Kill Anything That Moves: The Vietnam War in Literature and Film
ENGL 244
Fall 2021
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
AMST 295 |
| Course Cluster and Certificates: Asian American Studies |
This course examines various forms of literature and film to understand the legacies of one of the most transformative events in American culture and history: the Vietnam War. "Kill anything that moves" was the order that American soldiers reportedly received while on the ground in Vietnam, yet, to a large extent, the historical focus on the American experience of the conflict has overshadowed other perspectives. Thus, this class will take a comparative approach, exploring works by canonical and noncanonical American, Southeast Asian, and Southeast Asian American authors and directors. Among the diverse genres we will study are prose, poetry, graphic narrative, and narrative and documentary film. To think about the Vietnam War's broader relevance, we will situate the works under study within current debates concerning refugees, genocide, human rights, and the complex politics and aesthetics of war representation. Students will have the opportunity to investigate an under-studied aspect of the Vietnam War toward the end of the semester. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA ENGL |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (AMST)(ENGL)(ENGL-Literature)(HRAD-MN) |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Less than 50% |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
Texts and films we may study include:
Thi Bui, The Best We Could Do
Nha Ca, Mourning Headband for Hue
Michael Cimino, The Deer Hunter
Francis Ford Coppola, Apocalypse Now
Bao Ninh, The Sorrow of War
Rithy Panh, The Missing Picture
Susan Sontag, Trip to Hanoi
Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Sympathizer
Mai Der Vang, selected poetry
Ocean Vuong, selected poetry
Ali Wong, selected works
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Examinations and Assignments:
2 papers, final project, collaborative work |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Class of '22: This course fulfills the Literatures of Difference requirement of the English major and contributes to the American Literature and Race and Ethnicity concentrations.
Class of '23 and beyond: This course fulfills the American Literature and Literary History 3 requirements of the English major. |
| Instructor(s): Nguyen,Marguerite Times: ..T.R.. 01:20PM-02:40PM; Location: FISK404; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 19 | | SR major: 5 | JR major: 5 | | |
| Seats Available: 0 | GRAD: X | SR non-major: 3 | JR non-major: 3 | SO: 3 | FR: 0 |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 22 | 1st Ranked: 1 | 2nd Ranked: 2 | 3rd Ranked: 2 | 4th Ranked: 2 | Unranked: 15 |
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