy Department,
Program Co-Director
Brett Levinson, Comparative Literature
William Haver, Comparative Literature
The PLC program draws on a rich resource faculty that includes:
Comparative Literature
Gaddis Rose, Marilyn
Pavlovskis-Pettit, Zoja
German
Pages, Neil Christian
English
Spanos, William V.
Philosophy
Allen, Jeffner M.
Bar On, Bat-Ami
Guay, Robert
Pensky, Max A.
Ross, Stephen
Art History
McDonough, Thomas
Tagg, John
The dissertation prospectus (see "PhD Requirements") is normally prepared in close consultation with the faculty member chosen by the student to direct the dissertation; once it is approved a dissertation committee is named and submitted to the Dean of the Graduate School for final approval. The committee consists, normally, of three members, including the director, to which an outside reader, from a department other than comparative literature, is added when the dissertation is in the final stages of preparation. Once formally admitted to candidacy, after having passed the comprehensive examination, the student has five years in which to complete and defend the dissertation.
The dissertation is similar in nature and scope to that required of students in the program in literary studies.
