This class serves as an introduction to literature by focusing on the
genre of African American protest literature.
In this course we will examine the literary history of African American
protest literature by interrogating short stories, plays, and novels. For example we will begin class with
Frederick Douglass’s novella The Heroic
Slave before moving to Richard Wright’s Native
Sonand more contemporary manifestations of African American protest
literature such as Ann Petry’s The Street,
Alice Walker’s Meridian, Sam
Greenlee’s political satire The Spook Who
Sat by the Door, andLeroi
Jones’s play Dutchman & The Slave. We will focus on how the political dimensions
of African American literature have shifted over time and in relation to
different political struggles such as the anti-slavery and civil rights
movement.
Course Requirements
*3 Close Readings
*Midterm Paper
*Protocol
*3 scene interpretations
*Final Paper
*Attendance and Participation
Required Texts
·
Walker, Alice. Meridian
·
Jones, Leroi. Dutchman & The Slave
·
Greenlee, Sam. The Spook Who Sat By the Door
·
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun
·
Douglass, Frederick. The Heroic Slave
·
Bambara, Toni. The Salt Eaters
·
Petry, Ann. The Street: A Novel
·
Wright, Richard. Native Son