Interdisciplinary Arts 0238 - American Voices/American Lives

The ability to authentically reproduce the inner and outer lives of real people and to deploy those people as "characters" in scenes that tell true stories are skills that all literary journalists must master. This course-devoted to the reading and writing of portrait/biographies-is intended to develop those skills in aspiring nonfiction narrative writers. Students will be asked to write short portrait/biographies of friends, relatives, acquaintances,and strangers. They will be asked to extend these prose portraits into longer biographies. Such biographies place their subjects in the social, cultural, racial, sexual, economic, and historical worlds they inhabit with the rest of the human race. To find the best interview subjects will require initiative and perseverance. To hear and understand their life stories will require empathy and skepticism. To place their stories in context will require primary and secondary source research. This is not a course for people who are shy or easily discouraged.

Culture, Humanities, and Languages Independent Work Multiple Cultural Perspectives Writing and Research In this course, students are expected to spend at least TEN to TWELVE hours a week of preparation and work outside of class time. This time includes reading, writing, and research.