English 132

Book List

Egan, Jennifer: A Visit from the Goon Squad; Faulkner, William: As I Lay Dying; Howells, William Dean: The Rise of Silas Lapham; Morrison, Toni: Beloved; O'Connor, Flannery: Wise Blood; Pynchon, Thomas: The Crying of Lot 49; Robinson, Marilynne: Housekeeping; Wharton, Edith: The House of Mirth; Whitehead, Colson: Zone One

Description

This course is a survey of major American novels from the late-nineteenth century to the present, with a focus on realism, naturalism, and modernism. Rather than trace a single history of the novel in this period, we will explore a range of genres that highlight some of the most significant developments in novel form, as well as the cultural and historical contexts they illuminate.

The textbooks for this course will be available at University Press Books, on Bancroft Way.