21L.709 | Spring 2017 | Undergraduate

Ethnic Literature in America

Course Description

Although this class starts by critically examining the term “ethnic” as it defines a wide range of cultural forms over time, we will focus mostly on contemporary writers. Questions to consider will include: How has ethnic writing changed American culture and renovated forms of literary expression? What are the …
Although this class starts by critically examining the term “ethnic” as it defines a wide range of cultural forms over time, we will focus mostly on contemporary writers. Questions to consider will include: How has ethnic writing changed American culture and renovated forms of literary expression? What are the varieties and nuances of what we might call an ethnic subjectivity? What could it mean to harbor fugitives within the self: transgressive thoughts or a “foreign” identity? And what is the future of “ethnic” literature in a global space?
Learning Resource Types
Written Assignments with Examples
A black and white photograph showing a man walking up the steps to a movie theater with a separate entrance for African Americans.
A photograph of a black man entering a movie theater with a segregated entrance. In this course students will tackle challenging materials to explore how ethnic writing has changed American culture. (This image is in the public domain.)