LIT 220Contemporary African American

Catalog

The course will survey literature by African American authors from the last half of the twentieth century to the present day. We will examine poems, essays, novels and lyrics to explore the Civil Rights Era, Black Feminism, Hip Hop, LGBTQ issues, and the growing number of authors across the African diaspora who write about the African/African American experience. Among the topics we will explore are the oral tradition; the positive and negative effects of the Black arts movement; the re-envisioning of slavery in the modern imagination; intersections of race and sexuality; and cross cultural identities. Students will also explore Boston as a living site for the development of African American literature by visiting museums, landmarks, and attending readings by local African American authors. This course meets the General Education requirement for Creative Work.