Welcome to World Literature Written in English

Welcome class of Fall 2013.  Here you will find course documents and blog assignments.  We will also share research information and ideas for presentations related to our readings.

You will need to create a gmail account and send me that email address.  Then I can invite you to the blog: http://worldlit295.blogspot.com
 

Major Themes and Questions:

This course will explore some of the major themes of World Literature Written in English. We will discuss a set of questions about the nature of identity in a post-war,  post-colonial and post-modern context.

·      How is identity shaped by the legacy of colonial histories?

·      How do issues of displacement, loss of community, of     homeland affect the formation of identity?

·      How do generational struggles and oppositions play a role in defining the ‘self’?

·      How are women’s identities shaped by a given culture’s patriarchal codes? How are these codes a form of “colonialism”?

·      How do new generations deal with ambivalence and guilt about cultural identity?

·       How do individuals shape paths of resistance and emancipation; how do they speak back within their communities and to the larger communities in which they find themselves?

·      What does the “voice” of the post-colonial subject teach us—about others, about ourselves? 

·      How can we read and discuss post-colonial literature in ways that recognize the dangers of “cultural tourism”; in ways that acknowledge our own internalized colonial values?

Stay tuned for your first blog assignment.