230578 Black Voices (S) (SoSe 2021)

This class will read and interpret selected works by major black writers from the U.S., the Caribbean, and Canada in context. The objective is to discuss black literary essays, novels, and memoirs as cultural, aesthetic and political texts. Students will engage with selected writings by authors like Zora Neale Hurston, James Baldwin, Jamaica Kincaid, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Edwidge Danticat, Afua Cooper among others. Thematically we will discuss the issues of identity, home, and belonging at the intersection of gender and race. The structure of the class may change if we are confronted with another pure online format in the summer semester 2021. However, students may expect the following requirements: to participate regularly, provide a short written response to each text, and discuss texts in groups and class meetings. If the situation permits an international conference titled “Rethinking Home” at Bielefeld University in May or June 2021, students of the class will be required to participate in selected sessions of the conference program.