FGSS 1110

FWS: Intimacy Unleashed: Beyond the Human

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2016-2017.

Most of us have had our own intimate moments shared with our friends, our lovers and our pets, but what does it mean when we no longer perceive ourselves as human in our entanglement with nonhuman beings (a lapdog in 18th-century Britain, atoms of carbon in Futurism, or even a mosquito in South East Asia) that triggers erotic sensations far beyond our imagination? Taking posthumanism, queer theory, and critical race theory as our guiding tools, this course will survey science writing, manifesto, and African-American gay erotica in the context of AIDS, among others, to examine what forms of non-normative sexualities and their potential dangers are unleashed as the human/nonhuman divide is radically challenged. We will approach this topic through lively discussion as well as formal and creative academic essays.

When Offered Fall.

Satisfies Requirement First-Year Writing Seminar.

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