English 241 - The Empire Writes Back: Postcolonial Literature

Introduction to Anglophone fiction, poetry, drama andmemoir from Africa, the Caribbean and South Asia in the aftermath of the British empire. Concerns include the cultural and political work of literature in response to histories of colonial and racial dominance;writers' ambivalence towards English linguistic, literary and cultural legacies;ways literature can (re)construct national identities and histories, andaddress dominant notions of race,class, gender, and sexuality;women writers' distinctivenesss andmodes of contestingpatriarchal and colonial ideologies; global diasporas, migration, globalizationand U.S. imperialism. Readings include Achebe, Adichie, Aidoo, Dangarembga,Walcott, Cliff, Rushdie, Ghosh, Lahiri,Hamid, among others.