Despite the fact that English still remains one of the top ten most popular college majors in the United States, it still has the reputation of being useless/boring/ pretentious/ why-would-anyone-wanna-be-an-English-major-ohmigod-so-lame! And as a result, I've decided to go ahead and spread a little love for all of my English Majors out there. And so without further adieu, here are five reasons why it's better to be an English Major:
1. No math
This one pretty much goes without saying.
2. You get to leave for break early because all of your finals are essays that you turn in electronically
Seriously though, no studying, no tests, just me, my laptop, and a cup of coffee and BOOM! FINAL OVER.
3. Becoming a walking Thesaurus
"The movie wasn't so much sad as it was poignantly melancholy."
4. Good bye text books hello novels!
Plus you get the satisfaction of getting all those literary allusions!
5. You become a more thoughtful person
But in all seriousness, the best thing about studying literature, is how it makes you a more thoughtful and understanding person. When you actually take the time to stop and think about words (as opposed to just glossing over them like we usually do when reading) you open your eyes to a whole other perspective. It's true that you can acquire this skill by other means, but to me, there's nothing more intimate than reading. It's like being invited into another person's brain and experience. To read is to live a thousand different lives and I'll always be grateful to have that as an integral part of my education.