English, a universal language, is a phenomenon that cuts across geographical and cultural boundaries and unifies the world as a whole. In the contemporary global scenario, English has grown by leaps and bounds and positioned itself as the language of education, technology, science, trade and cross-cultural relations. In addition to its basic tenet which caters to help widen the learners’ perspective by introducing them to various cultures across the globe, English Literature as a discipline furnishes the inculcation of values, enriches communicative skills, and thereby grooms the holistic development of the youth. Learning literature thus provides with an opportunity to strive, to seek, to find and to live life to the lees.
The Department of English had its inception when the college was revived in 1966 with only the general English programme for the Pre-University Courses. The year 1977 saw the budding of the Under-graduate Programme. It was elevated as a Post-Graduate Department in 1979. The Under-graduate and the Post-graduate Programmes were accommodated for the self-financing stream in 2010 and 2012 respectively. The Department saw the advent of Part-time M.Phil. Research Programme in 1988. The full-time M.Phil. programme was brought in from 2014. The dawn of Doctoral Research Programme in 1994 is yet another milestone which carved us into a full-fledged Research Department.
The department has thus grown from strength to strength under the committed and competent leadership of the previous Heads namely Professor D. Swamiraj, who was the principal of the college from 1974 to 1996, and was the Director of the college till 2007, Mr. P. Natarajan, Mr. P. Cruz (Head i/c), Dr. Pauline Sathiamurthy who later became the General Secretary of the CSI Synod, Dr. R. Appadurai and Dr. R. Roopkumar Balasingh. Dr. Roopkumar Balasingh, was awarded Professor Emeritus by the UGC, the first teacher to be awarded this honour in the history of Bishop Heber College and the Aided Colleges of Tamil Nadu.
The Department is chiefly interested in opening fresh avenues for personality development and command of language skills along with the acquisition of knowledge of the subject, English Literature. It offers need-based programmes, provided in an academic environment of quality higher education, and imbibes essential and universal values implicit in literature and life. The students, especially from the under-privileged stratum, are trained to acquire English communicative skills along with the knowledge about varied social and national values obtained from the study of literatures written in English around the globe.
FacultyThe Department encompasses a team of resourceful and skilled teaching faculty with vast experience in teaching and research. The research expertise among the faculty members is distinct and diverse. The prowess and acumen of the members of the faculty are reflected in their publication of research papers, journals, articles and in their publications of books.
To inculcate aesthetic sense, creativity, and human values through excellence in the studies of English Language and Literature.