Spring 2008 Courses

English 342-01: Anglophone Literature: Beyond Post-Colonial (James)

M/W/F 9:40-10:40am, THEATR 204

2008 is the 50th Anniversary of Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, the shot heard around the world for post-colonial literature. But in 2007, does the term still apply to the massive growth of fiction in these former colonies, most of it having very little relation to anything European, traditional, or past tense for that matter? This course will explore a few of the seminal works of post-colonial fiction but more so, recent works that depart from that era with tales of grit, urban development and decay, violence and even fantasy. This course will throw light not only on where this fiction has been but where it is now. Readings may include V.S. Naipaul's The Mimic Men, Alain Mabanckou's African Psycho, Zadie Smith's White Teeth, along with works by Chimamanda Adichie, Vikram Chandra, Oonya Kempadoo, Uzodimna Iweala, Anthony Winkler, Kiran Desai, Tony D'Souza and Chris Abani, among others.

This course fulfills the requirement for a course in post-colonial or diasporic literature.

Spring 2008 Course Listings