English 146 - Spring, 2017

American Literature 1900-1945

Class Information

Instructor: Shipe, Cara
CRN: 71499
Time: TR 9:00-10:20
Location: 146 Olson

Description

This course will provide an overview of American literature written between 1900 and 1945. We will examine how major developments in literary form correlate with the tumultuous social, technological, intellectual, and political conditions of modernity in the U.S. We will closely attend to the content and form of works from literary traditions including realism, regionalism, modernism, and the Harlem Renaissance in order to think through the ways texts engage questions of national identity in the wake of rapid industrialization, immigration, progressive social movements, imperialism, and global warfare.

Texts will include:

Black Thunder, Arna Bontemps
The House of Mirth, Edith Wharton
Pudd’nhead Wilson and Those Extraordinary Twins, Mark Twain
Black No More, George Schuyler
Uncle Tom’s Children, Richard Wright
The Professor’s House, Willa Cather
ENL 146 Course Reader

Grading

Essay 1, 25%
Essay 2, 30%
Final Exam, 25%
Reading Pop Quizzes, 10%
In-class Work, 10%