English Literature and Law

English literature and law is a joint degree that brings together two disciplines which, at first glance, might seem very different but which in practice share deep concerns. Both are centrally about language, about how words are used to make arguments, to persuade, to exclude, to reveal and to conceal. Both involve close reading of texts, attention to the implications of specific word choices, and the capacity to construct and evaluate arguments from evidence.

Studying them together sharpens your abilities in both and produces graduates with an unusually rich interpretive toolkit.

At Liverpool Hope University this three-year full-time programme includes a sandwich year, a year abroad and embedded work placement opportunities. Hope is located in Liverpool, a city whose cultural richness genuinely supports literary and creative study, and the programme benefits from the city's literary festivals, independent bookshops and cultural organisations. The programme's description mentions The Reader Organisation, based nearby in Calderstones Park, as an example of the kind of inspiring community institution that connects literature to real lives.

Your literary studies will develop your ability to read closely, to understand texts in their historical and cultural contexts, and to engage with the theoretical frameworks through which literature is analysed. Your law studies will introduce you to legal method, to the major branches of law, and to the ethical and political questions that the law raises and fails to resolve.

Graduates pursue careers in the legal professions, typically following further vocational training, as well as in publishing, journalism, the civil service, policy, education, advocacy and the charity sector. The dual skill set of critical reading and legal reasoning is valued in any role that requires the careful handling of complex texts and arguments. Some graduates go on to postgraduate study in law, literature, creative writing or legal studies.