History of the Novel

Catalog description

History of the Novel: Can a novel do anything? What is the novel’s capacity for social change? Conversely, how have social issues shaped the history of the novel in America? This course examines the American novel as social commentary from the mid-nineteenth century to the present and interrogates the impact of long-form fiction on American politics and society. How has the American novel been employed as social commentary, and to what ends? We will seek to answer these questions by reading novels confronting racism, slavery, misogyny, and war. In this class, we will read texts by authors like Richard Wright, Kurt Vonnegut, Ralph Ellison, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, and others. Additionally, we will consider the legacy of influential novels by examining similar contemporary texts and modern retellings. Satisfies the LTRQ Ways of Knowing requirement. Satisfies the Historical Approaches requirement of the English major. Satifies Global Literary Theory major requirement. Prerequisites & Notes First-year students require permission of the instructor.