AIS 590

Spring 2008

All Classes
Am Indian Studies Grad Seminar
Course in Catalog
List of Terms offered
Register for Classes

Credit: 4 hours.

May be repeated up to a maximum of 8 hours. Prerequisite: Graduate standing or consent of instructor.

My Favorites
My Schedule
Section Status updates every 10 minutes.
CRN Type Section Time Day Location Instructor Section Details
49236
Lecture-Discussion
G
9:30AM -10:45AM
TR
113 English Building
Parker, R
Part of Term:
1
Date Range:
01/14/08-04/30/08
Section Info:
AIS 590 meets with English 553 American Indian Literature One course cannot "cover" the enormous chronological, cultural, or generic range of Native American literature, but it can gather a sampling of fascinating works, and it can introduce the fields of American Indian literature and American Indian studies both in themselves and in relation to the larger framework of contemporary American literary study. We will begin with oral tales and the practice and theory of translating and writing down Native American oral literature, looking at both older and newer models. Then we will read two novels from the 1930s: John Joseph Mathews' Sundown and D'Arcy McNickle's The Surrounded. In the second half of the semester we will concentrate on fiction and poetry from the great burgeoning of American Indian literature in the last thirty years, including Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, Louise Erdrich's Love Medicine, and Thomas King's Medicine River, as well as poetry by Ray A. Young Bear, Joy Harjo, Erdrich, Chrystos, and Sherman Alexie. Please note that students registered for the class will receive a possibly lengthy reading assignment for the first class at least one week before classes begin. Anyone considering the course is welcome to talk with me before registering (my office is English Building 329). Writing assignments will include your choice of either a) three short-to-medium length papers or b) one short paper followed by a paper that aspires to article scale. Assigned reading will include (tentatively) the novels and poetry listed above, the volumes listed below, and a large amount of additional material. (Students in the class will have the opportunity to prepare a paper for the annual CIC American Indian Studies Consortium Graduate Student Conference, either for 2008 or for 2009.) Paul Radin, The Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology, 1956; Finding the Center: Narrative Poetry of the Zuni Indians, ed. Dennis Tedlock, 1972, 1999; Ray A. Young Bear, Black Eagle Child: The Facepaint Narratives, 1992; R. D. Parker, The Invention of Native American Literature, 2003. Recommended: R. D. Parker, How to Interpret Literature: Critical Theory for Literary and Cultural Studies, 2008.
COURSE EXPLORER
Email: Course Explorer Feedback

OFFICE OF THE REGISTRAR | 901 W. Illinois Street, Urbana, Illinois 61801

Site developed by: Technology Services at Illinois | UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN
1102 Digital Computer Laboratory | MC-256 | Urbana, IL 61801 | phone 217-244-7000