Home Digital Viral Culture 1

7 Shocking Truths About Columbia University's Literature Humanities (Lit Hum) In 2025

• minute read
Contents

For over 80 years, Columbia University’s Literature Humanities (Lit Hum) has stood as the cornerstone of the Core Curriculum, a legendary, year-long intellectual gauntlet that defines the undergraduate experience. As of the current academic year, the course remains a mandatory rite of passage for all Columbia College freshmen, challenging students to grapple with the foundational texts of human civilization in a rigorous, small-seminar setting. The course, officially designated as HUMA CC1001 and HUMA CC1002, is not merely a reading list; it is an intense, shared conversational experience designed to enhance students' understanding of the main lines of literary and philosophical development that have shaped the world.

The course is not static, however, and recent years—especially leading into the 2025 academic calendar—have seen significant, yet often subtle, shifts that reflect the broader cultural and academic debates surrounding the "Western Canon." Far from being an unchanging roster of ancient texts, the Lit Hum syllabus is an ever-evolving series of carefully selected works, and the latest updates reveal a concerted effort to formally acknowledge the course's evolution while integrating diverse, postcolonial voices that challenge the traditional narrative.

The Evolving Canon: Who and What Defines Literature Humanities in 2025

The Core Curriculum at Columbia College is the central intellectual mission of the university, providing all students with a wide-ranging exposure to the humanities, sciences, and arts regardless of their major. Literature Humanities is arguably the most famous component, often marketed as the most important course any Columbia student takes.

Here is a breakdown of the course’s structure, key figures, and the most recent, essential updates for the 2025 academic year:

1. The Formal Name Change of 2025

In a move that formalizes common practice, the course is officially adopting the name "Literature Humanities" starting in the Fall of 2025. While students and faculty have long referred to it as "Lit Hum," this change signals a departure from any older, more restrictive formal titles that may have emphasized a purely "Western Literature" focus. The shift is subtle but symbolically important, reflecting the course's commitment to evolving beyond a strictly Eurocentric framework while maintaining its focus on significant, challenging texts.

2. The Enduring Pillars of the Lit Hum Syllabus

Despite the changes and debates, the foundation of Literature Humanities remains anchored in the classics. The course is structured chronologically, beginning in the ancient world and progressing through the medieval and early modern periods. The first semester (HUMA CC1001) traditionally focuses on the earliest texts, while the second (HUMA CC1002) continues the journey. The experience is centered on collective exploration in a seminar setting, where books are best understood and appreciated through discussion.

Core, non-negotiable entities that form the spine of the curriculum include:

  • Homer: The Iliad and The Odyssey
  • The Greek Tragedians: Works by Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides
  • Plato: Selections from the Dialogues
  • Virgil: The Aeneid
  • Dante Alighieri: The Inferno (from the Divine Comedy)
  • William Shakespeare: A selection of Tragedies
  • Ovid: Metamorphoses

3. The New Faces Challenging the Western Canon (2024-2025)

The most significant and talked-about update in recent years is the deliberate inclusion of authors who challenge the traditional, exclusively Western narrative. This change is partly a response to decades of student-driven protests advocating for a more inclusive curriculum that reflects a globalized world and addresses postcolonial critiques.

Based on the 2024–2025 syllabus, the following authors and texts have been integrated, providing a crucial, non-Eurocentric lens for students:

  • Toni Morrison: Song of Solomon (A key text by a Black American author, providing a modern, American perspective on epic journeys and legacy.)
  • Claudia Rankine: Citizen: An American Lyric (A contemporary work that uses lyric essay, cultural criticism, and imagery to explore race and citizenship.)
  • Ibn 'Arabi: (A prominent Middle Eastern Sufi mystic and philosopher.)
  • Enheduanna: (An ancient Mesopotamian poet and the earliest known author in history, offering a non-Greek foundational text.)
  • Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: (A Latinx author, nun, and scholar from New Spain, whose work provides a critical perspective on colonial-era intellectual life.)

4. The "Reading Against the Grain" Teaching Method

The teaching methodology in Lit Hum is as crucial as the reading list. Instructors, often a mix of tenured faculty and highly qualified graduate students, employ a technique known as "reading against the grain." This approach encourages students to critically analyze the texts not just for their inherent beauty or philosophical depth, but also for their silences, biases, and historical context. For example, a student might be asked to analyze the role of women or slaves in Homer's epics, or to use a text by Toni Morrison to critique the concepts of 'heroism' presented by Virgil. This critical engagement is what keeps the centuries-old texts fresh and relevant in a 2025 classroom.

5. The Core's Broader Context: Beyond Lit Hum

Literature Humanities does not exist in a vacuum. It is one of several required Core courses that together form a comprehensive liberal arts foundation. Students must also complete courses such as Contemporary Civilization (CC), which focuses on political, social, and ethical thought; University Writing; and Frontiers of Science. The Core is a unified experience, meaning the ideas discussed in a Lit Hum seminar on Plato can, and often do, overlap with discussions in a Contemporary Civilization class on Machiavelli, creating a deeply interconnected intellectual experience.

6. The Controversy of Standardization

A recurring point of internal debate within Columbia is the lack of standardization across different Literature Humanities sections. While the reading list is mandatory, the specific focus, grading criteria, and even the emphasis placed on certain texts can vary widely from one instructor's seminar to the next. While some faculty, such as Professor Gareth Williams, argue for the importance of instructor autonomy in guiding the conversation, this divergence can lead to an uneven student experience. This lack of standardization is a critical factor for prospective students to consider, as the quality of the seminar is heavily influenced by the individual instructor.

7. The Enduring Intellectual Mission

Despite the controversies, the challenges, and the evolution of the syllabus, the fundamental mission of Literature Humanities remains unchanged: to cultivate a habit of critical, collective inquiry. The course forces students to confront "significant and challenging books" that require them to think about how they ought to live and how they should engage with the world. In an era of informational overload and cultural fragmentation, Lit Hum serves as a powerful, shared cultural touchstone, ensuring that every Columbia College graduate, regardless of their major—be it Computer Science or Economics—has a common vocabulary rooted in the great works of human history. This shared foundation is the enduring promise of the Core Curriculum.

7 Shocking Truths About Columbia University's Literature Humanities (Lit Hum) in 2025
columbia university literature humanities
columbia university literature humanities

Detail Author:

  • Name : Carson Senger
  • Username : elisa.kemmer
  • Email : kara.aufderhar@gmail.com
  • Birthdate : 1970-03-24
  • Address : 8136 Feest Parkways Melanybury, NJ 41209
  • Phone : 1-972-539-9603
  • Company : Mueller, Lehner and Pfannerstill
  • Job : Signal Repairer OR Track Switch Repairer
  • Bio : Dolor vitae explicabo sit consequatur pariatur rerum similique autem. Adipisci sequi ut ut. Ut distinctio a nihil dolore. Quo illo rerum voluptatem eum et.

Socials

linkedin:

twitter:

  • url : https://twitter.com/hermanne
  • username : hermanne
  • bio : Maiores earum quas in laborum aliquam. Sint vitae voluptas minus ut est.
  • followers : 1980
  • following : 2011

instagram:

facebook:

Random Posts