Life Writing: Writing About the Self and from Experience
COL 227
Spring 2021 not offered
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| This course may be repeated for credit. |
| Crosslisting:
WRCT 227, ENGL 228 |
| Course Cluster and Certificates: Writing Certificate |
This course will examine both the power and the complexities of writing that derives from personal experience. Topics to be addressed, in turn, are memory (and its reliability); experience (authoritative/reportorial vs. interpretative/symbolic); identity and voice of the narrator; and agency (the degree to which the narrator is in control, or not in control, of the narrative). Types of life writing that will be explored are coming-of-age narratives, illness and trauma narratives, confessional narratives, autobiographical poetry and song lyrics, and interviews/oral histories. Readings and materials include Shadd Maruna, William Styron, Mary Karr, Donna Tartt, James Joyce, and many others. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA COL |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (COL)(ENGL)(ENGL-Creative W)(ENGL-Literature) |
Major Readings:
Readings will include (either in full or excerpts):
Paul John Eakin, HOW OUR LIVES BECOME STORIES: MAKING SELVES
Henry Adams, THE EDUCATION OF HENRY ADAMS
Richard Rodriguez, HUNGER OF MEMORY: THE EDUCATION OF RICHARD RODRIQUEZ
St. Augustine, CONFESSIONS
John Edgar Wideman, BROTHERS AND KEEPERS
Joan Didion, THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING
Esmeralda Santiago, WHEN I WAS PUERTO RICAN
George Plimpton, EDIE
Somerset Maugham, THE SUMMING UP
James Joyce, PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN
and selected fiction and nonfiction by William Styron, Virginia Woolf and Mary Karr.
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Examinations and Assignments:
Students will write three short pieces and one long piece of nonfiction deriving from their personal experience. Student writings will be presented and critiqued in a workshop format. |
Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
Email Professor Charles Barber at cmbarber@wesleyan.edu for instructions on applying for the course. Applicants will complete a short questionnaire and submit a writing sample of at least ten pages. Preference is given to COL majors and upperclassmen, but students majoring in other areas are encouraged to apply. |
| Drop/Add Enrollment Requests | | | | | |
| Total Submitted Requests: 0 | 1st Ranked: 0 | 2nd Ranked: 0 | 3rd Ranked: 0 | 4th Ranked: 0 | Unranked: 0 |
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