What does this research master entail?

Literature in a globalised world

Comparative Literary Studies involves the transnational study of literature from a theoretically informed perspective. The Utrecht programme is distinguished by its comparative approach and its concern with the relations between literature and other forms of culture. The main focus is on literature written in West-European languages in the modern period, but attention is also paid to world literature in translation.

This Research Master’s programme offers you an excellent balance between linguistic variety and general theoretical perspectives on the nature of literature, its past and its future. As a student in this programme, you will learn to analyse the ways in which literature interacts with (and reflects on) its cultural and social environment against the background of globalization and new media technologies.

A comparative approach

The ‘comparative’ approach characteristic for Utrecht is understood to involve comparison between literary phenomena along three principal axes:

• transculturality (how does literature reflect and negotiate cultural differences and operate across national borders?)
• mediality (how does literature work as a medium and relate to other forms of cultural and knowledge production? how are literary phenomena adapted to other media? )
• memory (how do stories and cultural forms survive across generations and how are they transformed across time?)

After Graduation

As a graduate of this programme, you will have:

• Advanced knowledge of literary studies, particularly in the literary cultures of the modern period.
• Thorough knowledge in a specialism within the field or at the interface with another field.
• The academic skills to independently identify, formulate, analyse, and suggest possible solutions to theoretical and conceptual problems in the field of literary studies.
• The academic skills to conduct original research in the field of literary studies.
• The ability to communicate your literary research findings in a manner that meets the standards of this discipline.
• The skills to apply your knowledge in a professional academic manner.
• The qualifications to obtain a career as a literary researcher or to acquire a PhD position in this field.

Academic career

After successfully completing the Research Master’s programme in Comparative Literary Studies, you will be able to formulate a research proposal for a PhD project in your specialism within the field of literary studies.