English 10C-2 - Winter, 2013

Literatures in English III: 1900 to Present

Class Information

Instructor: McMann, Mindi
CRN: 73721
Time: MWF 2:10-3:00
Location: 105 Olson

Description

Twentieth-century literature often depicts the modern world as a place of shifting values and perspectives. Many writers and critics refer to this time as one of dislocation; such a description can be seen as positive or negative. On the one hand, this period is a time of creativity and imagination as regards art and technology. These changes have brought about dramatic changes in our lives and made our lives easier. On the other hand, they have also raised considerable ethical and moral questions. Our world is also one of conflict and alienation (from our homes, families, and traditional narrative forms), a situation that can be both exhilarating and terrifying. In the twentieth- and twenty-first centuries, our ability to destroy each other is balanced by our awareness of the value of others different from ourselves. These are the perspectives and issues that define this course. We will consider how literature – across genres and various Anglophone traditions – represents and interacts with these shifts and changes on both a local and global level.

Grading

Grading:
Participation: 10%
2 Short Writing Assignments: 10% each
Close Reading Paper: 15%
Research Paper: 25%
Final Exam: 15%
Midterm Exam: 15%

Texts

Beloved, Toni Morrison
Death and the King\'s Horseman, Wole Soyinka
Waiting for Godot, Samuel Beckett
Howl, Alan Ginsberg
Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad
Mr. Penumbra\'s 24-Hour Bookstore, Robin Sloan
Course Reader