The Black Bildungsroman
AFAM 210
Fall 2008
| Section:
01
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| Crosslisting:
AMST 287, FGSS 212, ENGL 221 |
The Bildungsroman came into being in late eighteenth century Europe as a novelistic form that traces the BILDUNG--the formation, education, development, socialization--of a young (white, male) protagonist as he matures and assimilates into the dominant norms of his society. This course is designed to explore how African American authors appropriate the Bildungsroman and used the genre as a platform of protest to expose the racial, social and political conditions that robbed protagonists of a happy childhood. By examining critical strategies and aesthetics in a variety of texts, students will develop a deeper understanding of the Bildungsroman, discover whether authors accept or challenge the linearity of the genre's conventions, and determine how gender qualifies representations of development. |
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Essential Capabilities:
None |
| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
HA AFAM |
| Course Format: Lecture / Discussion | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Major Requirement for: None |
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Past Enrollment Probability: Not Available |
| SECTION 01 |
Major Readings: Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore
W.E.B. Dubois, THE SOULS OF BLACK FOLK (1903); Richard Wright, UNCLE TOM'S CHILDREN (1938); Zora Neale Hurston, DUST TRACKS ON A ROAD (1942); Ann Petry, THE STREET (1946); Chester Himes, IF HE HOLLERS LET HIM GO (1946); Gwendolyn Brooks, ANNIE ALLEN (1949) and MAUD MARTHA (1953); James Baldwin, GO TELL IT ON THE MOUNTAIN (1952); Paule Marshall, BROWN GIRL, BROWNSTONE (1959); and Toni Cade Bambara, GORILLA, MY LOVE (1972).
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Examinations and Assignments:
Weekly one-page response papers.
Two papers, one shorter (5-6), one longer (8-10).
Midterm exam.
Final exam.
Active class participation. |
| Instructor(s): Wright,Nazera S. Times: ..T.R.. 01:10PM-02:30PM; Location: FISK404; |
| Total Enrollment Limit: 35 | | SR major: 10 | JR major: 10 | | |
| Seats Available: 13 | GRAD: 0 | SR non-major: 5 | JR non-major: 5 | SO: 5 | FR: 0 |
| 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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