How Others Perceive English Majors

If you adore the world of books, literature, and reading, then becoming an English major may just be right up your alley. The thought of always doing work pertaining to your favorite literary artist and always having the opportunities to write, sounds like a dream to many English majors, but once in college, I've discovered that when it actually comes down to it, everyone around you has their own opinion of what being an English major actually means.

What Teachers See

I found that being an English major, teachers of that category naturally expect you to love all types of literature; American, Brit. Lit., Contemporary, etc. Though some of these may seem interesting, every English major has their own taste in literature and, because we are all human, some things come more natural than others. For me, British Literature was not and still isn't one of those things. It is difficult to understand at most, and bothersome when trying to depict the underline meaning. However, with my major involved, most British Literature professors find it a shock that I would come across such problems.

Going into different English classes as mentioned before, professors naturally believe that if you are a major in the English category, things of such manner will come naturally to you, even if you don't really understand the material. It is your passion after all. Fortunately, I've found that my love for literature has paid off in some respects. I may get frustrated with a professor because of the high standards of quality writing they expect from me, but eventually, something will come and the end result is always a good one.

I noticed that English professors also have a knack for depicting which students are which when it comes to majors. I've had several read my papers and by the way I write analytically, ask me if I am a Psychology major and are seriously surprised when they find out that I am not. For most, I don't sound like an English major and for others when they hear that I am an Art Minor, they start to understand ‘my way of writing' better.

Don't get me wrong, English professors are great and knowledgeable, some even, with a sense of humor. But just like everyone else, they see certain students in their own manner. With that said, the greater part of being an English major with English professors is that they give more energy when taking the time to understand your writing and a lot of those times there is a connection of literature or reading style between student and teacher.

What Students See

The first thing I am asked once a student knows that I am an English major is, ‘so you want to become a teacher?' Apparently, majoring in English always implies that you want to teach your literary wisdom through classrooms to others and nothing more. It is a tiring question but understandable. Many jobs and careers look for that in graduating college students. However, there is so much more to explore than simply teaching others the ways of literature through a desk. Creating your own, for one, travel writing, editing, blogging, analytical work, etc. Being an English major means there is no end to what can be tried.

Ultimately, I am categorized as a book nerd, a writing wiz, and a literary fanatic and while most of this is true, sometimes it's nice not to be categorized as just another English Major who most likely reads and writes on their free time. For those students who are not in the major, they complain about the massive amount of reading and writing that I would have to do, but assume, all these things come naturally. A lot of the times I am asked for assistance in some subjects of literature that may deem difficult for me to understand but to other students, I shouldn't have a problem with any of it.

The same applies to fellow English majors. Many times, especially during class, you can get into conversations with others who are just in love with literature as you are. Then something happens. They start naming all these famous literary authors and naturally expect you to know. They could be British, German, American, you name it and while I do love my literature, it doesn't mean that that my mind is naturally informed of every famous literary person there is to be aware of. It would be nice, of course, but not everything can stick. 

It is fun being an English major. After all, so many people see you in various amounts of light but only you know what you really enjoy or how you really go about your work. You get to meet new people and learn about them from all over the world. And the fact that literature surrounds us, aids others in understanding what you like to write or your literary views on subjects. You do have these high pedestal point of views that most college people have of you but, it wouldn't be college if it wasn't full of its various challenges.