ENG 329-01 - Studies in African American Literature

4 credits (Spring)

This course will examine understandings of black multiraciality that have emerged in literary and critical work from the mid-20th century into the early 21st century. We will read plays, novels, short stories, and poetry that feature mixed race subjectivities of African descent. This class takes a diasporic approach by offering a number of texts that pertain to Afro-Latinidad in North America and the Caribbean. We will explore topics such as biological essentialism vs. the social construction of identity; authenticity and performance; social and legal forms of identity categorization and boundary maintenance; possibilities and limitations of literature to enact social reform; and many others.

Prerequisite: ENG 225, ENG 227, ENG 228, ENG 229, ENG 231, ENG 232, or ENG 273.
Instructor: Staff