English

E112 Foundations in Language and Literature 

Foundations in Language and Literature has four goals: to instill the basics of grammar and rhetoric; to teach students how to approach the study of short fiction, poetry, drama and longer fiction through annotation and reader response; to expose students to one longer work of fiction per trimester; and to present word skills for vocabulary building.  

E113 Foundations in Language and Literature 

Similar in structure and content to English 112, this course provides English language learners additional reinforcement in the basic skills of English, including grammar, organization of essays, spelling, and vocabulary. Daily activities foster conversational English and center around life at Salisbury, especially community experiences such as chapel and school meetings.  

E221 The Writer’s Journey – Honors  

In the honors level English II course, the instructor augments the English 222 syllabus with works appropriate to this level of critical reading, thinking, and writing.  (Permission of the English Department Chair and the Director of Studies is required.)  

E222 The Writer’s Journey   

The Writer’s Journey will focus on the building blocks of reading and writing for all boys of the Fourth Form. Students will read and respond to short nonfiction readings in order to reach the following course goals: to understand and to imitate how writers operate within various rhetorical modes; to learn and apply the grammatical, syntactical, and stylistic rules of standard written English; to successfully analyze one longer work of literary fiction per trimester; and to incorporate supporting evidence into a student’s own writing. Students will also study classic and contemporary works of fiction to build and develop critical reading skills.  

E331A Advanced Placement English Language & Composition  

This course prepares students for the Advanced Placement Examination in English Language and Composition through the study of non-fiction in American literature. The reading list in AP English Language is drawn from a body of non-fiction that dates back to Colonial times and includes such genres as sermons, journals, slave narratives, autobiography, speeches, political documents, and journalism. Students continue to develop reading comprehension and writing skills, while preparing for the AP Exam, which requires their analyzing non-fiction passages in terms of such stylistic elements as diction, syntax, tone, rhetorical techniques, and figurative language.  (Permission of the English Department Chair and the Director of Studies is required, as is additional summer reading.) 

E331H Modes of Written Expression – Honors 

In the honors level English III course, the instructor augments the English 332 syllabus with works appropriate to this level of critical reading, thinking, and writing.  (Permission of the English Department Chair and the Director of Studies is required.) 

E332 Modes of Written Expression   

Modes of Written Expression is a yearlong course that explores various themes and genres within American literature. Student writing in the course revolves around personal, persuasive, and expository essays. While the focus of each trimester will vary according to the instructor, all sections will investigate rhetorical devices, subtext, and context. Students will be asked to consider the author’s audience while integrating evidence into their own writing. During this year, students will refine analytical and discussion skills by questioning and presenting to their peers. In addition to working towards mastery of grammatical rules, students develop voice in their writing as they learn more about how a text’s purpose informs its design. 

E441A Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition

This yearlong course will prepare students to take the Advanced Placement Test in English Literature and Composition. It is a course for students with a serious interest in reading, thinking, talking, and writing about some of the English-speaking world’s greatest literature. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, our principal text, will provide most of the material for a selective survey of literature in English from Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales to contemporary writers such as Derek Walcott, Seamus Heaney, Brian Friel, Nadine Gordimer, and J.M. Coetzee. Shakespeare will be an important focus in the course. In addition to Hamlet, students will study closely a selection of Shakespearean sonnets. In recent years, the AP class has also read Henry IV: Part One. Other key texts will include Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, James Joyce’s Dubliners, Samuel Beckett’s Endgame, and Martin Amis’s The Rachel Papers. Projects assigned throughout the year give students a high degree of responsibility to make presentations and lead discussions. Some of these projects engage students with critical resources about a particular writer or work, which material is then incorporated in both presentations and essays. Students will also practice writing essays following the AP format and rubric as well as becoming familiar with the multiple-choice component of the test. Whether or not a student continues to explore literature in college, he will develop skills in this course that will serve him well in a variety of disciplines throughout the humanities. (Permission of the English Department Chair and the Director of Studies is required, as is additional summer reading.) 

E441H English IV Honors: A Survey of English Literature

English IV Honors is an intensive (but not comprehensive) survey of British literature. The curriculum spans from the 14th to 19th centuries, with a few anachronistic but thematically relevant detours. Students will study many of the canonical works of the English language in order to develop an understanding of the social, political, and literary evolution of British society.  As an honors course, this class will move a brisk pace. Students should expect a rigorous workload in terms of nightly reading assignments. Furthermore, students will write frequently in order to demonstrate their grasp of the material and develop their composition skills.  (Permission of the English Department Chair and the Director of Studies is required.) 

E660CW English: Creative Writing and Poetry 

This year-long senior elective invites students to read like writers and write like artists. The class blends close study of major poets with sustained practice in original creative work. Students will read widely across forms and voices, including poems from across the canon and contemporary pieces drawn from literary stalwarts such as The New Yorker and The Paris Review. The goal is twofold: to sharpen their eye for how language works on the page and to help them build a confident writing life of their own. Throughout the year, students experiment with voice, image, narrative, structure, and revision. Workshops are central. 

The course culminates in a project-based collaboration: producing the school’s literary magazine, The Salisbury Quill. Students will serve as editors, designers, readers, and curators. In doing so they take on the magazine’s mission directly: “The editorial staff of The Quill aims to capture a representation of the finest art and literature available at Salisbury School. We are dedicated to excellence, creativity, and beauty; it is our hope that this collection clearly reflects those qualities.” The magazine becomes both a capstone project and a living demonstration of what students have learned about voice, craft, judgment, and artistic responsibility. 

By year’s end, students will have a polished portfolio of original poems and prose, a deeper understanding of the writers who shaped the art form, and meaningful experience producing a publication that celebrates the creative life of the school.

E660NN English: Narrative Nonfiction 

This elective gives students a deep, practical introduction to journalism through their work on Salisbury’s school newspaper, The Cupola. Students learn how reporters and essayists shape facts into stories that inform, engage, and serve a community. 

The course moves through the major modes of journalism. In the fall, students concentrate on News and Reviews, learning to relay facts and events in a vivid but even-handed way and to offer informed evaluations of campus life, arts, athletics, and broader cultural interests. In the winter, the class turns to Columns, where students develop a distinct voice, experiment with humor, and learn how personal perspective can illuminate a topic without overshadowing it. In the spring, students shift into Feature writing, tackling longer, more ambitious pieces that require deeper reporting, richer context, and a well-developed narrative arc. 

Throughout the year, students operate as writers, editors, photographers, and designers for The Cupola. They take responsibility for pitching stories, shaping drafts, collaborating with peers, and meeting publication deadlines. By the end of the course, each student will have contributed meaningfully to a full year’s worth of issues and will have built a portfolio of narrative nonfiction that reflects growth, independence, and a clear understanding of how strong reporting supports a healthy school community. 

E660AW English: Argumentative and Persuasive Writing 

This year-long course gives students a strong foundation in how ideas gain power on the page and in the room. Students learn to write, organize, prepare, and deliver arguments that persuade, inform, and engage. With a balance of writing and public speaking, the course teaches students how to craft clear claims, support them with evidence, shape lines of reasoning, and adapt their voice to fit purpose and audience. By the end of the year, students will be comfortable thinking on their feet, speaking with confidence, and producing polished argumentative prose. 

The fall centers on competitive and improvisational modes of argument. Students explore parliamentary debate, impromptu speaking, after-dinner speeches, and classic persuasive oration. They learn how to identify clash points, anticipate counterarguments, and develop arguments that are logical, concise, and attuned to audience expectations. Writing assignments during this trimester focus on constructing persuasive essays and effective speech scripts. 

In the winter, students shift to rhetorical study and practice. They examine how context shapes meaning and learn to use the tools of language to accomplish a specific purpose. Through close reading and short analytical pieces, students study models of persuasion and practice using ethos, pathos, logos, and style to strengthen their own writing. Workshops help students refine diction, structure, and tone. The spring turns toward applied speechcraft. Students prepare and deliver speeches across real-world modes: TED-style talks, pitches, tributes, eulogies, and other forms that require clarity, poise, and intentional craft. Writing and speaking feed each other; students draft, revise, rehearse, and reflect as they work toward command of both mediums. 

Across the year, the focus remains steady: learning how to shape ideas so they land with purpose, whether in a debate round, a written argument, or a spoken address. Students leave the course with lasting skills for critical thinking, clear communication, and healthy, productive discussion. 

E660GB English: Great Books 

The best education gives students a constellation of reference points that help them make sense of the world. It offers nodes of connection to long literary traditions, to the wisdom of great minds, and to the shared human experiences that echo across centuries. This course invites students to join that conversation. Through a year-long study of landmark texts, students expand the body of knowledge they carry with them and strengthen their ability to recognize how ideas, themes, and forms speak to one another across time. 

While individual teachers will determine the final reading list, the course may include titles such as Anna Karenina, Pride and Prejudice, The Invisible Man, One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Heart of Darkness. Students will read these texts with an eye toward both their historical impact and their ongoing relevance. Classwork blends close reading, seminar discussion, analytical writing, and occasional creative responses. Students consider how major authors wrestle with questions of justice, love, power, beauty, and the nature of a good life. 

By year’s end, students will have encountered a set of books that anchor their understanding of literature and deepen their capacity to participate in the conversations that shape culture. The aim is not only to study the classics but to build the kind of intellectual memory that strengthens reading, thinking, and citizenship long after they leave Salisbury.   

Honors English   

GRADE: Current Honors & AP Students: Eligible applicants must have an A- or higher in Honors English or AP English Composition. If a student does not meet this requirement, he must pass the placement test to be eligible for an Honors or AP section.

Current Regular English Students: Eligible applicants must have an A or higher in a regular English section through the winter trimester. Any student currently in a regular English section must also pass a placement test to be eligible for an Honors or AP section.

RECOMMENDATION: In consultation with the Honors teachers, the applicant’s current teacher will make a recommendation based on the applicant’s performance, ability, work ethic, and in-class behavior.

** Opportunity to supersede initial placement: If a student does not meet the grade requirement but has demonstrated a strong work ethic and genuine desire to study English at a more rigorous level, he can sit for a 40-minute placement test that will be administered toward the start of the spring trimester (April 4th). This test will be evaluated by the appropriate Honors teacher who will consult with the applicant’s current teacher to make a final decision before the end of the spring trimester.

GRADE: Eligible applicants must have an A- or higher in Honors English or AP English Language & Composition or an A or higher in a regular English section through the winter trimester.

FORMAL APPLICATION: To be considered for an AP English course, a student must write a formal application letter indicating to the appropriate teacher his interest in being considered. In this letter, the applicant will share something about his experiences with literature that will help the teacher gauge both the applicant’s readiness to meet the challenges of the course and the contributions the applicant is likely to make toward the effective growth of the group. The applicant will submit the letter to the appropriate AP English teacher upon returning from mid-winter break. (Feb. 9)

RECOMMENDATION: In consultation with the AP English teachers, the applicant’s current teacher will make a recommendation based on the applicant’s performance, ability, work ethic, and in-class behavior. (Feb. 16)

WRITING SAMPLE: In consultation with his current teacher, the applicant will choose a writing sample to revise and submit to the appropriate AP English teacher for consideration upon returning from spring vacation. (March 29)

MINI-AP EXAM: Applicants are required to sit for a 55-minute exam. This exam will replicate the AP English Language or AP English Literature exams by presenting students with one passage for multiple-choice responses (15 min.) and one passage for written analysis (40 min.). These exams will be evaluated by the AP teachers. This exam will be administered at the start of the spring trimester, conditional on the completion and evaluation of the formal application, the recommendation, and the writing sample (as described above). (March 28)