Annotation
OBJECTIVES
To explore the ever-changing definitions of the American literary canon, to include the groups that were previously marginalized, to discuss the concepts of gender, ethnicity, duality, hybridity, border and borderland, to apply feminist and post-colonial discourse, to read closely selected texts and to analyze them from different points of view.
MATERIAL
Mainly shorter texts by contemporary American female writers (Oates, Allison, Gaitskkill), Jewish American female writers (Olsen, Paley), African American authors (King, Malcolm X, Baraka, Hansberry, Morrison, Walker), native American writers (Momaday, Silko, Power), Chicanos/Chicanas (Anzaldúa, Cisneros), Asian American authors (Tan, Mukherjee), and Caribbean American writers (Kincaid, Díaz).
ASSESSMENT
Active participation in the course, oral presentation, written pater about 10 pp long (possibly based on the oral presentation, but not necessarily ? while the topic is chosen by the student, it must be relevant to the class work done during the particular semester, and approved by the teacher).