Africana Studies 301 - Seminar: Black Speculative Literatures

What does it mean to imagine the world otherwise? What does it mean to imagine place, time, space, beingness, and knowingness outside and beyond the realm of the real – beyond the supposed certainty of the known and knowable world? Through science fiction, fantasy, horror, and beyond, this course introduces students to Black writers who have fashioned literary worlds out of conjecture, out of possibility, out of questions and meditation –creating new roots and routes into Black epistemologies, Black livingness, and “Black ways of being.” Through the study of poetry, prose, and fiction, students journey into critical iterations of the Black Speculative literary tradition through the works of writers like George Schuyler, Samuel R. Delany, Octavia E. Butler, Jewelle Gomez, N.K. Jemisin, Tananarive Due, and others. Restrictions: Juniors and seniors only. Enrollment limited to 12. Instructor permission required. (E)

[CE] JR/SR only