Autobiographical Writing (Session II)

 

This course will explore how we write the stories of our lives—what ethical consideration we take when writing lives, what we disclose when writing our lives, and the interconnectivity of writing autobiography. We will look at techniques—scene, setting, dialogue, lyric, image, etc.—that writers employ to compose lives, create stories, and construct identity in autobiography. In our discussions, we will consider how personal, social, economic, and cultural influences impact the narratives we write. We will question what stories we can and cannot tell.

We will practice autobiographical writing in many different modes—often pushing the boundaries of the genre. We will investigate autobiography that challenges our perceptions of what it means to tell our stories. By the end of the course students will have a portfolio of their work that demonstrates their understanding of autobiography in its many forms.