English 190

Book List

Allison, Dorothy: Bastard Out of Carolina; Jones, Gayl: Corregidora; Nguyen, Viet Thanh: The Sympathizer; Ozick, Cynthia: The Shawl; Ruiz, Ronald: Happy Birthday Jesus; Trumbo, Dalton: Johnny Got His Gun; Wideman, John Edgar: Philadelphia Fire

Description

In this course, we’ll analyze representations of repression and resistance in a collection of contemporary American novels. We’ll examine various forms of repression—physical, social, political, and psychological—represented in these works, and we’ll study the various ways the novels resist repression. (Please be forewarned: some of these works include graphic and disturbing representations of violence and abuse.) Several questions inform the course theme: What are the formal features of the literature of repression and resistance? How is it that literature can convert forms of repression into aesthetically pleasing representations? Can pain and suffering be symbolized, stylized, or transfigured into an aesthetic form and still retain its representational-historical value? At what point does an event become so horrific that it can no longer be represented aesthetically? Where is the line drawn? We’ll make use of a comparative approach to analyze the similarities and differences between the various novels, and we’ll strive for a critical appreciation of both the social significance and the aesthetic quality of the literature. Students will be required to write a research paper and give an oral presentation.

Please read the paragraph about English 190 on page 2 of the instructions area of this Announcement of Classes for more details about enrolling in or wait-listing for this course.