Native American Creative Writing

Catalog description

This class will serve a twofold function. It will introduce students to a basic, aesthetic understanding of the short story form. This will involve weekly reading of masterful examples of the form, in-depth discussion of the stories and how they work, and workshop critiques of student work. Over the course of the quarter we will also consider the place of Native fiction within the larger tradition, and how it works, the ways it is the similar and the ways it might be different, and of course how different Native writers have dealt with the set of problems specific to them both as citizens of tribal nations and as artists who must consider and respond to the pressures and expectations typical to colonized peoples. By the close of the course students will have gained a foundational vocabulary and aesthetic perspective that will allow them to reflect on the short story form, and move forward as writer should they feel so inclined. Note: While this course will at times take a POV that allows for discussions particular to Native peoples, it is not an explicitly political course. This class will greatly benefit anyone who wants to begin their training in the discipline of fiction. Note: Students will not be allowed to join this class after the first week of the quarter