Mothering Memory in Early American Literature
ENGL 264
Summer 2016 not offered
|
This course introduces you to the literary productions of what would eventually become and what is now the United States. We begin with Native American literature from the pre-colonial and colonial periods, and we end with the Civil War. We will discuss the concept of "American Literature" and complex relationship a wide range of writers have had to Enlightenment theories of memory. In particular, we will investigate why subjective memory is often negatively contrasted with objective history, and why these modes are gendered as feminine and masculine. We will interrogate how American author, especially authors of color and women authors, engage this dichotomy. By tracing the development of Enlightenment theories of memory alongside the application of these Enlightenment theories in American literature, we will discover the centrality of memory to Enlightenment ideas of the self that are endemic to American philosophies of democracy. This, in turn, will reveal the powerful narrative of collective memory that is interwoven throughout early American history. |
|
| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA ENGL |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
|
Fulfills a Major Requirement for: None |
Major Readings:
Hannah Crafts, THE BONDWOMAN'S NARRATIVE
eds Michael Rossington and Anne Whitehead, THEORIES OF MEMORY: A READER
Phillis Wheatley, POEMS ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS
Unca Eliza Winkfield, THE FEMALE AMERICAN
I will create a course packet with shorter readings and Enlightenment philosophy
|
Examinations and Assignments:
You will have three scaffolded papers and several smaller assignments in this class. The three scaffolded assignments consist of a Prospectus, a first draft, and a final research paper. The smaller assignments will consist of a paragraph of interest, an annotated bibliography, and several other low-stakes writing assignments. |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
This course fulfills the Literary History 2 and Literatures of Difference major requirements and contributes to the American Literature concentration of the English major. |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
|
|