Dr. Alison Umminger

Office Hours:  M/W 1:45-3:15 in TLC 2241 (or by appointment)

Email:  aumminge@westga.edu

Office phone:  839 4857

Neo Slave Narratives:  Revisiting the Past – History and Identity in Contemporary

African-American Literature.

Required Texts:

Henry Louis Gates, Jr.:  Classic Slave Narratives (includes Douglass, Jacobs, and

Equiano)

Margarte Walker, Jubilee.

Malcolm X., Autobiography of Malcolm X.

Gayl Jones, Corregidora.

Octavia Butler, Kindred.

Charles Johnson, Middle Passage.

Ishmael Reed, Flight to Canada.

Toni Morrison, Beloved.

J. California Cooper, The Wake of the Wind.

Edward Jones, The Known World.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The past thirty-some years have seen a proliferation in the production of neo-slave narratives by contemporary African-American Authors.  These texts, which build on and revise the “slave narrative” genre are concerned not only with redressing the wrongs and omissions of the past, but in addressing race and identity in the contemporary American context.  We will be looking first at some of the canonical readings in the genre – Jacobs, Douglass, and Equiano – and then turning our attention to nine recent revisions of the genre.  Along the way, we will be asking questions not only about racial identity, but about gender, sexuality, and history.  What is the legacy of slavery and how does it inform the present?  How are both slave narrative and neo-slave narratives informed by gender?  For whom are texts written, with whom are they written, and how do concerns about audience translate into narrative choices?

COURSE GOALS:

·                     Students will become familiar with a range of literary works representing different genres from the African-American tradition, understanding how these works are related to each other and to the larger historical-literary traditions of Africa and America.

·                     Students will know the distinctive properties of literary expression within the African-American tradition.

·                     Students will understand how social, political, economic, and historical conditions influence the production of literary works.

·                     Students will demonstrate in both oral and written work a discipline-specific critical facility through convincing and well-supported analysis of related material.

·                     Students will demonstrate their command of academic English and the tenets of sound composition by means of thesis-driven analytical prose.

·                     Students will learn to use discipline-specific computer technologies related to the study of language such as listservs, word processing, and internet research.

PROGRAM GOALS:

·                     This course fulfills one of the departmental requirements for the completion of the English major.

·                     Students will develop the analytical, oral and written skills to pursue graduate study or careers in teaching, writing, business, and other fields.

·                     Students will be able to define and pursue independent research agendas.

·                     This course contributes to the program goal of equipping students with a foundation in literary history and the issues surrounding literary study in contemporary culture.

·                     This course broadens students’ desire and ability to take pleasure in their encounter with literature.

STUDENT WORK AND WRITING:

First and Foremost:  Late work of ANY KIND will not be accepted.  If you are having a problem completing an assignment, notify me well in advance of the due date.  I may or may not grant you an extension.

Everything you turn in as a formal assignment MUST be typewritten in a standard font.

All reading are due on the day they are assigned – You should have the entire book read on the Monday of each week, though I will try to focus discussion more on the first part of the book on Mondays.

I believe in a dynamic classroom, and I expect each of you to come to class intellectually engaged and ready to participate.  Try to be active readers and have questions and concerns of your own to bring to discussion.  At the same time, I expect you to be respectful of others and mindful of their opinions.

PLAGIARISM:

Any assignment that is plagiarized will receive a grade of zero.  There will be no make-ups, and action will be taken through the appropriate channels if this is a continuing problem.  The Department of English and Philosophy defines plagiarism as taking person credit for the words and ideas of others as they are presented in electronic, print, and verbal sources.  The Department expects that students will accurately credit sources in all assignments.  Plagiarism is grounds for failing the course.

ATTENDANCE:

Students are expected to arrive on time and ready to work.  Any arrival past ten minutes into class will be counted as an absence.  You are allowed three absences over the course of the semester, but you are responsible for work completed on that day and may not turn in work late if you are absent.  After the third absence, your grade will drop one third of a letter (from A to A-, from C+ to C) off of your final grade.  So PLEASE come to class!

REQUIREMENTS:

Two Micro-themes and mini-oral presentations (one single spaced page, 15 minutes at the start of class) (30%); a mid-term (10%); and a final exam (20%); a research paper (12-15 pages, 40%)

MICRO-THEMES:

These are short papers in response to some aspect of the text. Students will make enough copies of the paper for the entire class, and each micro-theme should be followed by three provocative and intelligent questions.  Micro-themes will be presented each Wednesday, and should address one specific aspect of the text that we did not already cover in depth on Monday.  Students should meet with me in advance of their presentations during office hours to discuss the topic they will be covering.  These should be focused and intended to provoke discussion.  Students will read the paper aloud & then we will open the class up for discussion.

CORRESPONDENCE:
All official correspondence must be from your mywestga.edu e-mail address.  I will respond promptly to all e-mails through official channels.

SCHEDULE

August 14 – Introduction to Class

             16 – Mitchell Article:  “Visions and Revisions of Slavery”

             21 – Frederick Douglass (in Gates)

              23 – Frederick Douglass (in Gates)

              28 – Harriet Jacobs (in Gates)

                30 – Harriet Jacobs (in Gates)

September 4 – Olaudah Equiano (in Gates)

               6 – Olaudah Equiano (in Gates)

                11 – Autobiography of Malcolm X

                13 – Autobiography of Malcolm X

                18 – Jubilee

                20 – Jubilee

                25 – Flight to Canada

                27 – Flight to Canada

October   2 – Review for Mid-Term

                 4 – Mid-Term

                 9 – Middle Passage

                11 – Middle Passage

                16 -- Beloved

                18 -- Beloved

                23 -- Corrigedora

                25 -- Corrigedora

                30 -- Kindred

November 1 -- Kindred

                   6 – The Wake of the Wind

                   8 – The Wake of the Wind

                13 – ABSTRACTS FOR FINAL PAPERS DUE – DISCUSSION OF ABSTRACTS

                15 – DISCUSSION OF ABSTRACTS

                20 – The Known World

                22 – The Known World

                27 – First Drafts of Papers Due – In-Class Peer Review

                29 – Work on Papers

December 4 – Review for Final Exam/Evaluations

                6 – Final Exam

FINAL PAPERS ARE DUE TO ME ON DECEMBER 8^th – between 11-12 a.m. in my office, or before