LGTBQ+ Experiences & Lit

Catalog description

This course introduces students to significant literature and experiences of LGBTQ+ Culture and the major concepts and political issues that shape gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer experiences through literary and cultural productions. Most texts in this course are interested in various forms of same-sex desire as well as complicating conceptions and conflations of sexual identity and gender identity. This course will take a cultural studies approach in order to understand texts in relation to context – to see how historical contingencies and political debates inform literature, as well as to see how literature and culture can inform (and challenge) public and political opinion. Texts may include fiction, nonfiction, plays, documentaries, films, poetry, scholarly journal articles, memoirs, and other genres. While a prior familiarity with queer theory or LGBTQ+ literature is not required, a commitment to anti-homophobic inquiry is crucial to engaging respectfully with the course material and subject matter.