To many people, challenging the boundaries between the traditional disciplines in foreign language studies means doing cultural studies. The aim of this article is to pull in a different direction by suggesting how the interface between linguistics and literature may be another fertile field to explore in the study and teaching of foreign languages. Not only may linguistics and literature be employed to shed light on each other, the insights gained may furthermore prove useful in a broader context in our foreign language studies. The article will begin with a brief introduction to literary linguistics in general and to Hallidayan linguistics in particular. The theoretical framework thus laid out, I will exemplify how Halliday’s theory of language may be employed in the analysis of literature, and will conclude by considering the possible status of literary linguistics in a broader perspective within our foreign language studies.