Why do we study literature? This is a complex question, as anyone who identifies in this royal “we” would attest.

I begin with simpler questions: Why did Langston Hughes write poetry? Why did Nathaniel Hawthorne ever decide to pick up a pen? Why did Rita Dove first love the art of language?

To me, the most basic answer to these is pretty simple: they all had something to say. So, of course, they pulled up their sleeves, licked the tip of their well-wielded pens, and they wrote.

Sure that’s what the people who wrote our literary classics have to motivate them, but the question still remains about the people who study their works. What do Lit majors have to say? Then, when they’re out in that massive world after college, how do they say it?

I asked recent alumni about their experience with the literature Program at Miami in order to gain more insight.

“Being an English major opened so many doors to me,” says Hailey Gilman (‘16), who now works as an Assistant Account Executive at MullenLowe advertising agency in Boston, Massachusetts. She relocated to Boston independently after she graduated from the Literature Program and proudly boasts, “My boss noted that
seeing my degree on my resume guaranteed that I would have the written communication skills necessary to succeed in the business world.”

The business world is a popular one for literature majors–particularly those inclined to marketing or those who find interest in using their knowledge of language and argumentation to persuade or inform consumers and audiences. In my researching English department grads, I have found quite a few who have taken their skills into a business setting.

Much like Hailey in her field of advertising, Taylor McBroom (‘16) uses her literature-cultivated skills in the marketing industry at HarperCollins Children’s Books. “My time in the English department taught me the valuable skills needed to succeed in publishing outside of editorial,” she says. Taylor is particularly enthusiastic about her English degree, telling me, “I’m forever grateful for my experiences at Miami because they led me to my dream job at HarperCollins!”

Here I find another theme among the recent alumni of Miami’s English Department: the term “dream job” often describes how they feel about their work. A passion for literature seems to mold into a passion for real-world careers. Whether the literature scholar chooses a concentration inside of the world of academia and publishing, or drifts off, like Hailey, to pursue a passion in marketing or law or banking, they take with them a devoted excitement that echoes the focused artistry of their college careers.

In quintessential literary fashion, Lindsay Crist Lawson (‘16) stayed close to home after graduation, but has accomplished the true (bookish) American dream–to live a life surrounded by literature. She is currently a book buying assistant at Joseph-Beth booksellers. “I love having a job where each day is completely immersed in the book world,” she says. Then, thinking back to her time at Miami, studying in Bachelor Hall, “my English degree provided an essential base knowledge of literature that I continue to invoke in my work now.”

In the end, I have found, through talking with these recent alumni, that their love for literature has expanded past the existential crisis that college provides. They’ve taken their analytical lens and applied it to the world. So, I ask, is this what literature majors really do?