The Thesis Debate

Trisha L. Manoni '99, an English concentrator, wasn't terribly excited at the prospect of spending her senior year writing a thesis. More interested in creative writing than literary criticism, Manoni wanted to take more courses in fiction writing--rather than focusing on a single aspect of literary analysis for one year.

"It took me all of junior year to decide that my last year would be better spent taking seminars and creative writing classes than working on a thesis that I wasn't highly motivated to write," she says.

In the past, Manoni's decision would have meant that she could not graduate with honors, but thanks to recent changes in the English department, she did not sacrifice her chance to earn honors this spring.

One of the oldest and largest departments at the College, English and American Literature and Language last year made writing a thesis optional for honors-track seniors.

Students who want to try for high honors--a magna or summa cum laude degree--must still write a thesis. But students who want to graduate cum laude take two half courses in addition to the 16 half courses required for the honors track.

They are not required to take the two-term senior tutorial, English 99r, which culminates in a thesis.

The class of '98 was the first to have this option. And undergraduates seem to like the change.

Declining Numbers

Around 50 students wrote theses that year, a decrease from the previous year, when 77 students wrote theses. This year, there are 50 thesis-writers. The overall number of undergraduate concentrators in the department has remained about 300 each year.

Last year, 149 students graduated from the English department. Two earned summa cum laude degrees and 27 earned magna cum laude degrees.

English professors say the change provides seniors with more options. In the past, they say, many students wrote mediocre theses simply to graduate with honors.

But some students worry that the new requirements are unfair to thesis writers. Furthermore, they say, the non-thesis honors track will make many regard the concentration as easy.

"English has a reputation among Harvard students for being a relatively fluffy major," says Jenny K. Little '99, who is writing a thesis on Victorian children's literature.

"I personally don't feel that this is the case, but I don't think it does much for this image for the department to allow students to graduate honors without writing a thesis," she says.

Little is among the 50 undergraduates who decided to write a thesis this year. Seventeen students are pursuing the non-thesis honors option.

In the past a thesis was required for graduation with any honors degree, but students who wrote a 40 to 60 page thesis could still graduate cum laude, depending on their thesis and course grades and performance on the eight-hour senior general examination at the end of senior year.

Writing a thesis is an involved process in any department. The English thesis is due a week before spring vacation and is capped at 40 to 60 pages, which makes it one of the shortest at the College.

Students graduating in the year 2000 and beyond will never have to take English 99r.

Instead, seniors who choose to write a thesis will take English 99hf, one full-year half-course. They will receive one half course of credit.

In the fall, they are expected to take four courses in addition to English 99hf. In the spring, they will take three courses in addition to English 99hf. The number of half courses remains 16, however an additional departmental half course is required to replace the spring term of English 99r.

Now, 99r counts as a fourth course for students in both semesters of senior year. This means that theoretically, students currently have much more time to work on their theses during fall term than they will after this year.

Chair's Reservations

Students electing to pursue the honors option without writing a thesis will be responsible for all the requirements, except English 99hf and the thesis. These are replaced with a second 90-level seminar or with a small group course taught by a department faculty member.

According to Marquand Professor of English Lawrence Buell, who is also the department chair, the policy changes were implemented because some students expressed a desire for an alternative track and because faculty members felt that too many of the theses did not represent "real capstone work."

Allowing students to graduate without writing a thesis is a deviation from longstanding tradition. The thesis is a major piece of work that allows students to focus on one topic after spending four years taking courses in wide-ranging types of literature.

I personally had reservations about it when the decision was originally made, because of my belief, which still holds, in the potentially very great importance of the thesis experience in the life of an undergraduate," Buell says.

Students who elect to not write a thesis will still have experience in completing extensive writing projects in the required undergraduate seminars, he adds.

More Options

The new option "has been particularly welcome to strong students who would like to further expand their knowledge of English and American literature in the broader ways that coursework allows, rather than specialize with a thesis," says Katherine E. Boutry, assistant director of undergraduate studies for the English department.

"The department does not want to dissuade students from writing a thesis, but it did want to offer all honors students a choice," says Werner Sollors, Cabot professor of English literature and director of undergraduate studies for the department

"The two programs allow us to meet the needs of both types of honors students," Boutry says.

"The department strongly encouraged juniors to consider not writing a thesis at their honors meeting early last spring," Manoni says. "Kathy Boutry, who held the meeting, told us...that it was better to do well in our English classes senior year than to write a thesis for the sake of writing one."

Manoni says she is happy with her decision not to write a thesis.

"The department places an emphasis on criticism and theory in the study of literature, but after two years as a concentrator I realized that I didn't share this view," she says. "I've learned a tremendous amount in my English classes, but when I read a novel or a poem, I'm far more interested in the craft of writing than in the theory behind it."

In the past, English concentrators have often bemoaned the scarcity of creative writing classes in the department. Students can write creative theses, but they must submit writing samples, and very few are approved.

Many seniors agree with Buell and Boutry that the department is not trying to dissuade them from writing theses, but rather, to provide more choices to meet the needs of students who have different interests.

"They don't want you to feel obliged, like your BA in English is not legit unless you write a 60-page paper," says Leora Bersohn '99, who is writing a thesis on the use of low language in the poems of Philip Larkin and Tony Harrison. "Instead, they only want you to write a thesis if you have some topic you are obsessed with."

The department held two meetings for honors students, one at the end of last year and one at the beginning of this year. The message was that students didn't have to write a thesis.

"I think there was an emphasis [at those meetings] that we don't need to be writing them, which could be interpreted as discouragement," says L. Andrew Cooper '99, who is writing a thesis on literary theory. "I think that they are discouraging people from feeling like they have to write a thesis, but not discouraging people from writing one."

The Consequences

For professors, who were often forced to read theses that they felt were uninspired, the change is welcome.

"Theses written by students who only write them in order to avoid not getting honors are also not likely to be terribly exciting proofs of academic accomplishment," Sollors says.

Little echoes his sentiments.

"Students like me who take the honors track because they want to go to grad school in English are still going to choose to write a thesis. Those who aren't going to go to grad school in English probably don't need to and they shouldn't have to," she says.

Yet she adds that there could be a negative consequence. Thesis writing requires a one-on-one mentorship with a professor within the department as part of the senior tutorial and is a significant body of work.

"It is definitely possible for students to graduate in English without ever having a close relationship with a faculty member," Little says. "That's a shame, and I think that allowing honors without a thesis aggravates this problem."

Little says she received advice from professors advocating either course of action.

"I had some teachers who advocated taking more classes instead, and some who says it would be a life experience," she says. "I think it definitely depends on the student in question."

Manoni also says she received support for her decision to not write one.

"Everyone I spoke to in the department thought my reasons for not writing a thesis were solid, and when I finally made the decision, they were supportive," she says.

English concentrators say that while the change is proving to be a popular one, some students may not recognize the benefits of the new option.

Manoni has met with "a few [people] who are in other concentrations don't think I should still be able to graduate with honors," she says.

"They know I've taken more English classes than non-honors concentrators are required to take, but they think the thesis is a vital element of the honors degree.

"I appreciate what they're saying, and part of me agrees," she says. "But I think the English department has dealt with the issue of fairness to thesis writers."

She cites the fact that high honors are reserved for thesis writers. Honors candidates who choose not to write theses are still required to take general examinations in the spring.

So far at least, both students and faculty seem happy with the increased options.

"I'm happy with my situation, and I think the change is beneficial to the department as a whole," Manoni says.