Comparative literature is the study of cultural expression across linguistic boundaries. At Brown, the Department of Comparative Literature is distinct in its conviction that literary research and instruction must be international in character, and its undergraduate and graduate programs are considered among the finest in the country. Undergraduate students study a generous range of literary works – from Western cultures, both ancient and modern, to Chinese, Japanese, and Arabic – to develop a critical understanding of how cultures differ from one another.
Comparative Literature
Comparative Literature
Comparative Literature
In the spirit of Brown's Open Curriculum, a concentration in Comparative Literature affords great academic freedom.
The graduate program in Comparative Literature at Brown offers a vigorous and comprehensive exploration of literature and culture.
Recent News
Check out the latest news in CompLit@Brown. You can find more stories on the News & Events page.
The Brown Daily Herald
Author R.F. Kuang addresses campus at comparative literature department event
Written by Comp Lit concentrator, Seoeun Choi: During her lecture, best-selling Chinese American fantasy author and translator Rebecca Kuang addressed the themes of mimicry, a practice where colonizers force colonies to take up the colonizer’s language, and the ambivalence of colonial discourse. “There’s something very sad about this mimicry … but it can also be an insurgent act,” she said. “Mimicry radically revalues the priority of race, writing and history. It deauthorizes the colonizer.”
Read Article
“What I Am Thinking About Now” is an informal workshop/seminar series where faculty and advanced students present recently published works and works in progress for early-stage feedback and development.
Read Article
Lucas Joshi, who has deferred matriculation in the Ph.D. in Comparative Literature to the fall of 2023, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to support a year of research in Goa.
Read Article