[Englmajors] ENGL 358 and ENGL 440

[Bridget Norquist]

Dear English Majors,

We now have course descriptions for two great classes offered during 
Fall Quarter 2009.  ENGL 358 is a Histories of Language and Literature 
course, and ENGL 440 is a Senior Capstone course.  If you are pursuing 
an English Language Arts Endorsement, both of these classes meet the 
"Diverse World Literatures" requirement as well.  If you have any 
questions about our Fall Quarter course offerings, feel free to contact 
the English Advising Office.

Engl. 358: Reading Twentieth-Century African American Literature, 
Professor Habiba Ibrahim

This course is an introduction to some of the theoretical, cultural and 
political contexts of twentieth-century African American literary 
production. Spanning from the beginning of the twentieth century to the 
“postmodern” period of the 1980s and 90s, our goal will be to examine 
how various authors respond to the paradigms of an African American 
literary tradition. In part, we will trace concerns over aesthetics, 
defining black identity and the meaning of community. We will also be 
attentive to how questions of race intersect with concerns over gender, 
sexuality, class and nationality. In addition to a course packet, texts 
might include: Booker T. Washington, Up from Slavery; Ralph Ellison, 
Invisible Man; James Baldwin, Giovanni’s Room; Octavia Butler, Kindred; 
Andrea Lee, Sarah Phillips; George C. Wolfe, The Colored Museum; Danzy 
Senna, Caucasia.


Engl. 440: Black Literary Studies Post Civil Rights, Professor Habiba 
Ibrahim

What cultural, theoretical and political trends inform black literary 
production at the end of the twentieth century, or in the eras through 
out the civil rights movement, the black cultural nationalist movements 
of the late 1960s and 1970s, and integration? In this seminar, we will 
consider the political and institutional demands of formalizing the 
discipline of black literary studies in the academy, and the manner in 
which interdisciplinary approaches have transformed methods for reading 
black literature and culture. A consistent concern will be the stakes 
and criteria for producing, evaluating, and critiquing various forms and 
genres of black literary expression. Many of the critical and literary 
texts to be considered make self-conscious efforts to define the 
intellectual and political stakes for black cultural production, the 
meaning of black identity, and the conditions of community. Texts might 
include: Burgett and Hendler, Keywords for American Cultural Studies; 
Madhu Dubey, Signs and Cities: Black Literary Postmodernism, Winston 
Napier, African American Literary Theory: A Reader; Chester Himes, The 
End of a Primitive; James Baldwin, Another Country; Alice Walker, 
Meridian; Octavia Butler, Kindred; August Wilson, Fences; Lorene Cary, 
Black Ice; Barack Obama, Dreams from My Father.


-- 
Bridget Norquist
Academic Adviser
ENGLISH

ph:  206-543-2634
fax: 206-616-9318

English Advising Office Hours
Mon, Tue, Fri 9:00am - 4pm
Wed and Thurs 9:00am - 7pm

http://depts.washington.edu/engl