The last decade has, it seems, been dominated by one kind of crisis and another—economic, social, cultural, and ecological. In these years we have seen neoliberalism fall into a crisis of legitimacy, the rise of social media, endless wars in the middle east, the destruction of democratic norms and rising disbelief in the political process, and, insistently, the evidence of climate catastrophe. How has American fiction spoken of these crises? How have contemporary writers enlisted different subgenres? How have they shaped and deformed narrative? Novelists we will address include: Jesmyn Ward, Blake Butler, B.R. Yeager, Jesse Ball, Ling Ma, and Kathryn Davis. Reading journal, essays, presentation.
Explores major literary and theoretical trends in the Anglo-American tradition after 1945.
Requisites: Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors).
Recommended: Prerequisites ENGL 2102 and ENGL 2058.
Additional Information:Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities
Departmental Category: Critical Studies in English
Taught by Jeremy Green.