English Literature and Philosophy & Ethics

English literature and philosophy and ethics make a compelling combination because both disciplines are, at their heart, concerned with the most important questions humans ask: what is the good life, how should we treat one another, what does it mean to be human, and what can language and narrative tell us about truth and experience? Literature approaches these questions through story, metaphor, and the careful construction of imagined worlds. Philosophy approaches them through argument, logical analysis, and the interrogation of concepts.

Together they develop an unusually rigorous and humane way of thinking.

This programme at Liverpool Hope University is a four-year full-time degree that includes a foundation year, providing a structured and supported entry into degree-level study. Liverpool itself offers an ideal cultural environment for English literature, with its literary festivals, independent bookshops, and institutions such as The Reader Organisation in nearby Calderstones Park. You will explore literature from a range of periods, traditions, and cultural contexts, engaging with critical theory and developing your capacity for close reading and analytical writing.

Alongside this, you will study philosophical ethics, examining the major ethical theories and their application to real moral questions. The programme includes a sandwich placement year, a year abroad, and a work placement.

Graduates of English literature and philosophy programmes are well prepared for careers in education, law, the civil service, journalism, publishing, public policy, and the voluntary sector, as well as in business, consultancy, and communications. The capacity for sustained, nuanced argument that both disciplines develop is valued across a wide range of professional contexts. Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in literature, philosophy, law, or ethics, where their interdisciplinary foundation provides a distinct advantage.