ASRC 6941

Twenty-First Century African American Literature

Course Description

Course information provided by the Courses of Study 2014-2015.

This seminar will examine novels, drama, poetry, and theory tied to 21st-century black aesthetics. After the first decade of the 21st century, we can now begin to trace the turns and twists that might define twenty-first century African American literature, visual culture, and performance. We will foreground black satire, black diaspora theory, black queer theory, and the framing of neologisms such as "post-black" and  "post-soul." Our texts may include Michael Thomas' Man Gone Down, Danzy Senna's You are Free, Paul Beatty's Slumberland, Percival Everett's Erasure, Harryette Mullen's Sleeping with the Dictionary, Toni Morrison's A Mercy, Colson Whitehead's Apex Hides the Hurt, Post-Black Plays, Darby English's How to See a Work of Art in Total Darkness, and Kevin Quashie's The Sovereignty of Quiet.

When Offered Spring.

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