American Literature Since Mid-20th Century

The
latter half of the 20th century was an incredibly rich time for
American literature—it saw the emergence of new voices and the representation of
previously invisible subjectivities in literature. Literature in these decades
also represented the political concerns and cultural shifts of its times, from Beat
poetry to postmodernism.

 

In
this class, in addition to reading a wide selection of representative works
from the Heath Anthology, we will also delve deeper into works that both represent
the concerns of their milieus and illustrate the best of their genre: Joan
Didion’s essay collection Slouching
Toward Bethlehem
(1968), Toni Morrison’s novel Song of Solomon (1977), Tony Kushner’s play Angels in America (1993), and Alison Bechdel’s graphic novel Fun Home (2006).

 

Texts:

The
Heath Anthology of American Literature; Volume E, 7th Edition

Slouching Toward Bethlehem, Joan Didion

Song of Solomon, Toni Morrison

Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes: Revised
and Complete Edition
, Tony Kushner

Fun Home, Alison Bechdel

 

Requirements:

Informal
writing assignments

Six
reading responses

Two
4-5 page essays

Midterm
and final

Attendance
and participation