[‘litərətjʊə(r)]: 3.a. Literary productions as a whole; the body of writings produced in a particular country or period, or in the world in general. Now also in a more restricted sense, applied to writing which has claim to consideration on the ground of beauty of form or emotional effect. (The Oxford English Dictionary)

Research and teaching in the department focus on the literatures of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Central literary texts of all genres and historical epochs from the early modern period to the present day are analyzed and interpreted on the basis of literary concepts, methods and theories. The text-centered view is always combined with reflections on relevant contexts and discourses that point beyond the discipline: History of events, culture, ideas and social history, cultural studies, ecocriticism, gender studies, post-colonial studies, etc. One focus of the research is on contemporary literature and its interpretation in different political and social contexts.