History and Literature

Number of Concentrators: 118.

1952 Commencement Honors: Cum, 20; Magna, 12; Summa, 1.

Long considered the aristocrat of concentrations, History and Literature still holds its scholarly head above the onslaught of group tutorial. Limiting enrollment to a flexible 50 per class, it demands added work, offers near-individual tutorial, and is consistently high in honors percentages. In fact, it is a field that presumes candidacy for honors.

The additional work comes with the special oral examinations. The Bible, Shakespear, Homer, Thucydides and language proficiency all come under departmental purview, and all must take general exams at the end of the junior year to quality for honors.

Latitude

But the stellar list of tutors and officials, plus the extreme latitude in course selection more than compensates the devoted student for his extra time. Actually, practically any course given by any professor can count toward the eight course requirement. The department stresses hand-tailored programs.

In the days before group tutorial, History and Literature was the only field offering tutorial for all, and even now boasts a well oiled and eminently successful system. With small groups and usually dedicated tutors, there are few complaints. But the assignments are generally quite stiff, and poor preparation is made doubly awkward by the scorn of fellow tutees, most of whom have not only done both the assigned and suggested work, but have read voluminous commentary for free.

Specialization

Once inside the field, each man chooses a special country or period of study, and bases his courses on his choice. The favorite is the Modern Period in two European countries plus America. Then the concentrator leans either to the side of History or Literature, and is ready to begin an arduous three years of intellectual fun. By the time he has taken his qualifying exams, and is ensconced in Senior Tutorial for credit, the honors candidate has nothing to worry about but a March 1st thesis deadline.

Obviously, this is no field for anyone wanting little more than a cocktail knowledge of his concentration. Even non-honors men must purchase their shorn degrees with a 10,000 word essay, also due March 1st. Anyone graduating with a History and Literature diploma has spent several hours wondering if it was worth the effort, and the usual answer is an overwhelming yes.

History and Science

Number of Concentrators: 9.

1952 Honors: Magna, 1.

An ideal field for future doctors and engineers, or for those interested simply in a broad general education background, is History and Science, a relative newcomer to fields of concentration.