Literature isn't about writing anymore than Computer Science is about programming. Part of your bad experience seems to stem from you not realizing this. The CS equivalent is assuming you're going to learn how to program in Theory of Computation.
The other part of your bad experience comes from the fact that your instructor was a poor educator. Grading solely based on the instructor's interpretation of the work is the canonical teaching mistake in English. Of course, having a bad instructor will make any course a bad experience, regardless of the discipline.
It's unfortunate your experience was so terrible because I find English to be very worthwhile. I've taken some of the most advanced undergraduate CS courses in the country and they were very worthwhile. Yet AP Engish senior year in high school and one English course in college match the CS courses in terms of being worthwhile.
I think it's best to clarify what I mean by worthwhile. One worthwhile moment in Computer Science was when I finally understood Lisp macros. Another one was when I understood Turing Machines. I'd say I've had about 5 or 6 of these moments over the past few years in CS. These are moments where you feel like you understand something in a fundamentally different and higher way. English produces similar moments, but they are about the world at large instead of just a technical field. Taking one English course per semester has netted me one or two worthwhile moments a month. It's really quite something.
If you're ever given the opportunity, I urge you to give literature another try. It's difficult to find a competent teacher, but it's worth the effort.
I got a lot more out of journalism because it was about how to effectively communicate something to other people, which is an extremely valuable skill. "Learning" to "analyze" (i.e. parrot something the teacher told us. And as far as I can tell he never consulted the author of the work to verify the correctness of his assertions) the symbolism in Ionesco's plays is to me, worthless.
> It's difficult to find a competent teacher
Great teachers in any field are rare, but I found the lit ones to be particularly mediocre. I think it's a field where you can do ok even if you talk out your ass and hand-wave, whereas, say, a physics teacher at least ought to know the material he's teaching, even if he's not the best at conveying it. Truth be told though, the physics teacher I had in HS was one of the really good ones. He was a smart guy, and while at first seemed quite 'harsh', in reality he was demanding and expected precision. I learned a lot from him.
"...but I found the lit ones to be particularly mediocre"
That's a gross generalization. You're basing that statement on your personal experience with many a handful of 'lit' teachers, out of the thousands of lit teachers, and trying to make a generalized statement about all of them? Please.
Maybe the ones you had were mediocre, but just leave it at that.
"I found" ... "I think". The first is certainly my personal experience, and the second is a theory that is clearly labeled as my opinion, which I am entitled to.
The other part of your bad experience comes from the fact that your instructor was a poor educator. Grading solely based on the instructor's interpretation of the work is the canonical teaching mistake in English. Of course, having a bad instructor will make any course a bad experience, regardless of the discipline.
It's unfortunate your experience was so terrible because I find English to be very worthwhile. I've taken some of the most advanced undergraduate CS courses in the country and they were very worthwhile. Yet AP Engish senior year in high school and one English course in college match the CS courses in terms of being worthwhile.
I think it's best to clarify what I mean by worthwhile. One worthwhile moment in Computer Science was when I finally understood Lisp macros. Another one was when I understood Turing Machines. I'd say I've had about 5 or 6 of these moments over the past few years in CS. These are moments where you feel like you understand something in a fundamentally different and higher way. English produces similar moments, but they are about the world at large instead of just a technical field. Taking one English course per semester has netted me one or two worthwhile moments a month. It's really quite something.
If you're ever given the opportunity, I urge you to give literature another try. It's difficult to find a competent teacher, but it's worth the effort.