Welcome!

ENG 185: Playing With Texts | Dr. Kristen Doyle Highland | MW 12:30- 1:45

Office Hours: MW, 3:30 – 5pm and by appointment | khighland@aus.edu


This course introduces disciplines and topics associated with the study of English. Over this semester, we will be exploring linguistic, literary, and rhetorical topics through viewing and analyzing short texts, including songs, poems, films, short stories, and graphic works.

We will engage in the diverse study of literature, language, and rhetoric through four units:

  • Unit 1. The Literature and Language of the Pandemic
  • Unit 2. Street Art: Rhetoric of the Visual
  • Unit 3. Lyric, Poetry, and Social Justice
  • Unit 4. Language and Literature: Applications and Adaptations

In each unit, we will read and discuss a variety of texts to examine the ways that words and storytelling shape our world and our understanding of it. Throughout the semester, you will have opportunities to engage in your own analytical and creative projects on language and literature.