Fall 2007

E 379S • Contemporary Native American Literature (Senior Seminar)

Course Description

The focus of this class will be a small group of influential, award-winning, and often controversial Native American (American Indian) writers that are part of the first two generations of what has been called the Native American Renaissance. The authors that we read will provide us with the critical framework for our discussions of identity, storytelling, tradition, community, and the representation of Native Americans in popular culture. One primary goal will be to foreground Native historical, cultural, and intellectual contexts and to attempt to understand the readings from within those contexts.

Grading Policy

40% total for five reading responses of two pages each
40% for one research paper of ten pages
20% for participation and various class activities, including presentations

Texts

Alexie, Sherman (Spokane and Coeur d'Alene). Reservation Blues.
Erdrich, Louise (Ojibway or Anishinabe). Tracks.
King, Thomas (Cherokee). The Truth About Stories.
Power, Susan (Standing Rock Dakota). The Grass Dancer.
Silko, Leslie Marmon (Laguna Pueblo). Ceremony.
Selected poems and short stories by Alexie, King, and others in class handouts and selected essays.

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