Presidential Seminars 319 - SOUTH ASIANS IN BRITAIN/AMER

This seminar will compare the cultural implications of two recent waves of migration of South Asian peoples: post-World War Two migrations of ?skilled/unskilled? labor to Britain; and the still ongoing, post-1965 migrations to North America. We will focus on cultural production (literature, film, music) that records, reflects on, and seeks to intervene in the cultural processes of such profound shifts. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, we will investigate the causes and consequences of migration and diaspora in their historical, political and economic contexts, emphasizing questions of gender, globalization, community, identity, religious fundamentalism and assimilation. Writers include Rushdie, Naipaul, Kureishi, Jhumpa Lahiri, Monica Ali, among others. Open to students interested in the South Asia Concentration, literature, film, history, anthropology, AMS and SWG, and others. Enrollment limited to 12 juniors and seniors and by permission of the instructor. (E).

Instructor Permission. Limited to juniors, seniors.