Master of Arts in English | Concentration in Cultural Studies

 

What is the Concentration in Cultural Studies?

Cultural Studies is the study of literature, music, film, television, games, shopping, sports, comics, animation, bear-baiting, minstrel shows, and so much more. Cultural studies looks at all these things and the theories that help us understand their historical and cultural significance: marxism, feminism, poststructuralism, psychoanalysis, queer theory, postcolonialism, gender theory, digital humanities, race and ethnic studies, affect theory, film and media theory, and more. While cultural studies scholars study many things, they share a commitment to interdisciplinarity, contextualization, and social and community engagement.

Students in this program are introduced to the history of Cultural Studies and the major theoretical influences on the field in a course titled "Theories of Cultural Studies." They then delve into a specific topic in the "Seminar in Cultural Studies" and choose from other advanced courses in literature, criticism, and theory. They may also select relevant courses in other disciplines such as anthropology, geography, history, sociology, philosophy, modern languages, political science, and media and communication studies. At the culmination of their degree, they develop an independent research project. Our courses in Cultural Studies cover a wide range of historical and contemporary topics.

Kansas State University's department of English has offered a master's degree with specialization in Cultural Studies since 1992.

What kinds of projects do students pursue?

Cultural Studies students complete course work and final projects across a range of genres, periods, and authors. Our recent students have written on such topics as cyberpunk and environmentalism, illustrations from Japanese American internment camps during WWII, ethnocracy in Sri Lanka, utopias, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series, Taylor Swift, The Matrix, social marketing, hip hop, cyborgs, Indonesian film, contemporary novels and film, existentialism, science fiction, role-playing games, cyberpunk, wcocriticism, Shakepseare and technology, horror film, the #MeToo Movement, postmodernism, and so much more.

After graduation, may of our students go on to Ph.D. programs. Others have taken jobs in teaching, higher education, not-for-profits, journalism and social media, academic advising, professional writing, the entertainment industry, among other fields.

What types of courses are offered?

Students in this program are introduced to major theoretical influences in a course on "Theories of Cultural Studies," delve into a specific topic in the "Seminar in Cultural Studies," and choose from other advanced courses in literature, criticism, and theory. They also select relevant courses in other disciplines such as women's studies, anthropology, geography, history, sociology, philosophy, modern languages, political science, and mass communications. At the culmination of their degree, they develop an independent research project. Our courses in Cultural Studies cover a range of topics, which might be represented by some of the recent courses we have offered:

For full course descriptions and information, visit the Courses page.

Students also select relevant courses outside the English Department in order to pursue interdisciplinary study in areas such as anthropology, geography, history, sociology, philosophy, modern languages, political science, media and communication . For more information on degree requirements and policies, please visit the department's Graduate Student Handbook.

What is the Cultural Studies Symposium?

The Concentration in Cultural Studies hosts an annual Cultural Studies Symposium which draws important scholars, critics, and writers from around the world. Our 35th Annual Symposium will feature Professor Sianne Ngai (University of Chicago), who will be speaking about her Theory of the Gimmick. This year's symposium is scheduled for Friday, March 6th, 3:30-4:30 p.m., and it may be attended in person at the Union Wildcat Chamber (here on the K-State Campus) or online.

Our tradition of an annual spring symposium began back in 1992. This list of previous conferences offers an overview of the symposium's history.

Who are the faculty and what do they work on?

  • Mark Crosby British literary and visual culture of the eighteenth century and Romantic period, history of ideas, William Blake, and digital humanities.
  • Greg Eiselein American literature and culture (before 1900); contemporary theory and the new cultural studies; multicultural American literature; religion, theory, and culture.
  • Carol Franko Fantasy, science fiction, and utopian literature.
  • Tanya González U.S. Latina/o Studies; American Gothic; U.S. Ethnic American Literature; Media Studies.
  • Dan Hoyt Attitudes toward fame and the famous, Rock and Roll, neurology and literature and culture.
  • Michele Janette Asian-American literature, especially Vietnamese-American literature; representations of the Vietnam War; film; feminist activism; pedagogies for international students in English-language literature courses.
  • Cameron Leader-Picone Contemporary African-American literature and culture; Race in contemporary America; multiculturalism and discourses of colorblindness, post-racialism; representation of race in 21st century African-American literature.
  • A. Abby Knoblauch Feminist rhetorical theories and pedagogies, composition theories and pedagogies, popular culture and the teaching of writing, and maverick rhetorics; rhetorical theories of identification, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and representations of argument in college composition textbooks.
  • Anne Longmuir The Victorian novel, especially works of Charlotte Bronte; Contemporary American Fiction and Postmodernism; Scottish Literature; National identity and the novel.
  • Anuja Madan South Asian Studies; Postcolonial Studies, Children's Literature, Comics, Visual Studies, Cultural Studies, Childhood Studies, Gender and Women Studies.
  • Phillip P. Marzluf Writing of Midwestern Christian homeschooled students; violence and language in Frantz Fanon's manifestos; the eighteenth-century "anthropology" and rhetoric of Lord Monboddo; contemporary English language identity in Mongolia; and the politics of diversity in higher education.
  • Wendy Matlock Medieval literature, especially Middle English debate poetry; law and literature; body in medieval culture; theories of gossip and voyeurism; animal studies.
  • Philip Nel Dr. Seuss, Harry Potter, Postmodernism, radical children's literature, Crockett Johnson and Ruth Krauss.
  • Kara Northway Early modern drama and culture; especially labor and economics, manuscript culture, theater history, and Shakespeare.
  • Tom Sarmiento Filipinx American Literature & Culture; Asian American Literature; Queer Literature & Theory; Feminist Theory; Cultural Studies; Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies; Midwest Literature & Culture; Visual Culture (Television & Film)
  • Kimball Smith Medieval and Renaissance literature; medieval and early modern cartography; contemporary fiction.
  • Lisa Tatonetti Native American literature and culture.
  • Karin Westman The body in modern and contemporary British Literature; cross-over/dual audience texts for child and adult readers; U.S. and U.K book publication.

How do I apply?

Prospective students may apply online. For more information, you can contact the Director of Graduate Studies:

Director of Graduate Studies
Department of English
108 E/CS Bldg.
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506-6501

Office Telephone: (785) 532-6716
FAX: (785) 532-2192
Email: gradeng@ksu.edu
Website: http://www.k-state.edu/english/programs/graduatestudies/index.html

Online Application: http://www.ksu.edu/english/programs/graduatestudies

What financial support is available?

Most students in the Concentration in Cultural Studies are eligible to receive financial assistance in the form of Graduate Teaching Assistantships. For more information about financial aid, go to the Graduate Studies page.

Who can I contact if I want more information?

For more information about the Program or Conference, please contact:

Gregory Eiselein
Concentration Coordinator, Program in Cultural Studies
Department of English
108 English/Counseling Services Building
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506-6501
Phone: (785) 532-6716
E-mail: eiselei@ksu.edu