Lately I have been thinking about what my English degrees have done for me, not so much in their specifics but in regards to the skills I acquired while studying literature. Then this morning I heard the story “Aspiring Writer Questions Value of English Degree” on the radio. The subject of the story, Heather Lefebvre, says that “her English studies have helped her to be analytical,” and that is exactly the skill I was focusing on. (Lefebvre also became an English major because her mother suggested being a writer as her “back-up plan” if being an actress didn’t work out. I admit that I snorted when I heard that.)
I think a lot of people think of English as a kind of touchy-feely area of study, for people who swoon on misty moors and recite poetry and the like. But the reality is that in order to be a successful English major you have to be able to both understand the emotional content of literature and wield logic with rapier-sharpness. You have to be keenly observant and care about how other people think and act. You must know your own mind well enough and have enough command of language to express your thoughts in an organized, clear, and eloquent manner. And you have to have a creative mind. These are the skills you need to recognize themes and strategies when you encounter them in literature, come up with compelling theses for essays, and to write those essays and take part in classroom discussions.
These aren’t skills that lead to accomplishments that are clear for a lot of people outside the English major community: you’re not building anything tangible or receiving an education that has a clear career path (unless you’re going into teaching, which everyone will assume anyway). However, they are skills that are immensely transferrable to a variety of careers. I regularly imagine how my English skills would help me if I had decided to become a lawyer or an advertising executive or even a police detective.
I didn’t decide to enter those careers, though. I chose to be a writer and an editor, so the benefit of my education has been pretty obvious, but I think what I learned as an English major would help me no matter where I ended up in life.
I enjoyed your comments very much on this subject, I actually have started 3 novels but due to the fact I have no english/lit. education I find it very hard, the will is there but the lack of the education creates a problem.