About Us
The Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages consists of:
Five Academic Departments
Six Focal Groups
French-Speaking Worlds: Then and Now
The Language Center oversees language instruction at Stanford.
The division brings together scholars and teachers dedicated to the study of literatures, cultures, and languages from humanistic and interdisciplinary perspectives. The departments in the division are distinguished by the quality and versatility of their faculty, a wide variety of approaches to cultural traditions and expressions, and the intense focus on the mastery of languages. This wealth of academic resources, together with small classes and the emphasis on individual advising, creates a superior opportunity for students who wish to be introduced to or develop a deeper understanding of non-English speaking cultures.
The division's Departments and the Language Center offer instruction at all levels, including introductory and general courses that do not require knowledge of a language other than English. These courses satisfy a variety of undergraduate requirements and can serve as a basis for developing a minor or a major program in the member departments. The more advanced and specialized courses requiring skills in a particular language are listed under the relevant departments, as are descriptions of the minor and major programs.
Focal Groups
While the five departments in the Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages serve common interests in literary and cultural traditions and their languages, the DLCL's Focal Groups bring together faculty members and graduate students who share topics and approaches that range across languages and national literatures. These groups are designed to respond directly to the research interests of the faculty as a community, and reflect long-term commitments by the participants. They are conceived as portals that open from the Division outward to the wider community of literary and humanities scholars at Stanford. The membership may include any member of the Stanford faculty or any Ph.D. student with an interest in the topic. Most Focal Groups include participants from several humanities departments outside the DLCL.
Thus the DLCL is characterized by two axes of intellectual inquiry:
the departmental axis, which is organized by language, nation, and culture
the focal axis, which may be organized by genre, period, methodology, or other criteria.
The convergence of the two axes, departments and Focal Groups, locates faculty members and graduate students in at least two intersecting communities. The DLCL believes that this convergence gives institutional form to the intellectual conditions under which many scholars of literature and culture presently work.
Each Focal Group maintains a standing research workshop at which both faculty and graduate student members discuss their work. Several Focal Groups offer formal courses; and all groups are responsible for overseeing research-oriented activities and extracurricular events in the relevant area, including sponsoring conferences, publications, podcasts, and other activities that disseminate the outcomes of their research.
The core mission is to offer Stanford graduate students a space to develop and critique their current projects.
People
Browse the people that work for Stanford's Division of Literature, Cultures, and Languages.
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Marisa Galvez (Medieval Studies), Alexander Key (Middle East Language, Literature, and Culture), Cintia Santana (Modern Languages & Translation Studies), and Joshua Landy (Philosophy, Literature, and the Arts)
Connect with Us
Use these channels to learn more about our department and reach out to us.
Visit our website: http://dlcl.stanford.edu
Email us: dlcl@stanford.edu
Call our main office: (650) 724-1333
Fax our main office: (650) 725-9306
Find Us on Campus or Send Us Mail
Pigott Hall
Building 260, Rooms 127-128
450 Jane Stanford Way
Mail code: 2005
Stanford, CA 94305