If freshman composition is often considered the bane of university first-years, the introductory literature course is merely the butt of a joke. (And good luck to those who try to major in English Lit without suffering the scorn of their so-called friends with “real” majors.)

A sad story, indeed, and sadder still that the cynics are missing out. Here at the Saylor Foundation, we’re proud of our literature courses, and in awe of those who choose to work through them. With pride, we announce that ENGL101: Introduction to Literary Studies is now live on iTunes U.

For those with iOS devices, you’ll learn to throw around words like “discourse,” “narrativity,” and “rhetoric” with authority. You think your friends bring all the drama? Not anymore…your relationships are about to get positively Shakespearean. Seriously…why wait any longer on this decision? Download the course for your iTunes U app or add it to your Saylor ePortfolio right now! While you were chugging through that Orgo class, you were missing some seriously good, fantastical:ly difficult stuff…the whole epic epic-ness of the human story as shouted to the amphitheatres and today broadcast to the stars.

Dana Gioia tells us that:

“Reading is not a timeless, universal capability. Advanced literacy is a specific intellectual skill and social habit that depends on a great many educational, cultural, and economic factors.”

And at the economical price of free, you’re running out of factors to argue against leveling up in literature.

And here’s the coup de grâce…a student in India tells us that:

“I have been using [Saylor.org] to supplement my college lectures in English Literature for a year now. In fact I think that saylor is better than my college lectures.

Aw, shucks. Well, that’s all we’ve got, but we’re always ready to talk literature here (and not only J.K. Rowling’s excellent œuvre). See you in ENGL101!