The other day I was standing in line for coffee, silently cursing to myself because I had forgotten my headphones and was forced to listen to the bustling conversations around me.
Yet, one conversation stood out the most: the two boys in front of me were arguing about how hard their finals would be, almost competing as if they wanted more tests just to prove their stress levels were higher. I wanted to roll my eyes. But then I heard one of them say, "Maybe I should have just majored in English. That shit is so easy."
I almost scoffed. But, as a writer, I stayed silent and fueled the energy into writing this piece. Of course, the kid didn't know I was an English major, but still, the comment angered me because the conception about how majoring in English is 'easy' is apparently wide-spread.
I'll be the first to admit, I don't have to take many tests, nor do I have to study as much as other majors. Still, that doesn't mean my major is easy. While engineers and bio majors are studying for hours, I'm spending the majority of my time writing ten-page papers.
People seemingly assume that the English courses I take are similar to high school English classes; not that those were easy, but taking four plus English classes at one time is even more difficult. Majoring in English is so much more than discussing books and writing about common literary themes; it's about analyzing quotes, creating a thesis, then arguing about it for six or seven pages. And sometimes we do have random reading tests and quizzes where you're forced to remember the color of the shirt the character on page 231 was wearing.
Writing is not as easy as it sounds. Not everyone can write, and not everyone can write well. In fact, writing is a skill not everyone can master. Therefore, we need English majors in this world.
We're perfecting our craft. We're learning how to think both critically and creatively.
We may not be studying as much as the next major, but we certainly don't have it "easy." Really, I'd love for the people who shame English majors to have the will to sit down and write three ten page papers within two weeks. Believe me, it's not as easy as it sounds.
I work hard in my major, and I get good grades... but that is not because my classes are 'easy.' The classes are work-intensive and time-consuming, and I'm proud to be an English major.
